Salicylic acid 4-aminosalicylic acid, sandulpiride, and landetimide (via Salethamide). Salicylic acid was one of the original starting materials for making acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin) in 1897. Bismuth subsalicylate, a salt of bismuth and salicylic acid, is the active ingredient in stomach relief aids such as Pepto-Bismol, is the main ingredient of Kaopectate and "displays anti-inflammatory action (due to salicylic acid) and also acts as an antacid and mild antibiotic". Other derivatives include methyl salicylate used as a liniment to soothe joint and muscle pain and choline salicylate used topically to relieve the pain of mouth ulcers. Salicylic acid has the formula CH(OH)COOH, where
Salix alba from the wood was important for gunpowder manufacture. The bark tannin was used in the past for tanning leather. The wood is used to make cricket bats. "S. alba" wood has a low density and a lower transverse compressive strength. This allows the wood to bend, which is why it can be used to make baskets. Willow bark contains Indole-3-butyric acid, which is a plant hormone stimulating root growth; willow trimmings are sometimes used to clone rootstock in place of commercially synthesized root stimulator. It is also used for ritual purposes by Jews on the holiday of Sukkot. Hippocrates, Galen,