Figure 2

Multi-scale analyses in systems pharmacology. The top half of the figure is a schematic representation of different scales of organization involved in human pathophysiology and systems pharmacology. Clinical indicators and analyses (left) indicate measurements of various types of blood concentrations, blood pressure, stress and so on; these parameters are available in the electronic medical records of patients. From left to right, the scale becomes smaller, or 'zoomed in'. The human body (or organism) can be analyzed at the levels of organs, tissues, cells (represented here together with tissues) or molecules. Drugs are prescribed and taken at the organismal level but exert their effects by interacting with their target at the molecular level (red arrow). The gradient from white to blue corresponds to the various levels of interaction systems: white represents a clinical setting; blue represents a laboratory setting. Studies in systems pharmacology fully span all levels shown here.