Arsphenamine
Arsphenamine, also known as Salvarsan or compound 606, is a drug. It was introduced at the beginning of the 1910s. It was the first effective treatment for syphilis and African trypanosomiasis. This organoarsenic compound was the first modern antimicrobial {antibiotic} agent.
Arsphenamine was first synthesized in 1907 in Paul Ehrlich's lab by Alfred Bertheim.[1]
The antisyphilitic activity of this compound was discovered by Sahachiro Hata in 1909. He surveyed hundreds of newly synthesized organic arsenical compounds. Ehrlich thought that by screening many compounds, a drug could be discovered which would have anti-microbial activity but not kill the patient.
Ehrlich's laboratory developed a more soluble (but slightly less effective) arsenical compound, Neosalvarsan (neoarsphenamine), which was easier to prepare.
Arsphenamine Media
- Salvarsan-montage (cropped).png
The structure of arsphenamine has been proposed to be akin to azobenzene (top). Salvarsan is now assumed to be a mixture of the trimer (middle) and the pentamer (bottom).
Related pages
- Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet, 1940 movie about Ehrlich's quest to find a cure for syphilis.
References
- ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers at line 630: attempt to index field 'known_free_doi_registrants_t' (a nil value).