The following pharmacological definition has been taken from the Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Department Glossary at Boston University School of Medicine.
Latent Period or Latency:
The period of time that must elapse between the time at which a dose of drug is applied to a biologic system and the time at which a specified pharmacologic effect is produced. In general, the latent period varies inversely with dose; the relationship between dose and latent period for a given agent is described by a time-dose or time-concentration curve.
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