Month: January 2017

Drugs produced from plants:

• Opium poppy (heroin, morphine, codeine)
• Blue agave (Tequila)
• Coca leaves (cocaine)
• Ephedra sinica (Sudafed, meth)
• Psilocybin mushroom (shrooms)
• Willow bark (aspirin)
• Sassafras root (ecstasy)
• Penicillium mold (penicillin)

Drugs produced by microorganisms:

• Antibiotics
• Penicillin
• Alkaloids

New drugs developed always need to go through several test before they are prescribed to patients and revealed to the public. The tests are done so that scientists know that they are safe, any side effects and if the drugs have a positive affect on the patient. The drug will first be used on human cells in a laboratory. If passed it will then be tested on animals, which brings about a lot of controversy. Animals are tested on as they have similar DNA as humans. Animals such as monkeys, apes and mice have really close DNA to humans. If the drug is seemingly safe on the animals and side effects are noted down along with appropriate doses, it will be used in a clinical trial. Clinical trials are where the drug is used on healthy volunteers with very small doses, to guarantee if the drug is safe. Further clinical trials are done later. Sometimes drugs may go through all the trials until the clinical trial where it shows to be ineffective or result in serious side effects and then will need to be scrapped.

An antibody is a protein created from blood in order to fight against pathogens that have entered the body. Pathogens are microorganisms that enter the body and can cause a disease or infection. A pathogen can be bacteria or virus.

When a bacterium pathogen enter the body it will start producing antigens, which can be toxins, that will start attacking human cells. The body will then react by sending white blood cells. There are two white blood cell groups; phagocytes/macrophages or lymphocytes. These white blood cells will then either ingesting the entire pathogen, release antibodies that will destroy the pathogen or produce antitoxin (another protein) that will balance against toxins released from the pathogens. Phagocytes travel blood vessel walls and make their way to the pathogen. It will then ingest the pathogen it or produce an enzyme that will destroy them. If a phagocyte ingests a pathogen it will then examine it and send a message to the lymphocytes. A lymphocytes releases certain antibodies that will destroy a pathogen. Once received the message the lymphocytes will decide which correct antibody they need to send to attack the pathogen.

If a viral pathogen enters the body then macrophages will be sent out to destroy the germs. Macrophages will either engulf or digest the pathogen. However if the viral infection is strong enough the body will send a much stronger cell called a T Cell that will fight the viral infection. T cells are just another type of lymphocyte cell.

After the pathogen is destroyed, memory cells are created. Memory cells are created so that when the same pathogen reenters the body the memory cell will recognise it and can easily destroy the pathogen much quicker because it will remember what antibody and cells are needed. That is what immunity is. This type of immunity is acquired immunity. Acquired immunity is not inherited but is worked out by your body itself whether the pathogen enters you or you get a vaccination.