P

Pathogen

Pathogens are microorganisms, viruses, toxins and ionizing radiation that can cause disease. They are pathogenic organisms and substances, respectively.

PCR

Using PCR, DNA can be amplified in vitro, that is outside of a living organism.

Persistence

In infection biology, persistence refers to a pathogen being able to survive in a patient’s body.

Personalised medicine

Personalised medicine takes into account individual patients with their genetic conditions and aims at a targeted therapy.

Pharmacokinetics

Pharmacokinetics deals with concentrations of a drug and its degradation products within the body.

Plasmodia

Plasmodia are unicellular parasites. Some species can cause malaria in human.

Post-exposure prophylaxis

Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) refers to preventive medical measures taken when a person has had contact with a pathogen. This is intended to prevent the outbreak of the disease or to mitigate its course.

Preclinical tests

In drug development, preclinical tests are carried out to investigate the behavior of novel agents in cell culture or animal models.

Proof-of-Concept

In drug development, “proof-of-concept” refers to a part of the clinical study that aims to proof the therapeutic concept.

Proviruses

A provirus is a virus genome that is integrated into the DNA of a host cell.