History of aspirin History of aspirin The history of aspirin (IUPAC name acetylsalicylic acid ) begins with its synthesis and manufacture in 1899. Before that, salicylic acid had been used medicinally since antiquity. Medicines made from willow and other salicylate-rich plants appear in clay tablets from ancient Sumer as well as the Ebers Papyrus from ancient Egypt. Hippocrates referred to their use of salicylic tea to reduce fevers around 400 BC, and were part of the pharmacopoeia of Western medicine in classical antiquity and the Middle Ages. Willow bark extract became recognized for its specific effects on fever, pain and inflammation in the
Homogentisic acid Homogentisic acid Homogentisic acid (2,5-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid) is a phenolic acid usually found in "Arbutus unedo" (strawberry-tree) honey. It is also present in the bacterial plant pathogen "Xanthomonas campestris pv. phaseoli" as well as in the yeast "Yarrowia lipolytica" where it is associated with the production of brown pigments. It is oxidatively dimerised to form hipposudoric acid, one of the main constituents of the 'blood sweat' of hippopotamuses. It is less commonly known as melanic acid, the name chosen by William Prout. Accumulation of excess homogentisic acid and its oxide, named alkapton, is a result of the failure of the enzyme