The rigors of drug discovery

We are all familiar with this classic movie premise. A global pandemic is ravaging the world, forcing scientist to come up with an antidote before the human race becomes extinct. Years earlier, a small flower in the dense jungles of a third world country was found to be effective in countering the virus responsible for the pandemic. An intrepid team of researchers, consisting of a beautiful scientific prodigy, a funny, quirky lab assistant and a square-jawed maverick with a penchant for getting out of dangerous situations must now go on an expedition to find this rare flower and generate an antidote, all before the credits roll.

Unfortunately, the process of drug discovery and development is a far cry from how it is portrayed in film and in television. Although research can be an exciting and fascinating endeavor, most breakthroughs are a product of rigorous testing, monotonous experimentation and dull analysis of unending data. Research takes time. Good research takes a lot of time. Drug discovery and development can sometimes take decades.

Researchers are always conscious of the old adage "do no harm". A drug that can cure excess sweating would be of limited use if it also invariably led to alopecia. Before a drug is even considered for human testing, every possible side effect encountered during the animal testing phase must be explored fully. The drug mechanism is scrutinized as thoroughly as possible and all available literature on the subject is investigated fully to ensure that researchers have a comprehensive knowledge on how a prospective drug will affect a human body.

It is during this testing and experimentation process that sometimes, some drugs are suddenly "discovered" by recognizing a market for a specific side effect. This phenomenon led to the entire erectile dysfunction drug treatment phase that in turn led to the unprecedented growth of the pharmaceutical industry.

Although drug development is a meticulous process, there are still numerous instances when a drug released to the market had to be recalled due to health risks and the potential legal fallout. Drug testing exists to ensure that any drug released by a company is safe for use. Lack of sufficient research and testing can pose a serious public health risk and can make the company vulnerable to litigation. Recommended webpage for more details.

One thing that movies do manage to get right however is that most drugs are a product of substances obtained from the biological world. Substances in plants and animals are investigated for properties that can help them treat certain conditions. Organisms that produce substances to counteract toxins, kill pathogens and promote improved physiological mechanisms are investigated in laboratories around the world. Substances from plants, animals, fungi and bacteria have all contributed to the development of the drugs we commonly use today. Modern drug research is a process that isolates substances in nature and delivers it to the public in a form designed to treat an illness without causing the body additional harm. It may be a slow, arduous process, but it is one that has saved and improved the lives of many all over the world.