Bayer Synthesizes Aspirin: The World's First Wonder Drug
Felix Hoffmann, a Bayer chemist, synthesized a pure and stable form of acetylsalicylic acid on August 10, 1897, building on decades of research into the pain-relieving properties of salicin derived from willow bark. Bayer patented the compound and began marketing it as Aspirin on March 6, 1899, naming it from 'a' for acetyl, 'spir' from the Spiraea plant, and 'in' as a common pharmaceutical suffix. The drug became the world's best-selling medication within a decade. What Hoffmann and Bayer did not know was that aspirin works by inhibiting cyclooxygenase enzymes, a mechanism not discovered until 1971 by John Vane, who won the Nobel Prize for the finding. This discovery revealed that aspirin prevents blood clots, leading to its modern use as a daily preventive treatment for heart attacks and strokes. An estimated 40,000 metric tons of aspirin are consumed worldwide each year, making it one of the most widely used medications in human history.
March 6, 1899
127 years ago
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