Quantitation in receptor pharmacology.

The activity of drugs on receptors can be visualized in appropriate systems. However, for comparisons of activity to be made, these effects must be quantified. The common currency for this quantitation is the dose-response curve. Thus, the shape, location (along the concentration axis), and maximal asymptote of dose-response curves are used to quantify drug activity and comparisons to mathematical models of receptors are made to describe mechanism of action. This review cites examples of where these quantitative procedure yield information beyond what is readily apparent through observation of the data and thus support the use of quantitative methods to maximize the information gained from experiments.