Expedition Mongolia09 » diseases http://www.expeditionmongolia09.com Wed, 01 Sep 2010 06:36:10 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 Eureka! The drug development process http://www.expeditionmongolia09.com/eureka-the-drug-development-process/ http://www.expeditionmongolia09.com/eureka-the-drug-development-process/#comments Sun, 30 May 2010 08:26:49 +0000 http://www.expeditionmongolia09.com/?p=4 Treating diseases effectively, enhancing people’s quality of life, and improving longevity is every drug manufacturer’s objective. Developing new drugs is a tedious and expensive process, starting from a brilliant flash of idea in the scientist’s mind to a comprehensive experimentation involving experimental animals and finally humans.

Since the beginning of mankind’s existence, cure for diseases are already present in the form of herbs, roots, mushrooms, or even fungi. This is because survival is human instinct. As years went by, more means have been developed to extend life and generally improve people’s quality of life.

Manufacturing drugs that can cure people’s illnesses is one of them.
Developing a formula that affects structure and functions of the complex systems of the human body is one long, costly, complicated, and risky procedure. Drug manufacturers count years to develop drugs without the assurance that at least one of the compounds will work for the purpose it was designed.

Before a drug lands on the shelves of a drugstore, it passes through a long process that starts from a brilliant idea, extensive research, preliminary animal testing, and well-done clinical trials before finally getting the drugs approved for patient use.

Pre-clinical trial
In developing a drug, a lot of compounds are created to have a bigger chance of discovering the right formula that will give the desired effect. These compounds are then evaluated and tested in animals for safety and efficacy. This safety assessment of drugs is a preclinical testing that usually takes one to two years.

Since a drug may affect different animals differently, two or more species are tested through in vitro and in viva animal testing. During these trials, drug absorption, metabolism, and toxicity are investigated. During the pre-clinical trial stage, physical and chemical properties, composition, and therapeutic value of the drug are examined.

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