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Development and use of drugs (Antibiotic use and abuse (Overuse of…
Development and use of drugs
Accidental discovery
eg penicilin
scientists make observation and sets out to explain it
Traditional Remedies
80% world medicine relies on traditional remedies
7,000 different plants in India
5,000 plants used in China
eg. Morphine
Sap of unripe poppy seeds since neolithic times
12thC opium used as anaesthetic
19thC morphine and opium used
Observation of Wildlife
Birds line nests with medicinal leaves- protect chicks from mites
Monkeys, bears etc. rub citrus oils on coats= prevent bites and infection
Further Plant Research
Used traditional medicine and animal behaviour as starting point
Search for new drugs where scientists can isolate the active ingredient
Recently in tropical plants
May be many potential uses in the UK
New chemical fingerprinting tech. can screen natural chemicals more effectively
Research into disease-causing mechanisms
Many make use of receptors on plasma membranes
eg. HIV virus attaches to CD4 and 5 receptors on T helper cell surface
Glycoprotein receptor molecules can be isolates and sequenced
Once amino acid structure is known, can determine receptor shape
Then find drug that mimics receptor shape
Binds to virus to block it from T helper cell
Personalised Medicine
Sequencing tech. and molecular modelling
Identify potential medicinal compounds from DNA
Once tech develops develop genes from people with certain conditions
Develop specific drugs for them
Synthetic Biology
Development of new molecules- particularly enzymes
Design new devices+systems that may be useful in research,healthcare etc.
Development of tomatoes containing pigment anthocyanin
Antioxidants- help against coronary heart disease
Antibiotic use and abuse
Eg. Penicilin
Most derived from bacteria Streptomyces
Before use many died of infected wounds
Antibiotic use widespread in WW2
Overuse of antibiotics enabled microorganisms to develop resistance
Many current antibiotics have limited effectiveness
eg. C. Diff and MRSA