Unlike other pharmacology texts organized by drug class, Principles of Pharmacology integrates relevant knowledge from the basic biomedical sciences - physiology, pathophysiology, cell and molecular biology, biochemistry, anatomy, neurobiology, microbiology and immunology - to build an integrated, conceptual understanding of drug therapy. By discussing the therapeutic and adverse actions of drugs in the framework of the drug's mechanism of action, the book enables students to achieve a level of mastery in pharmacology that far surpasses that achieved by rote memorization. The result is a primary pharmacology textbook that is ideal for a systems-based or discipline-based course in pharmacology.