Development of Medicines (Edexcel GCSE Combined Science: Biology): Flashcards
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Antibiotic
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Cards in this collection (45)
Antibiotic
A medicine, such as penicillin, that helps cure bacterial disease by killing infective bacteria inside the body.
What is the difference between medicines that treat the cause and those that treat the symptoms of a disease?
Medicines that treat the cause kill the pathogen (e.g. antibiotics).
Medicines that treat the symptoms relieve discomfort (e.g. painkillers).
How do antibiotics work?
They inhibit processes inside bacterial cells, such as the production of the cell wall.
Why are antibiotics not harmful to the host's cells?
They affect processes that usually only occur in bacteria, not in the host's cells.
Why do antibiotics not work against viruses?
Viruses reproduce inside the host's cells, so it is difficult to kill them without also damaging the host's tissues.
Why does a doctor prescribe different antibiotics for different infections?
Because only certain antibiotics work on certain bacteria, so specific bacteria must be treated with antibiotics known to work against them.
What has been the impact of antibiotics on deaths from infections?
Their use has greatly reduced deaths from infections over the last century.
What is a major problem with the use of antibiotics such as penicillin?
Bacterial resistance to the antibiotic.
Antibiotics treat the of a bacterial disease, whereas painkillers only treat the .
cause / symptoms
Antibiotics will work against viruses, because viruses reproduce inside cells.
not
Placebo
A substance given in a clinical trial that contains no active drug, used for comparison with the real drug.
Where were drugs traditionally extracted from?
From plants and microorganisms.
What are the original plant sources of the drugs digitalis and aspirin?
The heart drug digitalis comes from foxgloves.
The painkiller aspirin comes from willow.
Who discovered penicillin, and what was it extracted from?
Alexander Fleming discovered it (in 1928) from the Penicillium mould, after noticing bacteria would not grow near the mould.
What three things are new drugs tested for before they can be used?
Toxicity (harmful side effects), efficacy (does it work?) and dose (lowest effective amount).
What is done in the preclinical stage of drug testing?
The drug is tested in the laboratory on cells, tissues and live animals.
Who is a new drug tested on during clinical trials?
First healthy volunteers (at very low doses), then patients with the condition.
What is a double-blind trial?
A trial where some patients are given a placebo, and neither the doctor nor the patient knows who is receiving the real drug.
Why are the results of drug testing peer-reviewed and published?
Peer review checks the results are described accurately before they are published in journals.
Preclinical testing of a new drug is carried out in a laboratory using cells, tissues and live .
animals
The painkiller aspirin originally came from , while the heart drug digitalis came from .
willow / foxgloves
Risk factor
Something that increases the chance of developing a (non-communicable) disease, e.g. smoking, poor diet or lack of exercise.
Non-communicable disease
A disease that is not caused by a pathogen and cannot be passed between individuals, e.g. cardiovascular disease or cancer.
Give three examples of non-communicable diseases.
Cardiovascular disease, cancer and lung or liver disease (also obesity and malnutrition).
Name the three categories of risk factor for non-communicable disease.
Lifestyle choices (e.g. diet, alcohol).
Environmental exposure (e.g. pollution, asbestos).
Unavoidable factors (e.g. age, gender, genetics).
Why are risk factors usually described as not causative?
They show a correlation with disease, but interactions between many different factors contribute to the overall likelihood of developing it.
What are the two key risk factors for both obesity and malnutrition?
Exercise and diet.
What harmful effects do tar and nicotine in cigarette smoke cause?
Tar causes lung cancer.
Nicotine causes atherosclerosis and high blood pressure.
Name four risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease.
Smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise and high alcohol consumption.
What is Body Mass Index (BMI) used for?
It uses data on a person's weight and height to assess their health status (whether they are a healthy weight).
Besides individual health, what wider impacts can risk factors have?
Costs to society (strain on medical resources), the economy (treatment costs and lost work) and international development.
In cigarette smoke, causes lung cancer and causes atherosclerosis.
tar / nicotine
Eating more calories than we burn leads to weight gain, which can lead to .
obesity
Atherosclerosis
The build-up of fatty deposits (plaques) inside arteries, which narrows the lumen and reduces blood flow.
Stent
A metal or plastic tube placed inside a coronary artery to hold it open and widen the lumen, increasing blood flow.
What is cardiovascular disease (CVD)?
Any long-term condition of the heart or blood vessels, usually caused by high cholesterol and atherosclerosis.
What are the two sources of cholesterol in the body?
Dietary cholesterol (from animal products eaten).
Cholesterol synthesised by the liver.
What is the difference between angina and a heart attack?
Angina is severe chest pain from a partial blockage of the coronary arteries.
A heart attack results from a complete blockage, stopping aerobic respiration in that part of the heart.
How do statins reduce the risk of coronary heart disease?
They block an enzyme in the liver needed to make cholesterol, slowing the build-up of fatty deposits in the blood.
How does low-dose aspirin help reduce cardiovascular disease?
It blocks chemicals required for the formation of blood clots and inhibits an enzyme linked to inflammation.
How does a stent treat a blocked coronary artery?
A tiny balloon is inflated to push the stent against the artery wall, widening the lumen to increase blood flow. The balloon is then removed.
What does coronary bypass surgery involve?
Replacing damaged blood vessels with healthy vessels from elsewhere in the body, so blocked sections are bypassed.
Give three lifestyle changes that reduce the risk of CVD.
Stop smoking, eat a balanced diet (low cholesterol, low salt, controlled calories) and increase exercise.
are drugs that block an enzyme in the liver to reduce the level of cholesterol in the blood.
Statins
A blockage of a coronary artery prevents aerobic respiration in that area of the heart, leading to a heart attack.
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