1.1 PRINCIPLES OF GENERAL PHARMACOLOGY AND TOXICOLOGY
• definition of drug and classification;
• generic drugs and medicinal specialties;
• pharmaceutical forms;
• pharmacokinetic elements:
- routes of administration, absorption, distribution, biotransformation and elimination of drugs,
- bioavailability, plasma half-life, therapeutic index;
• elements of Pharmacodynamics:
- drug-receptor interactions,
- membrane and intracellular receptors,
- main signal transduction pathways,
- receptor agonists and antagonists,
- desensitization, upregulation, downregulation and hypersensitivity,
- dose-effect curves, ED50, LD50, DT50, therapeutic index, therapeutic range;
• drug interactions (pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interactions) and possible clinical therapeutic consequences;
• general principles of toxicology; acute, subacute and chronic toxicity; mutagenesis, carcinogenesis and reproductive toxicology.

1.2 PRINCIPLES OF SPECIAL PHARMACOLOGY
• Framework of the vegetative nervous system with particular reference to the sympathetic nervous system (types of receptors, transmitters, effects)
• Main drugs and drugs of abuse active in the central nervous system and subject to therapeutic or toxicological monitoring:
- stimulants (amphetamine, cocaine, ectasy and related substances);
- inhibiting the activity of the CNS: GHB, ketamine, anxiolytics / hypnotics (benzodiazepines, barbiturates); cannabinoids; analgesic drugs (opiates).
• Other drugs subject to monitoring:
- anabolic drugs; erythropoietin
- glucocorticoids
- Anti-aggregants, anticoagulants, fibrinolytics
• Antibiotic chemotherapy: general principles, different classes (beta-lactams, aminoglycosides, tetracyclines; macrolides; chloramphenicol; fluoroquinolones; trimethoprim sulfonamides)
• Antifungal, antiviral drugs; disinfectants.