Drugs

Today was two pracs, one on nervous system with cadavers.

We had two cranial specimens...sorta. Heads. With brain removed. It was to show us where the intervertebral foramen are.

They look like they're sleeping. But I guess everyone does like that.

I don't know how I'm so ok with cadavers. It's kinda weird. I guess I'll talk about it later when I don't have a fever and just want to play games. Sigh. I should study stuff.

Pharmacology lab. We were experimenting with guinea pig illium. Ie; guinea pig guts.

And it spasms and stuff and we rig it up to a force transducer and it jiggles sorta, and then we measure what happens when we add in various agonists and antagonists such as Adrenaline, Histamine, and Atropine (if you know what that is).

Histamine is a chemical mediator of infection which is pre-formed in mast cells close to the site of inflammation. It is short lived, and generally induces pain and the redness/heat around the site.

.....I hope I'm right. Checking it now.

Adrenaline is a neurotransmitter which binds to adrenoreceptors in the sympathetic nervous system which induces all the things associated with the fright, flight or fight response. Ie; fright => flight/fight.

Aha...

Whups, histamine also does vasodilation and increased permeability of tissues so exudates can get in and neutrophils and macrophages which kill all the bacterial stuffs.

Holy crap I understand a lot of this wikipedia page :O

It's magical.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Histamine

Especially the bit about antagonists and sexual libido heh.

Anyway, yes.

Agonists bind to receptors and then induce an effect. Like... Adrenaline and Noradrenaline.

Antagonists bind to receptors and then do nothing. But they block agonists. So like.... morphine. And paracetemol.

Btw, paracetamol produces a toxic chemical which can result in liver damage. So don't take too much panadol!

The chemical is massive. It's like. Whoooooooooooooooooooa big. The name that is.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NAPQI

N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine

 Like, wow.

 And if you're in shock that we used guinea pig gut, it was a simulation :D

Because normally, it would take hours to be able to plot these kinds of graphs. It's sped up and cleaner. Haha.

Oh and oh my gosh so many nerves to learn.

Oh and haha. Drugs have a lot of side effects right? That's because drugs are sometimes very non-specific and therefore act on a multitude of receptors.

For instance, chemotherapy. It's designed to inhibit the replication of fast-replicating cells yes? So that means cancers. But that also means hair as well and possibly the endothelial cells lining the stomach. Basically the stuff that has to endure pH 2.

Also in hormone contraceptives which some girls take to get bigger breasts, however that's not quite... well.

Actually, technically that would be exactly the same. Hormones also act on receptors and such. Again, there are side effects with that, but I'm not entirely sure what. Besides bigger breasts because that's technically a side effect.

Kinda how like weeds are not weeds when someone wants them.

Anyway, how this is relevant is cause my brother is given Zyrtec everyday for what seems to be an overproduction of phlegm.

Now you might be thinking, "wtf, zyrtec is an antihistamine. It's an NSAID! (Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) And it reduces inflammation :O"

Yea, true but NSAIDs have a side effect which is a reduction in the production of mucous. Which means... phlegm and stomach lining :)

There are problems in using the drug like this. Ie; chronic use can lead to stomach ulcers particularly in older people. Plus, if he gets sick with something, it'll take longer for him to recover from it. But in that case, because it's a day by day kind of thing, if he were sick, I'm sure my parents would stop giving it to him.... right?

Hmm I better ask them :o

And I think if I make these kinds of notes and relationships with real-world things, I'll learn med better :D

Now for other things.


BIOHACKATHON TOMORROW D:

Don't forget closed shoes! And I might be bringing my goggles haha. Just in case.

And don't forget to wash hands thoroughly, and don't forget to wear gloves! (I can teach glove taking off and hand washing :O So can andy and mark I bet.)

Also, schleepy head, don't try any of your girly matchmaker stuffs >.>. Not appreciated. Even if your roommate is adorable.

Learning about RICE myself. Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation.

Quick, someone teach me first aid!

Ok, I think that's it. Time to gaaaaaaaaaaaame.

Also Cloudier, if you're reading this I'm sorry I couldn't go to the kickoff for the biohackathon event.

Hoping you guys are having lotsa fun with your degree.