什么是制药工业

药物－－用於疾病诊断、治疗、预防和有机功能矫正的物质－－的制造者。有关药用植物和矿物最早的记录出现於中国、印度、地中海的文明。药品早先由医师准备，後来由药店准备。19世纪发现可以大规模而有效制造具有高度活性的医疗化合物，现代制药工业因而开始。随着这些药品取代早期的药草，风湿热、伤寒、肺炎、小儿麻痹、梅毒、结核病等严重疾病的出现大为减少。许多药品萃取自植物物质，奎宁、古柯硷、吗啡等生物硷是最佳的例证。其他药品由动物物质制成，如用来生产胰岛素的腺萃取物。制药工业研究大大帮助了医学发展，而在工业实验室中已发现并制出许多新药。渐增的保健支出、政府节制、研究伦理都是制药工业关心的议题。

pharmaceutical industry

producers of pharmaceuticals, substances used in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease and the modification of organic functions. The earliest records of medicinal plants and minerals are those of the ancient Chinese, Hindu, and Mediterranean civilizations. Medicines were prepared first by physicians and later by apothecary shops. The modern pharmaceutical industry began in the 19th century with the discovery of highly active medicinal compounds that could be manufactured most efficiently on a large scale. As these drugs replaced the herbal medicines of earlier times, the occurrence and severity of such diseases as rheumatic fever, typhoid fever, pneumonia, poliomyelitis, syphilis, and tuberculosis were greatly reduced. Many drugs are extracted from plant substances; alkaloids such as quinine, cocaine, and morphine are among the best-known examples. Others are made from animal substances, such as the glandular extracts that are used to produce insulin. Pharmaceutical industry research has greatly aided medical progress, and many new drugs have been discovered and produced in industrial laboratories. Increasing health-care costs, government regulation, and research ethics are all issues of concern to the industry.