Rabbits: PRE-1900 Treatment for rabies — deadly disease marked by convulsions and death; affects wild and domestic animals; can be transmitted to humans.

1900s Development of cardiac catheterization techniques — a procedure which allows doctors to insert a flexible tube into an artery or vein to the heart; used for injecting drugs directly into the heart to measure blood flow and pressure, diagnose and treat congenital heart disease and narrowed passages.

1940s Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis — a disease in which the connective tissues of the body become inflamed; cause still unknown, but medications relieve pain and control inflammation.

1940s Treatment for whooping cough — also called pertussis, among the most acute infections of children; a highly communicable respiratory disease characterized by short dry coughs; serious complications include convulsions and brain damage.

1950s Prevention of poliomyelitis — also called polio or infantile paralysis, marked by symptoms ranging from mild infection to extensive paralysis. In 1950, 33,344 cases were reported in the U.S. alone; today there are virtually none.

1950s Discovery of chlorpromazine and other tranquilizers — chemical compounds used to reduce hyperactivity, anxiety, and tension.

1950s Development of cancer chemotherapy — can bring about remission of different cancers, either short-term or permanently.

1970s Discovery of cimetidine — widely prescribed to treat gastric ulcers.

1980s - Present Development of monoclonal antibodies for treating diseases — marked a milestone in the use of antibodies as diagnostic or therapeutic tools to target specific disease cells.