The Drug Hunters

The Improbable Quest to Discover New Medicines

Nonfiction, Health & Well Being, Medical, Medical Science, Pharmacology, Science & Nature, Science, Other Sciences, History, Biography & Memoir, Reference
Cover of the book The Drug Hunters by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas, Arcade
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas ISBN: 9781628727197
Publisher: Arcade Publication: December 13, 2016
Imprint: Arcade Language: English
Author: Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
ISBN: 9781628727197
Publisher: Arcade
Publication: December 13, 2016
Imprint: Arcade
Language: English

The surprising, behind-the-scenes story of how our medicines are discovered, told by a veteran drug hunter.

The search to find medicines is as old as disease, which is to say as old as the human race. Through serendipity- by chewing, brewing, and snorting-some Neolithic souls discovered opium, alcohol, snakeroot, juniper, frankincense, and other helpful substances. Ötzi the Iceman, the five-thousand-year-old hunter frozen in the Italian Alps, was found to have whipworms in his intestines and Bronze-age medicine, a worm-killing birch fungus, knotted to his leggings. Nowadays, Big Pharma conglomerates spend billions of dollars on state-of the art laboratories staffed by PhDs to discover blockbuster drugs. Yet, despite our best efforts to engineer cures, luck, trial-and-error, risk, and ingenuity are still fundamental to medical discovery.

The Drug Hunters is a colorful, fact-filled narrative history of the search for new medicines from our Neolithic forebears to the professionals of today, and from quinine and aspirin to Viagra, Prozac, and Lipitor. The chapters offer a lively tour of how new drugs are actually found, the discovery strategies, the mistakes, and the rare successes. Dr. Donald R. Kirsch infuses the book with his own expertise and experiences from thirty-five years of drug hunting, whether searching for life-saving molecules in mudflats by Chesapeake Bay or as a chief science officer and research group leader at major pharmaceutical companies.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The surprising, behind-the-scenes story of how our medicines are discovered, told by a veteran drug hunter.

The search to find medicines is as old as disease, which is to say as old as the human race. Through serendipity- by chewing, brewing, and snorting-some Neolithic souls discovered opium, alcohol, snakeroot, juniper, frankincense, and other helpful substances. Ötzi the Iceman, the five-thousand-year-old hunter frozen in the Italian Alps, was found to have whipworms in his intestines and Bronze-age medicine, a worm-killing birch fungus, knotted to his leggings. Nowadays, Big Pharma conglomerates spend billions of dollars on state-of the art laboratories staffed by PhDs to discover blockbuster drugs. Yet, despite our best efforts to engineer cures, luck, trial-and-error, risk, and ingenuity are still fundamental to medical discovery.

The Drug Hunters is a colorful, fact-filled narrative history of the search for new medicines from our Neolithic forebears to the professionals of today, and from quinine and aspirin to Viagra, Prozac, and Lipitor. The chapters offer a lively tour of how new drugs are actually found, the discovery strategies, the mistakes, and the rare successes. Dr. Donald R. Kirsch infuses the book with his own expertise and experiences from thirty-five years of drug hunting, whether searching for life-saving molecules in mudflats by Chesapeake Bay or as a chief science officer and research group leader at major pharmaceutical companies.

More books from Arcade

Cover of the book Notes to My Younger Self: A Guide to Personal Happiness by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book The Latest Illusion by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Playback: A Graphic Novel by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Broken Glory by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Conjunctions and Disjunctions by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book The Journey of Adam Kadmon by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book A Son of War: A Novela and Stories by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Excuse Me For Living by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book A Long Crazy Burn by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Trigger Happy by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book The Other Side of Loneliness: A Spiritual Journey by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Travel in My Borrowed Lives by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book The Samurai's Daughter by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Of Illustrious Men by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
Cover of the book Ecotopia 2121 by Donald R. Kirsch, Ogi Ogas
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy