All Medicinal chemistry articles – Page 8
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The MoleAntimalarial drugs
Approximately one million people die annually from malaria worldwide. Tragically, 90 per cent of these deaths are among the under-fives in sub-Saharan Africa, who have little if any access to adequate healthcare. Drugs are used to treat the disease but parasitic resistance to these drugs is growing, so what is the alternative?
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FeatureMicrobial iron scavengers
Medicinal and analytical chemists take their cue from micro-organisms' ability to bind to iron in the design of new drugs and sensors
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FeaturePhenols in medicine
Phenol encountered in school or college chemistry laboratories demands special respect on account of its toxic and corrosive nature. But phenol and its derivatives do have a few medicinal surprises
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FeatureSpicing up Chemistry
Spices have been used in cooking since Roman times, and were believed to be important as antiparasitic agents and as gastrointestinal protectants in the diet
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FeatureChemistry, medicine and genetic analysis
In the near future, doctors will be able to carry out a 'while you wait' test, using genetic analysis, for chlamydia, the silent disease that can lead to infertility in women.
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FeaturePain relief: from coal tar to paracetamol
Analgesics, ie pain-relieving drugs, fall into two categories: those that also reduce body temperature in fevers (antipyretics), and those that act mainly on the brain - typically morphine and diamorphine/heroin. Here we consider members of the first group, particularly those once designated 'coal tar analgesics'. Paracetamol, our most popular over-the-counter pain killer, is one of these.