B6 Flashcards
What is vaccination ?
Immunisation against pathogens
How do you immunise somebody?
Giving someone a vaccine made of a dead or inactive pathogen. Stimulates body natural immune system to fight against pathogens
Pros of vaccination?
- help control lots of communicable diseases , once common in the uk
- big outbreaks called epidemics can be prevented, as protected by herd immunity
Cons of vaccination?
- dont always work
- could get a bad reaction
What are painkillers?
Drugs that relieve pain . Dont actually tackle the cause of the disease or kill the pathogen , just reduce the symptoms (aspirin)
What are antibiotics ?
They kill or prevent the growth of the bacteria causing the problem without killing your own body cells. Different antibiotics kill different types of bacteria so it is important to get the right one.(penicillin)
Do antibiotics works on viruses?
No they dont . Viruses take over the body cell which means it is a lot more difficult to kill the disease without killing the cell
What is antibiotic resistant?
Bacteria can mutate, making them immune to antibiotics. When taking antibiotics some of the bacteria may have resistant strains . You will kill the ones that are not resistant and the ones remaining will reproduce rapidly
How to prevent resistant bacteria?
Dont prescribe antibiotics if they are not needed
Where did many drugs come from?
Plants :
Aspirin- painkiller for fever, found in willow
Digitalis -heart drug , originates from foxgloves
How penicillin was discovered?
- alexander flemming was clearing out some petri dishes containing bacteria. He noticed on of the dishes had mould on it and the area around the mould was free from bacteria
- the mould was called penicillin on the petri dish producing a substance that killed bacteria
How are drugs produced these days?
Large scale pharmaceutical industries, synthesised by chemists.
What is the first step of preclinical testing?
First stage of testing when drugs are tested on human cells and tissues in lab. (Cant test drug used for the whole body though)
What is the second step of preclinical testing?
Test drug on live animal
What are drugs tested for?
- toxicity
- efficacy
- dose