The story of the scientist who found Viagra during his studies to develop a drug against high blood pressure:
The "little blue pill" is one of the most effective treatments for erectile dysfunction (ED). This problem, which is rarely talked about until it is discovered, can affect many men. (For example, 50 percent of men in their 50s have this problem.)
Viagra works by increasing blood flow to the penis. When the person taking the drug is sexually aroused, it releases a neurotransmitter into the smooth muscle cell of the arteries and creates a substance called cyclic GMP, the absence of which causes erectile dysfunction. Thus, an erection occurs.
Pharmaceutical company Pfizer was pursuing a heart drug that focused on cyclic GMP to relax smooth muscle. Initial results were so poor that the trial was nearly stopped. The lead chemist on the trial team, Dr. According to Nick Terret, a report on the last trial wrote: "There were some muscle aches, some headaches, and some gastrointestinal upsets. And yes! Some nurses noticed an erection."
Instead of ignoring this finding, scientists continued the discovery. The studies led to 21 specific trials that became Viagra. It worked for all of them. The participants in the trial were unusually curious about the drug they were taking. Terret's team member, Dr. “We had patients who refused to return the pills or lied about whether they were staying,” says Peter Ellis.
Details of the invention
In the 1990s, at a chemistry research facility in Kent Sandwich, a group of British scientists was conducting research on a substance called Sildenafil Citrate for the American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. It was hoped that researchers would develop a new and more effective method for controlling high blood pressure, angina, and altitude sickness. Pfizer expected the drug to relieve severe chest pain from angina. The first samples were sent to Morriston Hospital in Swansea for testing under the supervision of Ian Osterloh. As a result of testing, Osterloh noted that the drug had little effect on angina but showed some undesirable side effects. These undesirable side effects included headache, hot flashes, constipation, blurred vision, and strong erection. Wait, "undesirable side effects"? Pfizer was quick to grasp the potential of this new drug and applied for a patent in 1996. On March 27, 1998, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drug for use in the treatment of erectile dysfunction.
Viagra, with its trade name, was introduced to Americans through a marketing campaign featuring US Senator Bob Dole and Brazilian football legend Pele. These names were a very strange choice, but the campaign was a tremendous success, and Viagra sales soon reached $2 billion a year.
So what is Doctor Simon Campbell's contribution to Viagra?
He pioneered the discovery of Viagra with his research. Dr. While working for the pharmaceutical company Pfizer, Campbell conducted research that led to the discovery of Viagra. Working at Pfizer for 26 years, Campbell worked on three drugs aimed at treating high blood pressure. It turned out that the last drug he produced accelerated the blood flow in the penis as a side effect. This drug, which was developed later, was launched in 1998 under the name Viagra and attracted great attention.
However, Campbell said that he was not the one who invented Viagra. The chemist, who was one of the authors of the research on the drug that led to the discovery of Viagra, never mentioned the effect of the drug on erection in this article. The research was then purchased and developed by others. In his statement to the BBC, Campbell said that he did not find Viagra, but that he was the pioneer of the invention and added: "I do not own Viagra's patent. But I can call myself the father of Viagra because I am the one who planted the seed and started the project. The day Viagra was launched, it was my birthday and I was in New York.”
Doctor Simon Campbell was knighted at the New Year Awards in England at the end of 2014.