pharmacology
n.the scientific study of how drugs and medicines work in the body. It looks at how these chemicals are made and how they help treat illnesses.
n.the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action. It encompasses the investigation of chemical properties, biological effects, and therapeutic uses of pharmaceutical substances.
“She is studying pharmacology to become a researcher.”
“Advances in pharmacology have led to the development of more effective treatments for chronic heart disease.”
“The research team published a paper in a leading pharmacology journal detailing how the new compound interacts with specific cellular receptors to inhibit viral replication.”
Uncountable when referring to the field of study; occasionally countable when referring to the specific drug properties of a substance.
“Compounds that had previously been tested only in rodents became fodder for self-experimentation, with bodybuilders posting their experiences and promoting a kind of “folk pharmacology,” Turnock says.”
“My father, Alex Ungar, who has died aged 91, was a senior lecturer in pharmacology at Edinburgh University for more than 20 years, and a former editor of the British Journal of Pharmacology.”
From pharmaco- + -logy.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.