RRB Pharmacist Recruitment Exam flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

First-order elimination

A constant fraction of the drug is eliminated per unit time, so half-life is constant and plasma concentration falls exponentially; most drugs follow this pattern at therapeutic doses.

Therapeutic index

The ratio of the toxic dose to the effective dose (TD50/ED50). A low index means narrow safety margin, so drugs such as digoxin, lithium, and warfarin need therapeutic drug monitoring.

Loading dose formula

Loading dose equals volume of distribution multiplied by target plasma concentration divided by bioavailability. It rapidly achieves therapeutic levels, while maintenance dosing replaces eliminated drug.

Noyes–Whitney equation

Dissolution rate is proportional to surface area and solubility, and inversely proportional to particle size and diffusion layer thickness; smaller particles dissolve faster and improve oral bioavailability.

Flocculated suspension

A suspension in which particles form loose aggregates held by weak forces; it sediments quickly but redisperses easily on shaking and resists the formation of a hard, unshakable cake.

Cocoa butter base

A suppository base that melts near body temperature, is polymorphic, and tolerates only limited added solids because excess drug can lower its melting point and soften the product.

Prodrug

An inactive compound converted in the body to an active drug, often to improve absorption or stability. Examples include enalapril to enalaprilat and levodopa to dopamine.

Bioisosterism

Replacement of a functional group with another having similar size and electronic properties, such as hydroxyl with amino, to preserve activity while altering metabolism or reducing toxicity.

Henderson–Hasselbalch equation

pH equals pKa plus the logarithm of the ratio of ionized to unionized drug. It predicts ionization, lipid solubility, absorption, and renal reabsorption of weak acids and bases.

Dragendorff reagent

A potassium bismuth iodide reagent that gives an orange-red precipitate with alkaloids, used to detect alkaloid-bearing plant extracts during pharmacognostic chemical screening.

Saponin identification

Saponins produce persistent foam when shaken with water and hemolyze red blood cells; they are detected by froth formation and hemolysis tests in plant extracts.

Cinching bark alkaloids

Cinchona bark yields quinine and quinidine; quinine treats malaria and quinidine is an antiarrhythmic. The alkaloids are detected by fluorescence and precipitation tests.

Schedule H1 drugs

A category of prescription drugs including certain antibiotics, anti-tuberculosis agents, and sedatives; a separate register must be maintained and kept for three years.

Pharmacy Act 1948

Indian legislation establishing the Pharmacy Council of India and state councils, which set education standards and register qualified pharmacists to regulate pharmacy practice.

Schedule M

Part of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules that prescribes good manufacturing practice requirements, including premises, equipment, and quality control for pharmaceutical manufacture.

Cockcroft–Gault equation

Estimates creatinine clearance from age, weight, sex, and serum creatinine; it guides dose reduction of renally cleared drugs such as aminoglycosides, vancomycin, and digoxin.

Red man syndrome

A non-allergic infusion reaction to vancomycin with flushing and erythema, caused by histamine release; it is prevented by slowing the infusion rate.

Therapeutic drug monitoring

Measurement of plasma drug concentration for low-therapeutic-index drugs; trough samples are taken at steady state, usually after four to five half-lives, and interpreted with clinical findings.

Tidal volume

The volume of air moved into or out of the lungs during a single normal breath, approximately 500 mL in a healthy adult; it differs from vital capacity.

HbA1c

Glycated hemoglobin reflecting average blood glucose over the preceding two to three months; it is used to monitor long-term glycemic control in diabetes mellitus.

Michaelis constant Km

The substrate concentration at which an enzyme works at half its maximum velocity. A low Km indicates high enzyme affinity for substrate, while competitive inhibitors increase apparent Km.

Anion gap

Calculated as sodium minus the sum of chloride and bicarbonate; a raised gap suggests metabolic acidosis from unmeasured acids such as ketones, lactate, or salicylate.

Autoclave conditions

Moist-heat sterilization at 121 degrees Celsius and 15 psi for 15 to 20 minutes, monitored with Geobacillus stearothermophilus spores; it kills spores and sterilizes heat-stable items.

Gram staining

A differential stain in which Gram-positive bacteria retain crystal violet and appear purple due to thick peptidoglycan, while Gram-negative bacteria counterstain pink with safranin.

Membrane filtration

Passing a heat-labile solution through a 0.22 micrometer filter to remove microorganisms; it suits vitamins and antibiotics but does not reliably remove viruses.

Article 32

A fundamental right that allows a citizen to approach the Supreme Court directly for enforcement of fundamental rights; it is called the right to constitutional remedies.

Money bill

A bill dealing only with taxation or government spending; it can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha cannot amend it, only recommend.

Average speed formula

For equal distances traveled at speeds x and y, average speed equals 2xy divided by x plus y; it is the harmonic mean, not the arithmetic average of the speeds.

Compound interest

Interest calculated on the principal plus accumulated interest, giving amount equal to principal times one plus rate over one hundred raised to the number of years.

Ohm's law

Current through a conductor is directly proportional to voltage and inversely proportional to resistance, expressed as V equals IR; power equals voltage times current.

RAM versus ROM

RAM is volatile working memory that loses contents when power is off, while ROM is non-volatile memory holding firmware; cache memory is faster than both.

Phishing

A fraudulent attempt, usually by deceptive email or message, to trick a user into revealing passwords or financial details; it is countered by verification and never sharing credentials.