Willow bark of the willow tree have been mentioned in ancient texts from Assyria, Sumer and Egypt as a remedy for aches and fever, and in Ancient Greece the physician Hippocrates wrote about its medicinal properties in the fifth century BC. Native Americans across the Americas relied on it as a staple of their medical treatments. It provides temporary pain relief. Salicin is metabolized into salicylic acid in the human body, and is a precursor of aspirin. In 1763, its medicinal properties were observed by the Reverend Edward Stone in England. He notified the Royal Society, which published his findings. The
Phenylarsonic acid was first prepared by Michaelis and Loenser. X-ray crystallography indicates that the molecules are connected by hydrogen-bonds consistent with short distance of 2.5 Å separating the oxygen atoms. The arsenic center is tetrahedral. Several derivatives of phenylarsonic acid have been used as additives for animal feeds. These include 4-hydroxy-3-nitrobenzenearsonic acid (3-NHPAA, or Roxarsone), "p"-arsanilic acid ("p"-ASA), 4-nitrophenylarsonic acid (4-NPAA), and "p"-ureidophenylarsonic acid ("p"-UPAA). Phenylarsonic acid Phenylarsonic acid is the chemical compound with the formula CHAsO(OH), commonly abbreviated PhAsOH. This colourless solid is an organic derivative of arsenic acid, AsO(OH), where one OH group has been replaced by a phenyl group.