Question

During the early part of the 20th century, ________ speculated that some 'magic bullet' would find and destroy pathogens in the body without harming the person. This idea provided the basis for _____.

A) Louis Pasteur, gene therapy.
B) Alexander Fleming, chemotherapy.
C) Edward Jenner, immunotherapy.
D) Marie Curie, radiation therapy.

Answer 1

Paul Ehrlich is the one who speculated about the 'magic bullet' concept, which paved the way for chemotherapy. His work in the early 20th century involved systematic screening of compounds to find a treatment for syphilis and inspired the development of drugs fighting infectious diseases without harming patients.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question relates to the early speculations about a method to treat infectious diseases without harming the person himself. The correct answer to this fill-in-the-blank question is: During the early part of the 20th century, Paul Ehrlich speculated that some 'magic bullet' would find and destroy pathogens in the body without harming the person. This idea provided the basis for chemotherapy.

Paul Ehrlich set out to discover or synthesize chemical compounds that could selectively target infectious microbes. His work led to the discovery of Salvarsan, a compound effective against the bacterium that causes syphilis. Ehrlich's strategy of systematically screening compounds became a common approach for antimicrobial discovery, laying the groundwork for modern chemotherapy. Louis Pasteur, while pivotal in the field of microbiology and vaccinations, is not the individual associated with the 'magic bullet' concept.