Whether you are a student, research scientist, or just someone interested in how drugs work, you will find this website of use. On this page you will discover what pharmacology and toxicology is and how they differ from pharmacy.
Are Speights and Panadol killing your liver?
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The Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology offers a wide range of undergraduate study and postgraduate study options.
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What is pharmacology?
Pharmacology is the science of the effects of drugs and other chemicals on biological systems. Pharmacologists investigate how drugs and chemicals affect the individual cell, the organ, and the entire body. The science of pharmacology is at the forefront of modern medicine, designing, developing and testing drugs that have the potential to alleviate, and in some cases cure diseases that afflict both humans and animals.
What is toxicology?
Toxicology is closely related to pharmacology but specializes in the study of the harmful effects of drugs and other chemicals on biological systems. While some toxicologists are concerned with poisons and overdose, others study and provide information about the potentially toxic effects of other chemicals to which we are exposed either deliberately or inadvertently. Environmental toxicology is another important field as it focuses on the potential harm from chemical exposure in both the workplace and the environment.
What is the difference between pharmacology and pharmacy?
Pharmacy is the science of the preparation and dispensing of drugs, whilst pharmacology is the science behind how drugs produce their effects on the body, and what the body does to the drugs we take. We teach pharmacology to the New Zealand National School of Pharmacy’s students (i.e., PHCY258 and PHCY340).
