B6 Preventing And Treating Disease Flashcards
Who originally used aspirin and what was it used to treat
Native americans used to chew on bark of a willow tree to reduce pain. Willow bark contains salycilic acid which is now the main ingredient for aspirin
Who originally used quinin and what was it used to treat
The quechua indians of peru used to ground up bark of the cinchona tree. It contained quinine which prevented shivering and we use it now to treat malaria.
Who originally used penicillin and what was it used to treat
Discovered by scientist Alexander Fleming unintentionally when he was tidying his laboratory and found a petri dish with a mould growing on it. He saw the mould killed the bacteria around it. He then worked out what bacteria penicillin could kill.
Who originally used morphine and what was it used to treat
Ancient greek doctors discovered this from unripe seedpods of opium poppies
Who originally used tea tree and what was it used to treat
He australian aborigines rubbed the leaves from the tea tree plant onto their cuts. Recently it has been proven to kill anitbiotic-resistant bacteria
What are the three feautures of a good drug
Effective, safe, stable
What must a drug do to be a good drug
it must prevent or cure a disease, or treat symptoms
VWhat is needed for a good drug to be safe
It must not be too toxic or have dangerous side effects
What is needed for a good drug to be stable
must be able to use the medicine under normal conditions and store it for some time
What is the price to get a drug to your doctors surgery?
1.7billion per drug
What is the process to get a drug to your doctors surgery
Drugs are first tested in a lab using cells, tissues and living animals (preclinical trials)
Then tested in clinical trials using healthy voulenteers and patients
If no side effects are seen, further trials are used to find the optimum dose for the drug
What is a placebo
A fake drug used in clinical trials. Similar to the real drug but doesnt contain the active ingredient
Why are double blind trials the best type of trial.
So there is no bias in the results.
