3.12 Discovering and developing drugs
6 exam questions worth 12 marks. Write your answer, open the mark scheme, then give yourself the marks you earned. Your answers are saved on this device.
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Match each drug to its source.
- Digitalis
- Aspirin
- Penicillin
Mark scheme
- digitalis: foxgloves (1)
- aspirin: willow (1)
- penicillin: (Penicillium) mould (1)
Model answer
Digitalis comes from foxgloves, aspirin from willow, and penicillin from Penicillium mould.
New drugs are tested for toxicity, efficacy and dose.
What do toxicity and efficacy mean?
Mark scheme
- toxicity: how harmful / poisonous the drug is (1)
- efficacy: how well the drug works / whether it works (1)
Model answer
Toxicity is how harmful the drug is, and efficacy is how well it works.
In the first clinical trials, very low doses are given to healthy volunteers.
Explain why.
Mark scheme
- to test safety / check for side effects (1)
- low doses reduce the risk of harm (1)
Model answer
The aim is to check the drug is safe and has no serious side effects, and starting with a low dose reduces the risk of harming the volunteers.
What is a double blind trial, and why is it used?
Mark scheme
- neither the patients nor the doctors know who receives the drug / placebo (1)
- so expectations / bias cannot affect the results (1)
- placebo used to compare with / as a control (1)
Model answer
In a double blind trial neither the patients nor the doctors know who gets the drug and who gets the placebo. This stops their expectations affecting the results, and the placebo group shows what happens without the drug.
Which is the correct order of testing a new drug?
Choose one answer.
Correct Not quite: the answer is Cells and tissues, animals, healthy volunteers, patients
Mark scheme
B
Model answer
B: cells and tissues, then animals, then healthy volunteers, then patients.
Why are the results of drug trials peer reviewed before they are published?
Mark scheme
to check the results are valid / not biased / the method is sound
Model answer
Other scientists check the work so that results that are flawed or biased are not published.
Found a mistake?