Editorial: Pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics (PK/PD) of antibiotics: A reality check

Pharmacodynamics is a scientific field that delves into drugs' intricate biochemical, cellular, and physiological effects on the human body. The study of pharmacodynamics helps us understand how drugs interact with the body and elicit various responses.
Most drugs' effects result from their interactions with drug receptors or targets within the body. These interactions trigger specific responses at the cellular or systemic level. Drug receptors can be found on the surfaces of cells or...

Understanding drugs, drug products, and their performance in pharmaceutical science is pivotal. Drugs, whether simple molecules or complex compounds, are designed to interact with the body's biological systems to diagnose, treat, or prevent diseases. Drug products include various delivery systems such as tablets, capsules, injections, and inhalers. The performance of these drug products is gauged by their ability to deliver the active ingredient to the desired site of action at the...

Pharmacokinetics is a scientific discipline that focuses on the journey of a drug within the body, encompassing four key stages: absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination. The first stage, absorption, involves the drug's transfer into the bloodstream. Several factors dictate the extent and speed of this process. For example, the liver often metabolizes oral drugs before they reach systemic circulation, leading to only partial absorption. In contrast, intravenous (IV)...

A drug's nonlinear kinetics can be influenced by a diverse range of transporter proteins that serve as crucial players in drug distribution. These transporters, found within cells, can enhance or reduce local drug concentrations by facilitating the influx or efflux of drugs. For instance, the expression of xenobiotic transporters can be influenced by factors such as age and gender, potentially impacting the linearity of drug response.
Polymorphisms occurring in drug transporters can alter...

Nonlinear or dose-dependent pharmacokinetics is a phenomenon that occurs when the pharmacokinetic parameters of certain drugs deviate from linear pharmacokinetics at higher doses. These drugs do not follow the expected first-order kinetics, where the rate of drug elimination is directly proportional to the drug concentration. Instead, they exhibit a nonlinear relationship, which can be attributed to several factors.
Nonlinearity can arise due to the saturation of plasma protein-binding or...

Nonlinearity in drug pharmacokinetics is caused by various factors influencing how a drug is absorbed, distributed, metabolized, and excreted. Understanding these nonlinear processes is crucial for predicting drug behavior in the body and optimizing drug dosing regimens.
Nonlinear drug absorption can occur when the process is rate-limited by solubility, carrier-mediated transport systems, or saturation of the presystemic gut wall or hepatic metabolism. For instance, high doses of riboflavin...