Author
Elisabet Serés / Adrián López / Neus Martín / Josep-Eladi Baños / Fèlix Bosch
The Esteve Foundation was present once again at the most important international meeting in the field of pharmacology, the World Congress of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology, which in 2018, held its 18th edition from 1 to 6 July in Kyoto. The Esteve Foundation attended the congress to present three projects, among which is its collaboration with the Department of Experimental Sciences and Health of Universitat Pompeu Fabra on a project that introduces historical facts of the first antimicrobials to improve the teaching of pharmacology.
After analysing 50 review articles, 82 books and more than 3,000 articles published in The New York Times, The Times and La Vanguardia between 1908 and 1979, the investigation identified 26 historical facts and anecdotes related to arsephenamine, sulfamide and streptomycin that could prove very useful in the teaching of pharmacology. This includes the history of 606, the initial name of arsephenamine, the controversy surrounding the Prontosil patent and the sexual discrimination that Elizabeth Bugie suffered after the discovery of streptomycin. Other historical facts raised by this study address such issues as new management approaches, drug toxicity, new pharmaceutical recommendations, patents, business interests and the use of medicine during war.
