Indexing principles for Category D - Chemicals and Drugs
Chemicals and Drugs [D]
- Inorganic Chemicals [D01]
- Organic Chemicals [D02]
- Heterocyclic Compounds [D03]
- Polycyclic Compounds [D04]
- Macromolecular Substances [D05]
- Hormones, Hormone Substitutes, and Hormone Antagonists [D06]
- Enzymes and Coenzymes [D08]
- Carbohydrates [D09]
- Lipids [D10]
- Amino Acids, Peptides, and Proteins [D12]
- Nucleic Acids, Nucleotides, and Nucleosides [D13]
- Complex Mixtures [D20]
- Biological Factors [D23]
- Biomedical and Dental Materials [D25]
- Pharmaceutical Preparations [D26]
- Chemical Actions and Uses [D27]
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Category D contains the MeSH terms for drugs and chemicals. In MeSH, the concept of drugs and chemicals is very broad; the terms are often used interchangeably. It includes not only what is commonly known as "therapeutic drugs" (ASPIRIN) and pure chemicals (SODIUM CHLORIDE or ETHYLAMINES), but also a variety of biological substances (ANTIBODIES; AMINO ACIDS; PROTEINS; NUCLEIC ACIDS; VENOMS; PLANT EXTRACTS, etc). It also includes chemicals of environmental or industrial importance (PESTICIDES; CERAMICS). It is the largest MeSH category and is divided into several subcategories. These subcategories group drug and chemical headings by their structure and by their function.
Structural subcategories include: INORGANIC CHEMICALS (D1), ORGANIC CHEMICALS (D2), etc.
Functional subcategories include: CARDIOVASCULAR AGENTS, DERMATOLOGIC AGENTS, etc which are located in subcategory D27 (Chemical Actions and Uses)
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Hormones, enzymes, proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, lipids, and other biomolecules are grouped in separate subcategories.
Drug action or activity is defined broadly by the MeSH term PHARMACOLOGIC ACTIONS.
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