26.10 Pharmacology and Toxicology

A program that focuses on the scientific study of drug interactions on biological systems and organisms and the sources, chemical properties, biological effects, and therapeutic uses of drugs. Includes instruction in pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics, toxicology, drug therapeutics, drug action, bodily responses to drug events, biochemical proliferation and differentiation, apoptosis, cell biology, medicinal chemistry, and studies of specific drugs and drug interactions.

A program that focuses on the scientific study of the biochemical and biophysical characteristics of drugs at the molecular level and their interaction with, and effects on, biological macromolecules and cellular structures and processes. Includes instruction in molecular biology and biophysics; pharmacology of signal transduction, transmitters, and protein synthesis and release; receptors, protein interaction and binding; drug discovery and recognition; molecular toxicology; drug design; pharmacodynamics; developmental genetics; and studies of therapeutic strategies.

A program that focuses on the scientific study of drugs that modify the function of the brain and central nervous system, the effects of such drugs on health, disease, perception, motor action, and behavior; and the development of countermeasures and treatment therapies. Includes instruction in neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, behavioral neuroscience, neurobiochemistry, neuropathology, the mechanisms of brain function, medicinal chemistry, pharmaceutics, and studies of specific drugs and drug therapies.

A program that focuses on the scientific study of poisons and other biohazards; their interactions with organisms and their food and respiratory systems; and their prevention, management, and counteraction. Includes instruction in toxicological biochemistry, toxic agents and transporters, toxin fate, toxicokinetics and metabolism, toxin classification, molecular toxic mechanisms, extracellular matrices and cell function, bacterial pathogenesis and mutagenesis, pathophysiology and apoptosis, cell stress and injury, studies of specific toxins, and studies of specific organ systems and physiological functions in relation to toxicological problems.

A program that focuses on the scientific study of the genetic determinants of susceptibility to external pollutants and poisons; the interaction of toxic agents with biological systems at the molecular and cellular levels; and the development of countermeasures and treatments. Includes instruction in pharmacogenetics, biomolecular structure, gene expression and regulation, transgenic modeling, toxic events signaling, transcriptional activation, mutagenesis and carcinogenesis, pulmonary toxicology, xenobiotic metabolism, oxidative stress, risk assessment, molecular dosimetry, and studies of specific toxins and treatment therapies.

A program that focuses on the scientific study of the health effects associated with exposure to toxic chemicals and systems occurring in the natural, work, and living environments; the management of environmental toxins and toxicity; and the development of protections for humans, animals, and plants. Includes instruction in applied ecology; microbiology; toxin transport, fate, and degradation; dermal toxicology; reproductive and genetic toxicology; atmospheric and environmental chemistry; metals toxicology; environmental mutagens and biotransformation; nutrient interaction; chemical sensitivity, disorders, and disease; risk assessment; animal waste management; environmental health; and hazardous materials management.

A program with an integrated, combined approach to the study of pharmacological and toxicological issues in biology and the biomedical sciences. Includes instruction in topics such as solvents, xenobiotic metabolism, chemical toxicity, neurotoxicology, immunopharmacology, biotransformation, tissue culture and in vitro studies, biomolecular analysis, bioactivation and inactivation, enzyme regulation, chemoprevention and chemotherapy, industrial and chemical studies, radiation health, and bioinformatics.

Any instructional program in pharmacology and toxicology not listed above.