Cover image for Life saving drugs : the elusive magic bullet
Title:
Life saving drugs : the elusive magic bullet
Personal Author:
Series:
RSC paperbacks
Publication Information:
Cambridge : The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2004
ISBN:
9780854046348

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30000010100210 RM301.25 M36 2004 Open Access Book Book
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Summary

Summary

In 1900 only a handful of drugs (morphine, quinine, aspirin, etc) had genuine efficacy but had little value for bacterial or viral infections or cancer. These conditions were usually untreatable. Now there are literally thousands of drugs which offer cures or greatly extended life-spans for those with life-threatening conditions. Life Saving Drugs: the Elusive Magic Bullet describes the discovery and development of antibacterial, anti-viral and anti-cancer drugs. The book highlights the colourful characters behind the inventions and the huge improvements in quality of life and life-expectancy that these drugs have produced. Emphasis is given to the new drugs that have emerged as a result of knowledge of the human genome, and the ways in which the newer drugs are being designed to tackle disease, particularly cancer, at the genetic level. Chemical structures are provided for all of the key drugs and the book is well illustrated. Life Saving Drugs: the Elusive Magic Bullet can be read as a history of drug development during the past 100 years by those with only a passing knowledge of chemistry. For anyone entering the medical profession, pharmacy, or nursing, it will provide a superb basic knowledge of all drugs they are ever likely to meet, including their modes of action. For the chemist or medicinal chemist, it will provide the fundamental knowledge of life-saving drugs that they all should know. And for the non-scientist who wants to know about 'super-bugs', SARS, Ebola, and all of the wonderful advances in treating cancer, it is illuminating and easy to read.


Author Notes

John Mann: Queen's Unviersity Belfast, UK


Table of Contents

Chapter 1 The Elusive Magic Bullet: Introductionp. 1
Chapter 2 Fighting Bacteriap. 11
The Black Deathp. 11
Miasmata, Animalcules and Mal ariap. 14
Antisepticsp. 18
From Dyes to Sulfonamides: The First Antibacterialsp. 27
Penicillins: Early Ideas of Antibiosisp. 33
Penicillins: Fleming's Serendipitous Discoveryp. 35
Chain and Florey and the Penicillin Production Linep. 42
Semi-Synthetic Penicillins and the Growing Problem of Resistancep. 48
The Mould that Grew on Sewage: Evolution of the Cephalosporinsp. 53
The Mode of Action of the Penicillins and Cephalosporinsp. 56
The White Plague and its Treatmentp. 61
More 'Treasures' from the Streptomycesp. 70
The Rise of the 'Superbugs'p. 77
Chapter 3 Antiviral Treatmentsp. 85
Introductionp. 85
What is a Virus?p. 86
Antibodies: Nature's Magic Bulletsp. 89
Smallpoxp. 89
Rabiesp. 99
Poliop. 101
Gene Technologyp. 102
Coughs and Colds and Influenzap. 105
Influenza: The Diseasep. 105
Influenza: The Treatmentsp. 111
The Common Coldp. 114
Herpes: Colds Sores and Chicken Poxp. 116
Aids: History of the Diseasep. 120
Aids: Prevention and Treatmentp. 126
Haemorrhagic Fever Virusesp. 135
Chapter 4 Cancer: The Disease and its Treatmentp. 141
Aetiologyp. 143
Cancer Chemotherapyp. 156
From Poison Gas to Platinum Drugsp. 157
Beating Leukaemiap. 167
Other Anti-metabolitesp. 172
Periwinkles, Mayapples and Yew Trees: Anti-Cancer Drugs from Plantsp. 175
Microorganisms also Produce Anti-Tumour Agentsp. 189
Anti-Tumour Drugs from the Seap. 195
Turning off Hormonal Influencesp. 201
Breast Cancerp. 205
Prostate Cancerp. 209
Biological Warfare Against Cancer Cellsp. 211
Prevention is Better Than Curep. 221
Chapter 5 Magic Bullets: Still Elusive After all These Yearsp. 223
Further Readingp. 233
Subject Indexp. 241