Drug metabolism is the biochemical modification of pharmaceutical substances by living organisms, usually through specialized enzymatic systems. This is a form of xenobiotic metabolism. Drug metabolism often converts lipophilic chemical compounds into more readily excreted hydrophilic products. The rate of metabolism determines the duration and intensity of a drug's pharmacological action.
Drug metabolism can result in toxication or detoxication - the activation or deactivation of the chemical. While both occur, the major metabolites of most drugs are detoxication products.
Drugs are almost all xenobiotics. Other commonly used organic chemicals are also xenobiotics, and are metabolized by the same enzymes as drugs. This provides the opportunity for drug-drug and drug-chemical interactions or reactions.
Read more about Drug Metabolism: Sites, Factors That Affect Drug Metabolism
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