In this guide you will information and suggestions on how to use each of the tools developed by Xplore Health.

1. Educator’s guide on
Drug development
(Tools’ information)
AUTHORS FUNDED BY:

2. Table of contents
I. Introduction 3
II. The tools 3
1. Virtual experiment - Produce a drug target 4
2. Virtual experiment – Develop a drug! 5
3. Game – How are drugs developed? 6
4. Video - The long and incredible story of a tablet 7
5. Video – New drugs against new threats 8
6. Video – Drug development and ethics 9
7. Discussion Continuum games 10
8. Decide game 11
Drug development - 2 – Tools’ information

3. I. Introduction
This document provides information on the tools that are available on the Xplore Health
portal for the first module. For each tool, we provide an ID table and explanation on how to
use the tool in class and interact with the curriculum.
II. Lesson plans
The tools that have been created for the use of teachers and students in order to help them
in their familiarization process of drug development are listed and explained below.
In the table that describes each tool, information on the link is given, as well as suggestions
on how the tool can be implemented in class: pre-, during, and post-exercises
The tools are the following:
1. Game- How are drugs developed?
2. Virtual experiment 1 - Produce a drug target
3. Virtual experiment 2 – Develop a drug!
4. Video 1- The long and incredible story of a tablet
5. Video 2 - New drugs against new threats
6. Video 3 – Under development
7. Video 4 – Drug development & Ethics
8. Discussion continuum: Game 1 (Access to treatment) and 2 (Who pays for drug
development)
9. Decision game: Orphan drugs
Drug development - 3 – Tools’ information

4. 1. Virtual experiment - Produce a drug target
Tool name Virtual experiment - Produce a drug target
Link to the tool http://www.xplorehealth.eu/en/media/produce-drug-target
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Key messages:
Pedagogical objectives: Students will learn about :
• Most of the drugs work fitting with a
target. • How drugs work
• To investigate a new drug scientists The research involoved in the inital stages of the
usually first produce its target to devlopment of a new drug
investigate latter the drug that will better
fit with it.
Time needed: 50 minutes
• Most of the targets are proteins, the
chemicals that build cells and control
the jobs cells do, which in the lab are Process:
produced using bacterial DNA.
• Teacher leads discussion during the
Concepts that appear: introduction of the Virtual Experiment (10
• Drug fitting with a target minutes)
• What is an enzyme and specifically a • Short demonstration showing students how
restriction enzyme to use the Virtual Experiment software, eg
• Introduce DNA inside a plasmid drag’n’drop (5 minutes)
• Introduce a plasmid inside bacteria to • Student activity – Virtual Experiment 1 (25
produce protein minutes)
• Resistance of bacteria to antibiotics Teacher leads class discussion to summarise
Manipulation of bacteria lesson (10 minutes)
Outcomes: Students will now have knowledge of:
• How a drug works
• The different processes involved in the
inital stages of the development of a new
drug
• The laboratory equipment required
• The laboratory techniques used
• How bacteria are used in the development
of a new drug
Bacterial resistance to antibiotics
Drug development - 4 – Tools’ information

5. 2. Virtual experiment – Develop a drug!
Tool name Virtual experiment – Develop a drug!
Link to the tool http://www.xplorehealth.eu/en/media/develop-drug
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Key messages: Pedagogical objectives:
• Scientists have to investigate the 3-D
Students will learn about :
structure of a protein before they can
identify and design molecules which will • Investigating the 3-D structure of a protein
interact with it. • Identifying a drug which will react with the
• Scientists use a wide range of protein
techniques such as centrifugation, liquid • The synthesis of a new drug
chromatography and NMR to separate, • Testing if the new drug reacts with the
isolate and investigate the structure of protein as it is should
proteins.
• Candidate drugs have to pass many
tests before they become commercially Time needed: 50 minutes
available.
Process:
Concepts that appear:
• Centrifugation (separate bacteria from • Teacher leads introduction to the lesson,
growth medium) including a recap of the last lesson where
• Osmosis (salt added to bacteria in order the students learned about the different
to burst them and get the POP protein processes involved in the initial stages of
they’ve synthesized) the development of a new drug (10
• Liquid chromatography (another minutes)
separation technique, to isolate POP
protein from the rest of bacterial • Explanation of how to use the software for
proteins) the Virtual Experiment (5 minutes)
• NMR – nuclear magnetic resonance – • Student activity – Virtual Experiment 2 (25
technique used to determine 3D minutes)
structure of proteins
• interaction between inhibitor and target Teacher leads class discussion to summarise
(POP protein ) lesson (10 minutes)
• Synthesis of peptide (inhibitor)
Biological assay – to test the POP inhibitor Outcomes: Students will now have knowledge of :
(chemical reaction & fluorescence) • The laboratory techniques used to
investigate the 3-D structure of a proteín
• How to identify a drug which will react with
the proteín
• The laboratory techniques used to
synthesise a new drug
• How to test if the new drug does the job it
was designed to do
The laboratory equipment used for the above
processes
Drug development - 5 – Tools’ information

