Question

How are drugs classified?

Answer 1

Classification of drugs: Drug care is classified based on their proportions such as chemical structure, pharmacological effect, target system, site of action, etc.

1. Classification based on the chemical structure: In this classification, drugs with a common chemical Skelton are classified into a single group. For example, ampicillin, amoxicillin, methicillin, etc. all have similar structures and are classified into a single group called penicillin.

Similarly, we have other groups of drugs such as opiates, steroids, catecholamines, etc. Compounds having similar chemical structures are expected to have similar chemical properties. However, their biological actions are not always similar.

2. Classification based on the pharmacological effect:

• In this classification, the drugs are grouped based on the biological effect that they produce on the recipient.
• For example, the medicines that have the ability to kill pathogenic bacteria are grouped as antibiotics.
• This kind of grouping will provide the full range of drugs that can be used for a particular disease.

3. Classification based on the target system:

• In this classification, the drugs are grouped based on the biological system (or) process that they target in the recipient.
• This classification is more specific than the pharmacological classification.
• For example, the antibiotics streptomycin and erythromycin inhibit the protein synthesis (target) in bacteria and are classified in the same group. However, their mode of action is different.
• Streptomycin inhibits the initiation of protein synthesis, while erythromycin prevents the incorporation of new amino acids into the protein.

4. Classification based on the site of action:

• The drug molecule interacts with biomolecules such as enzymes, receptors, etc, which are referred to as drug targets.
• We can classify the drug based on the drug target with which it binds.
• This classification is highly specific compared to the others. These compounds often have a common mechanism of action, as the target is the same.