Over time I have seen very detailed descriptions about the mechanisms of certain pharmaceuticals and also about biological processes. Things like “this molecules works by binding to this very specific type of receptor found in these areas of the brain/”. How do scientists observe these processes? How do they figure what exactly happens inside the body on those small scales? Also, I do know about autopsies but I’m talking about active processes inside actual living humans.
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Disclaimer: I am not an expert, a lot of what I say might be wrong.
We can’t observe things on the molecular level.
However, we can *model* things on the molecular level.
If we know that drug X has a certain molecular shape, and that receptor Y has an X-shaped hole in it, then it is reasonable to infer that drug X binds to receptor Y. This can be tested by looking at people who have a malformed receptor Y, and what effects drug X has on them; or comapring the effects of drugs that are shaped similarly to X and how well they bind to Y, etc.
We can then tell that the receptors are in part Z of the brain by looking at people who have damage in part Z and what effects that damage has on them, and then testing how they respond to X, etc.
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