The First ACE inhibitor: Captopril
Captopril The first ACE inhibitor! Captopril (trade name Capoten), discovered in 1975 was Squibb’s first billion dollar drug and among the first drugs marketed as anti-hypertensive agents. Discovery of captopril makes an interesting case of how a keen observation combined with systematic, rational drug design approach can lead us to some path breaking discoveries. A snake bite results in an instant drop of its prey’s blood pressure making its escape impossible! This fact was the initial lead for the discovery of captopril. Let’s read on an interesting account of sequence of events and the thought process that went behind the success of captopril. The story begins in late 1960s when Sérgio Henrique Ferreira of Brazil, who had been studying the venom of a Brazilian pit viper, the jararaca ( Bothrops jararaca ) , brings a sample of the viper's venom to John R. Vane, the Professor of Experimental Pharmacology in the Institute of Basic Medical Sciences at the Royal Col...