Here, you will find the summary and questions and answers of NBSE class 10 Alternative English chapter 2 Man Against Virus. Additional questions and solutions will be added later. However, these notes should be used only for references. These materials should be modified/changed as per the needs.
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Summary
As a biologist, Louis Pasteur had discovered the vaccine for anthrax and chicken cholera. He was interested in preparing a vaccine against rabies as well since it caused an extremely painful death in human beings bitten by rabies-infected dogs. He conducted a series of experiments, to locate the germ that caused rabies in animals. He presumed they were in the saliva of mad animals since people who were beaten by them got rabies. He injected the saliva of rabies-infected animals but found that they did not always get rabies. He and his assistant, Roux tried to locate the germ in the blood of infected animals since germs generally live in the blood but they were not successful there either. At last, the symptoms of rabies gave them a clue. Initially, the rabies-infected dog foamed in the mouth and bit people. But later it became paralyzed and eventually died. The paralysis meant that the nervous system of the dog was also affected.
Pasteur and Roux looked for tire germ in the brain and spinal cord of rabies-infected animals and found it living in the inner region of the brain known as the medulla. They tested the microbe by injecting it directly into the brain of a healthy rabbit. It developed rabies. Through experiments, they also found out that the germs in the rabbits in the lab were stronger than those in mad street-dogs. They developed weakened strains of the germ in the medulla of the brain and used it as a vaccine to help animals and human beings build immunity against rabies.
Textual questions and answers
Choose the correct Option
1.What is the meaning of the phrase ‘confound it’?
Answer: a. To be confused or perplexed
2. vaccine: protect:: ______
Answer: c. oil : lubricate
3. Pasteur’s discovery that the rabies microbe lives in the nervous system was
Answer: c. Both
4. Why did Pasteur release the crazed dog’s saliva into a sterile test-tube?
Answer: a. He did not want to mix the rabies microbes with other germs.
5. How did Pasteur weaken the rabies microbe?
Answer: d. By letting the infected medulla sit in a sterile solution for several days.
Read the lines and answer the questions that follow:
1. Pasteur had never been able to forget the horror of that moment.
a. What had horrified Pasteur?
b. Why had the person suffering the horror done so willingly?
c. What did witnessing this moment make Pasteur resolve in the future?
Answer: a. The moans of the villager and the hiss of the blacksmith’s red-hot iron burn the skin of a person who was bitten by a rabid infected wolf had horrified Pasteur.
b. The person suffering the horror had done so willingly because he was bitten by a rabid carrying mad wolf and at that time this method was believed to be the cure and an escape from death.
c. Witnessing the horror left a lasting impact on Pasteur. It strengthened his determination to find a cure for rabies that was not so painful.
2. ‘The sooner it gets there, the sooner it has an effect.’
a. What do ‘it’ and ‘there’ refer to?
b. How did Pasteur and Roux help ‘it’ get ‘there’ sooner?
c. Why is it the sooner, the more effective?
Answer: a. Here ‘it’ refers to the rabies virus and ‘there’ refers to the brain.
b. Pasteur and Roux help ‘it’ get ‘there’ sooner by injecting the virus straight into the brain of a healthy rabbit.
c. The sooner it gets there, the sooner it has an effect because the rabies virus lives in the brain, so by injecting the virus directly into the brain of a rabbit Pasteur and Roux were able to get the necessary results quickly.
Answer these questions briefly.
1. Why were Pasteur’s assistants shocked to see him sucking saliva of a mad dog into a tube?
Answer: Pasteur’s assistants were shocked to see him sucking saliva of a mad dog into a tube because if he had sucked too hard he would have gotten the saliva into his mouth which contained the virus rabies. At that time there was no perfect cure for rabies and he was taking a great risk by sucking like that.
2. Why was Pasteur studying samples of saliva from rabid animals?
Answer: Pasteur was studying samples of saliva from rabid animals as he was trying to develop a vaccine against rabies. He was looking for the rabies microbe in the saliva and trying to isolate it to study the microbes and eventually develop vaccine.
3. How did Pasteur make the vaccine against rabies?
Answer: Pasteur was able to develop the vaccine against rabies after much toiling, perseverance, and persistence. He was determined to find a less painful method to prevent death from rabies. He started studying the saliva samples of rabies infected animals. He knew somewhere in the saliva was the microbe he was looking for. When after injecting the saliva into healthy animals they found that not every animal was getting infected and the blood was having no effect, they concluded that the virus must be living in the brain and spinal cord and affecting the nervous system as the animals infected with rabies gets paralyzed eventually. They took brain samples of an infected animal and injected them under the skins of healthy animals. Though it took time, many of the animals developed rabies. After that, they injected more brain samples directly into the brains of healthy rabbits and the rabbits quickly developed the disease.
Then they tested the strength of the germ, by noting how quickly a rabbit developed rabies after the germ was injected into its brain. They found that strength varied depending on what kind of animal it had been living in. Germs from the laboratory rabbits were more virulent than germs taken from stray mad dogs. They decided to use the most virulent kind in trying to make a vaccine. The next move was to try weakening the germ. As they could not see it or find a way of growing it outside the brain, they had to work with infected brains. The germ seemed to favour a region of the brain called medulla, so they used samples from there. Roux put these into a sterile solution which he then closed. As days went by, the pieces of medulla shrivelled. They grind up the pieces of the brain samples and inject them into healthy animals. When they did this, the animals appeared to get rabies, but instead of getting really sick, they rapidly recovered. Then they tested the strength of the virus by injecting them into healthy animals depending on how long the samples had been dried and shrivelled. They found that a piece of medulla fourteen days old was harmless and perfect for the vaccine and thereby the vaccine was made.
