Ideas about the cause of disease and illness Flashcards

All 7 cards in this deck

Who identified the structure of DNA, and in what year?

Crick and Watson, in 1953. Their work helped doctors understand that some conditions are genetic.

Which piece of technology was essential in discovering the structure of DNA?

X-ray crystallography (Rosalind Franklin's X-ray diffraction photographs).

Give two lifestyle factors now known to affect a person's health.

Smoking and poor diet (also alcohol and lack of exercise).

Name three developments that have improved diagnosis since c1900.

Blood tests, scans (X-ray, MRI, CT, ultrasound) and monitors (e.g. blood pressure and blood sugar monitors).

What was the Human Genome Project (begun in 1990)?

An international scientific project to identify and map every gene in human DNA. It was completed in 2003.

Give one way research into DNA has helped medicine.

Any one: doctors can identify the faulty genes behind some inherited conditions (e.g. cystic fibrosis); genetic testing can show who has a higher inherited risk of some cancers.

Why have blood tests improved diagnosis?

A small sample tested in a laboratory can reveal many diseases, such as diabetes or infection, without surgery, and can track a condition over time.