History of Drug Use and Development - 1.1

Question 1

Any substance received by biological system not received for nutritive purposes which influences the biological function of the organism

Answer 1

Drugs

Question 2

Science of drugs including uses, effects, and modes of action

Answer 2

Pharmacology

Question 3

Classified drugs according to taste

Answer 3

Ancient China

Question 4

Papyri used as textbook of drug use for medical students, contained true observations on use of drugs

Answer 4

Ancient Egypt

Question 5

Aristotle wrote a textbook on therapeutics that included opium

Answer 5

Ancient Greece

Question 6

Influence of Religion

Answer 6

Medicine men acted as both physicians and priests resulting in therapy heavily influenced by religion and magic.

• plants containing intoxicating substances used by medicine men to alter state of consciousness and facilitate communication with gods

Question 7

Curare

Answer 7

Indigenous people dipped arrows in curare which act upon voluntary muscles causing paralysis and death

• eventually used by anesthetists for surgery in small doses to achieve muscle relaxation
• newer derivatives used today

Question 8

Ergot

Answer 8

Poisonous fungus that grows on heads on rye during wet seasons. Ergot used to be ground together with rye and found its way into bread

Question 9

Symptoms of Ergot Poisoning

Answer 9

• mental frenzy, hallucinations, convulsions
• blood vessel constrictions in fingers, toes, limbs
• violent contractions of uterus (small amounts of ergot seemed useful in hastening labour)

Question 10

Ergotamine and Ergonovine are…

Answer 10

2 active principles isolated from ergot

Question 11

Ergotamine

Answer 11

treatment of migraines through contracting blood vessels which reduces amplitude of pulsation

Question 12

Ergonovine

Answer 12

no longer used to hasten birth but still used in obstetrics to arrest uterine bleeding after birth

Question 13

25% of drugs used today are derived from plant sources with active substances being purified

Answer 13

Drug Discovery

Question 14

Reserpine and Chlorpromazine

Answer 14

Drugs that act on the brain

Question 15

Reserpine

Answer 15

reduced anxiety and tension

• fierce/aggressive monkeys or dogs would become placid after given reserpine

Question 16

Chlorpromazine

Answer 16

preferred drug for management of mentally ill patients since correct dose is easier to determine than for reserpine.

• converts anxiety, tension, and hostility to placidity and tranquility

Question 17

LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)

Answer 17

• synthesized by Albert Hoffman, similar in chemical structure to ergotamine and ergonovine.
• psychedelic effects of LSD support idea that certain mental illnesses are due to production of potent substances in brain that produce psychic disturbance

Question 18

Anesthetics

Answer 18

1. Nitrous Oxide

2. Ether

Question 19

Nitrous Oxide

Answer 19

Wells (dentist) found effect of nitrous oxide (belligerent and feel no pain) to be impressive and tried it for teeth extraction and found it to be useful

Question 20

Ether

Answer 20

Morton (associated with Wells in dentistry) practiced ether anesthesia on himself and animals and requested for it to be tried on a surgical operation

Question 21

Organoarsenicals (1900’s)

Answer 21

Paul Ehrlich designed complexed of arsenic and organic molecules that selectively bound to parasites.

• lead to cure for syphilis

Question 22

Sulfa Drugs (1930’s)

Answer 22

Gerhard Domagk intro’d sulfa drugs in Germany which were the 1st successful synthetic drugs for treating bacterial disease

• termed antibacterial compounds

Question 23

Penicillin (1940’s)

Answer 23

Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin (1st antibiotic)

• major use in therapy of gram-positive bacterial disease

Question 24

Streptomycin (1950’s)

Answer 24

Selman Waksman discovered streptomycin which was a turning point in treating tuberculosis and gram-negative bacterial diseases.