Drug Testing in Laboratories
Biology: AQA GCSE Higher, topic 3.1.21
Drug Testing in Laboratories
There are 2 stages to drug testing in laboratories:
Preclinical testing
- Scientists carry out early stage testing on human cells and tissues grown in the laboratory.
- Scientists also carry out early stage testing on live animals.
- Testing on animals is useful for working out how toxic (harmful) a drug is to cells.
- In the UK, new medicines have to undergo tests on two different live mammals.
- Many drugs fail at this stage if they damage cells or do not work.
Clinical testing
- Clinical trials test drugs on healthy volunteers and patients to check that they are safe. They usually use low doses of the drug.
- If a drug is found to be safe at low doses, there are more clinical trials to work out the optimum (best) dose for the drug.
Test yourself on Drug Testing in Laboratories
Clinical Testing
Why do scientists test new drugs on live animals during preclinical testing?
Why might a new drug fail during preclinical testing?
Why are clinical trials usually carried out as double-blind trials?