6. 3. Game – How are dugs developed?
Tool name Develop a drug in this race against time!
Link to the tool http://www.xplorehealth.eu/en/media/develop-drug-race-against-time
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Key messages: Pedagogical objectives:
• Discovering and developing new drugs
is a long, expensive and risky process. Describe in a step by step way all the stages
needed for developing a drug from fundamental
• It can take on average 10-15 years and
research to drug production at a larger scale (final
800–1000 million dollars to convert an
commercialisation)
idea into a drug that is commercially
available. Time needed: 2 hours (more depending on material
• Antiviral drugs are being developed to being made available for this activity)
help combat infections caused by
viruses.
Process:
Concepts that appear:
• Material needed: videoprojector and
• Virus – antiviral-virus outbreak
• How drugs work in the body interative board
• Sequencing (virus genome) Activity should be carried out when the whole
• X-ray crystallography (to determine 3D subject has been covered.
structure of proteins)
• Animal testing Outcomes:
• Clinical trials: phase 1 (healthy
humans), phase 2 (few patients, with • Understand what it takes for a drug to be
the double blind) and phase 3 developed before it is made available over
(increased amount of patients) the counter (pharmacy shelf) or for
Registration/approval of the drug by regulatory prescription by a Doctor.
body
• Understand all the technical aspects to
view drug at a molecular level and all the
concepts underlying these techniques
• Get a glance at some of the basic
molecular biology routines (genetic
engineering, DNA sequencing method,
purification of protein of interest…)
Raising awareness on some bioethical issues
associated with manipulating viruses, drug testing
on animal and human
Drug development - 6 – Tools’ information

7. 4.Video – The long and incredible story of a tablet
Tool name The long and incredible story of a tablet
Link to the tool http://www.xplorehealth.eu/en/media/long-and-incredible-story-tablet
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Concepts that appear:
Pedagogical objectives:
• Drug development process
• Research to find candidate molecules Describe in a step by step way all the stages
• Animal testing needed for developing a drug, from fundamental
• Clinical trials – phase 1, phase 2, phase research to drug production at a larger scale (final
3 commercialisation)
Approval by regulatory body
Time needed: 1 hour (more if students produce a
PPT
Process:
- Material needed : video projector and
interactive board & woofers for the material
to be heard by the entire classroom
- Activity good to be carried out at the
beginning of the module to introduce the
main concept, stage, phase behind the
story of the tablet
A slide can be produced by the students in order to
exhaustively sum up all the chronological stages
associated with a screen capture of the video next
to each stage. ICT use is recommended.
Outcomes
Get further acquainted with the process of
developing a drug from scratch or from a natural
occurring living organism.
Understand that drug development requires the
involvement of many disciplinary fields (chemistry,
pharmaceutical industry, biology, doctors…)
Understand all the requirement needed for a drug
to comply with the drug agency guidelines
Drug development - 7 – Tools’ information

