ABSTRACT
Pharmacodynamics is the study of drug effects and how the drugs act to produce these effects.
Drugs are molecules that produce their effects by interacting with target molecules – usually proteins. See Figure 4.1. When a drug binds to a target protein, there is an alteration of (ongoing) physiological processes. The exceptions to this are laxatives
which exert their effects via osmotic changes (so-called osmotic laxatives) and antacids which are used in the treatment of dyspepsia.