Think and answer
1. What had Paul Bert been doing? What was Pasteur’s reaction when he heard about it? What can we infer about Pasteur from his reaction?
Answer: Paul Bert had been injecting the saliva into animals to see if it transmitted rabies. Pasteur’s reaction was one of muted encouragement, muttering “Good luck to him. The more of us there are fighting rabies, the better.” This reaction reveals Pasteur’s collaborative spirit and recognition of the importance of collective effort in scientific discovery, despite the challenges in identifying the rabies microbe.
2. Why didn’t injecting blood from an infected animal cause rabies in healthy animals?
Answer: Injecting blood from an infected animal did not cause rabies in healthy animals because the rabies germ does not travel in the blood, as Pasteur hypothesized. His experiments and observations led him to conclude that the rabies germ likely affected the nervous system rather than circulating through the blood, which explained why blood injections failed to transmit the disease.
3. Why did Pasteur need weakened rabies germs? How would that help him make a vaccine?
Answer: Pasteur needed weakened rabies germs to stimulate an animal’s immune response without causing the full disease, which is a principle method in creating vaccines. By finding a way to weaken the germs, Pasteur could ensure that the immune system of the vaccinated animal or person would recognize and fight off the rabies virus in the future, thereby providing immunity against the disease. This approach was crucial for developing a vaccine that could safely protect against rabies.
Going Beyond
1. ‘…stop not till your goal is reached.’ Apply this statement to describe Pasteur as a biologist with a purpose.
Answer: Pasteur was a remarkable biologist, and it wasn’t only because of him being a gifted person, but because he was determined and persistent.
He was focused on finding a way to prevent the death from rabies without much pain, and for this, he spent countless hours experimenting and brainstorming. When a method failed, he tried to get the results using another way. No amount of setbacks or disappointments could hold him back as he continued to keep his perseverance and goal of finding a vaccine, which he eventually did. Pasteur wasn’t just another biologist, he was someone with a purpose.
His story assures us that if you stop not till your goal is reached, no goal is too far.
2. How do you feel about experimenting with animals to find cures for illnesses?
Answer: I don’t feel very comfortable that animals are being used to find cures for illnesses as they have lives too and their lives matter. Most of us would say it’s a sacrifice we need to make for a greater goal, and at this juncture of our story, it seems like a valid point. But there should be ways to find cures for illnesses without testing on animals and more research should be done in these ways. Maybe we are not doing more research on finding an alternative because animals are viewed as a cheap and easy solution and that just displays out lack of empathy and insensitivity towards the other forms of lives.
3. Discuss in class: What according to you is success? What do you think are the qualities one needs to be successful? Use two examples to substantiate your points.
Answer: Success can be defined in a variety of ways, and what success means to one person may not mean the same thing to another. Success can be defined in a variety of ways. For some, it means achieving professional success or accumulating wealth. For others, it means finding personal fulfilment or having a positive impact on the world.
Hard work, resolve, persistence, and the capacity to change with the situation are traits that, in my opinion, can contribute to success. Along with the ability to effectively communicate with others and work well in a team, it is crucial to have a clear set of goals and a plan for achieving them.
Marie Curie, a pioneer in the study of radioactivity and the first person to receive two Nobel Prizes, is an example of someone who exemplified these traits. She was renowned for her unwavering work ethic and commitment to her research, and her findings had a big influence on the worlds of science and medicine.
Another illustration is the anti-apartheid activist and first black president of South Africa, Nelson Mandela. Mandela persevered in his commitment to his cause and put forth great effort to effect change in his country despite years of imprisonment and numerous difficulties. Because of his leadership and tenacity, South Africa underwent a peaceful transition to democracy. He was able to foster forgiveness and reconciliation. So, in order to succeed, one must possess these traits.
Extra MCQs
1. What did Louis Pasteur do with the dog’s saliva?
A. He injected it into a healthy dog B. He discarded it C. He sucked some up a tube D. He studied it under a microscope
Answer: C. He sucked some up a tube
19. What was the outcome of the final test on a dog with a vaccine against different strengths of the rabies germ?
A. The dog developed a mild case of rabies B. The dog became immune to rabies C. The dog showed no reaction to the vaccine D. The dog died from an unrelated cause
Answer: B. The dog became immune to rabies
Extra/additional questions and answers/solutions
1. What does Pasteur intend to do with the bulldog’s saliva?
Answer: In the bulldog’s saliva, Pasteur is looking for the rabies microbe. He surmises that the microbe that drives the dog insane and can result in a torturous death in humans must be present in the dog’s saliva.
11. How did Pasteur and Roux verify their claim that they had discovered a way to produce rabies immunity?
Answer: Pasteur and Roux injected a dog with a series of infected medullas that were getting older—from one day old to fourteen days old—in order to test their theory that they had discovered a way to develop immunity to rabies. They believed that by weakening the bacteria, the animal’s immune system would be activated and offer defence against the more virulent, day-old medulla. They were sure they had succeeded in building immunity when, after receiving an injection of the one-day-old medulla, the dog did not develop rabies.
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