The Ancient Roots of Medicine
Long before laboratories and pharmacies, early humans used plants for healing. Archaeological sites from the Paleolithic age show evidence of medicinal plant use [1.8.4]. For instance, a 60,000-year-old Neanderthal burial site in Iraq contained pollen from several plant species known to have medicinal properties [1.8.5]. The first written records of medicine appear on Sumerian clay tablets from approximately 5,000 years ago, which list recipes for drug preparations [1.8.4]. Ancient Egyptian texts, like the Ebers Papyrus (c. 1550 BCE), contain over 700 formulas and remedies derived from plants [1.7.2]. These early societies used naturally occurring substances like opium, willow bark, and cannabis for pain relief, fever reduction, and other ailments [1.2.1, 1.4.3]. For example, Hippocrates in ancient Greece administered willow leaf tea to ease the pain of childbirth around 400 BC [1.4.5]. While these were not 'invented' in the modern sense, they represent the dawn of pharmacology.
Written Pharmacopoeias
Ancient civilizations meticulously documented their knowledge. Key texts that form the foundation of pharmacology include:
- Sumerian Clay Tablets (c. 3000 BCE): The earliest known records of medicinal recipes [1.8.5].
- Ebers Papyrus (c. 1550 BCE): An Egyptian papyrus containing hundreds of remedies, including ones using willow, senna, and castor oil [1.7.2, 1.8.4].
- Shennong Ben Cao Jing (c. 1st Century AD): A foundational Chinese text listing 365 drugs, mostly from plants like ephedra and rhubarb [1.7.2, 1.7.3].
- De Materia Medica (c. 60 AD): Written by the Greek physician Dioscorides, this five-volume work documented over 600 medicinal plants and was a primary pharmacological reference for over 1,500 years [1.8.5].
The Dawn of Modern Pharmacology: Isolation
The first major leap toward modern pharmaceuticals was the isolation of active ingredients from plants. This allowed for standardized doses and a better understanding of a substance's effects.
Morphine: The First Isolated Alkaloid
In 1804, a young German pharmacist's assistant named Friedrich Sertürner successfully isolated a pure crystalline substance from opium [1.5.1, 1.5.6]. He tested the powerful analgesic and sleep-inducing compound on himself and several friends [1.3.3]. He named it "morphium" after Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams [1.5.4]. The isolation of morphine is a pivotal moment in pharmacology; it was the first time an active alkaloid was extracted from a plant [1.5.6]. This discovery paved the way for the isolation of other alkaloids like caffeine (1820) and nicotine (1828), fundamentally changing medicine [1.5.2]. By 1827, the company that would become Merck began commercially marketing morphine [1.5.6].
The Age of Synthesis: Creating Drugs in the Lab
The next revolution was synthetic chemistry, where scientists began creating new compounds or modifying natural ones in the laboratory. The first completely synthetic drug was chloral hydrate, discovered in 1832 and introduced as a sedative-hypnotic in 1869 [1.3.1, 1.3.4].
Aspirin: Improving on Nature
The use of willow bark to treat fever and pain dates back millennia [1.4.3]. Its active ingredient, salicin, was first isolated in 1828 [1.4.5]. However, salicylic acid was harsh on the stomach [1.2.3]. In 1897, a chemist at the German company Bayer, Felix Hoffmann, synthesized a stable and pure form of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) to reduce these side effects [1.4.1]. Some historical analyses suggest Hoffmann was acting under the direction of his supervisor, Arthur Eichengrün, whose contributions were later obscured [1.4.1]. Bayer patented the substance and marketed it under the trade name Aspirin in 1899 [1.4.2, 1.4.3]. It became the world's first blockbuster drug and was made available without a prescription in 1915 [1.2.3, 1.4.3].
Salvarsan: The First "Magic Bullet"
In the early 20th century, German scientist Paul Ehrlich pioneered the concept of chemotherapy—using chemicals to selectively target and destroy infectious microbes without harming the patient [1.3.5, 1.6.1]. He sought a "magic bullet" to cure syphilis. In 1909, after testing hundreds of arsenic-based compounds, his team, including Japanese bacteriologist Sahachiro Hata, found that compound 606 was highly effective against the syphilis spirochete [1.6.4]. The drug, named Salvarsan (arsphenamine), was introduced in 1910 and became the first truly effective treatment for syphilis, replacing the highly toxic mercury-based cures of the time [1.3.7, 1.6.4]. Salvarsan is often considered the first modern chemotherapeutic agent [1.6.5].
Comparison of Early Modern Drugs
| Drug | Origin | Key Milestone | Year | Key Figure(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morphine | Natural (Isolated) | First active alkaloid isolated from a plant [1.5.6] | 1804 | Friedrich Sertürner [1.5.1] |
| Aspirin | Synthetic (Modified) | First highly successful synthetic modification of a natural compound [1.2.3] | 1897 | Felix Hoffmann / Arthur Eichengrün [1.4.1] |
| Salvarsan | Synthetic | First modern chemotherapeutic agent or "magic bullet" [1.3.7] | 1909 | Paul Ehrlich / Sahachiro Hata [1.6.4] |
Conclusion
So, what was the first drug invented? The answer depends entirely on the definition. Prehistoric humans were the first to use medicinal plants thousands of years ago [1.8.2]. Friedrich Sertürner was the first to isolate a pure active compound, morphine, in 1804 [1.5.1]. The first fully synthetic drug was chloral hydrate in 1869 [1.3.1]. However, the title of the first globally significant, purposefully engineered drug could arguably go to either Aspirin, the modified natural product from 1897, or Salvarsan, the targeted chemotherapeutic from 1909 [1.4.1, 1.6.4]. Each represents a monumental step in the evolution of pharmacology from ancient tradition to modern science.
For further reading on the history of pharmacology, consider resources from the National Institutes of Health.