8. 5. Video – New drugs against new threats
Tool name New drugs against new threats
Link to the tool http://www.xplorehealth.eu/en/media/new-drugs-against-new-threats
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Concepts that appear:
Pedagogical objectives: Students will learn about :
● Examples of research taking place in • How drugs work
Europe The research involoved in the inital stages of the
● Emerging viruses – research to find devlopment of a new drug
candidate drugs against them
● Research process: isolate gene,
integrate it in bacteria, protein Time needed: 5 sessions (50-60 min. each)
produced, purified, 3D structure
studied.
Process: (it could be created in web quest format)
Career options in a biomedical research project
● (All) Display video
● (Teacher) Propose some target questions
to define the scope of the activity.
● (Pupils) Search information on the Internet.
● (Pupils) Produce some kind of multimedia
output (video, presentation, animation,
podcast,...) to explain in a new way.
● (All) Show session.
Outcomes: Students will now have knowledge of:
● Learn about another research taking place
in Europe
● Understanding in-vitro production of human
proteins.
Understanding the ways for one investigation to be
used in humans
Drug development - 8 – Tools’ information

9. 6. Video – Drug development and ethics
Tool name Drug development and ethics
http://www.xplorehealth.eu/en/media/listen-some-experts-opinions-and-
Link to the tool
let-us-know-what-you-think
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Concepts that appear: Pedagogical objectives:
● Web search skills
● ELSA aspects of drug development
● People in the world do not have equal ● Information processing skills
access to treatment ● Critical skills
● Are we making a rational use of drugs
in Western Countries?
Time needed: 4-5 sessions (50-60 min. each)
Process:
● (All) Brain storming
● (All) Display video
● (All) First debate. Contrast between results
of brain storming and video information
● (4 persons teams maximum, 1 spokesman)
Contrast with Internet Information
● Spokesmen workshop. (Rest hearing, final
debate)
Outcomes:
● Importance of healthy habits
● Reasonable drug comsumption
● Awareness of social differences
Equitable distribution of wealth
Drug development - 9 – Tools’ information

10. 7. Discussion Continuum games
Discussion continuum Game 1 (Access to treatment) and 2 (Who pays for
Tool name
drug development)
http://www.xplorehealth.eu/sites/default/files/Xplore_Health_Discussion
_Continuum_game_1_Who_pays_for_drug_development.pdf
Link to the tool
http://www.xplorehealth.eu/sites/default/files/Xplore_Health_Discussion
_Continuum_game_2_Access_to_treatment.pdf
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Concepts that appear: Pedagogical objectives:
• Access to treatment: overmedicalisation,
● Describe what is overmedicalisation,
vaccination and complementary and
vaccination and complementary and
alternative medicine
alternative medicine
• Who pays to develop drugs: drug testing, ● Cover the social and ethical issues
marketing and the effects of globalisation surrounding access to medical treatment.
● Investigate ethical, legal and
socioeconomic issues around the drug
discovery and development process, such
as drugtesting, marketing investment, and
the effects of globalisation
● Present number of statements and
situations surrounding the costs of drug
development, and the investment on rare
diseases.
● Present own opinions
● Execute tasks according to instruction
● Analyse game in the field of the problem
Know rules of team work
Time needed: 2 x 45 minutes
Process:
● Work with text
● Work in team
Panel discussion
Outcomes
● Knowledge about farmaceutical market
and problems with overmedicalisation
Kowledge about social and ethical issues of drugs
development
Drug development - 10 – Tools’ information

11. 8. Decide game
Tool name Decision game: Orphan drugs
http://www.xplorehealth.eu/sites/default/files/PlayDecide%20Orphan%2
Link to the tool
0Drugs%20-%20english.pdf
Description Activities in which this tool can be used
Concepts that appear: Pedagogical objectives :
• Access to treatment: overmedicalisation,
vaccination and complementary and Pupil can:
alternative medicine
● Describe what is orphan drugs
• Who pays to develop drugs: drug testing,
marketing and the effects of globalisation ● Describe UE Policy for orphan drugs
● Present own opinions
● Describe multiaspect situation according to
refunding of such type of drugs
● Execute tasks according to instructions
● Analyse game in the field of the problem
Know rules of team work
Time needed: 90 minutes
Process:
● Work with text
● Work in team
Panel discussion
Outcomes
● Social sensitivity
Term of orphan drugs and UE rules according to
orphan drugs
Drug development - 11 – Tools’ information

12. FUNDED BY: PROJECT PARTNERSBY:
WITH THE SUPPORT OF
Drug development - 12 – Tools’ information