The Organic Chemistry of Drug Design and Drug Action, Second Edition (Hardcover)

by Richard B. Silverman Ph.D Organic Chemistry (Author)
Key Phrases: lead discovery approach, bioprecursor prodrugs, mutual prodrug, New York, Drug Metab, Cancer Res (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Praise for the First Edition:

"This book is a tour de force in the title area...This book would be appropriate for advanced undergraduate students and graduate students…strongly recommended to scientists who are seeking an efficient introduction to medicinal chemistry, background in a specific drug principle or category, or a dose of inspiration."
--JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY

"… unified, well-organized and clearly presented …It is so clearly written that it will be of value to both students and veteran scientists...My congratulations to Dr. Silverman in consolidating such a multiplicity of facts and data so as to truly begin to reduce medicinal chemistry from a hybrid of chemistry, pharmacology and related sciences to a single, clearly defined, rationalized discipline."
--Carl Kaiser, Director of Medicinal Chemistry, NOVA PHARMACEUTICAL CORPORATION

"The author shows an uncanny ability to present the salient principles in a systematic, well-balanced and logical way..."
--William C. Groutas, WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY

"I was favorably impressed with the clarity of Dr. Silverman's writing style which made the material interesting and easy to read...Treatment of the material is quite comprehensive without being overly detailed and the referencing and illustrations are well chosen..."
--John G. Topliss, PARKE-DAVIS

"...The organization of this book and the clarity of presentation are outstanding... It is highly recommended to medicinal chemists as well as to all others entering into the field or concerned with the science of medicinal chemistry."
--JOURNAL OF MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY -- Review

Review
"...this text is directed towards graduates who are embarking on a career in medicinal chemistry in the discovery laboratory. Sliverman continues to blur the edges between chemistry and pharmacology in a manner that is incontrovertibly relevant to the discipline of drug design and development."
-Michael E. Cooper, GE Healthcare, The Maynard Centre, in DDT, VOL. 9, 2004

"What stands out in comparison with other books discussed here is that the subjects are generally addressed in detail, and each theoretical point is illustrated with examples of specific drugs. A great deal of knowledge is reflected...that is suitable for both advanced students and PhDs a like who have not yet become acquainted with the area, but who wish to prepare themselves for a career in drug research."
-ORGANIC CHEMISTRY ORG., 2005

Praise for the First Edition:

"This book is a tour de force in the title area...This book would be appropriate for advanced undergraduate students and graduate students...strongly recommended to scientists who are seeking an efficient introduction to medicinal chemistry, background in a specific drug principle or category, or a dose of inspiration."
--JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY

"... unified, well-organized and clearly presented ...It is so clearly written that it will be of value to both students and veteran scientists...My congratulations to Dr. Silverman in consolidating such a multiplicity of facts and data so as to truly begin to reduce medicinal chemistry from a hybrid of chemistry, pharmacology and related sciences to a single, clearly defined, rationalized discipline."
--Carl Kaiser, Director of Medicinal Chemistry, NOVA PHARMACEUTICAL CORPORATION

"The author shows an uncanny ability to present the salient principles in a systematic, well-balanced and logical way..."
--William C. Groutas, WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY

"I was favorably impressed with the clarity of Dr. Silverman's writing style which made the material interesting and easy to read...Treatment of the material is quite comprehensive without being overly detailed and the referencing and illustrations are well chosen..."
--John G. Topliss, PARKE-DAVIS

"...The organization of this book and the clarity of presentation are outstanding... It is highly recommended to medicinal chemists as well as to all others entering into the field or concerned with the science of medicinal chemistry."
--JOURNAL OF MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY

Praise for the new edition:

"...intent of the first edition was to provide a textbook for advanced undergraduate students or graduate students, the scope of the second edition has been expanded so that it not only serves the original purpose but also serves as an excellent reference book for practicing medicinal chemists."

--John W. Ellingboe, Wyeth Research for the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 2004

"...this book is a thorough overview of drug discovery and development... It is not only an excellent textbook for students but also a valuable resource for those already practicing medicinal chemistry."

John W. Ellingboe, Wyeth Research for the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 2004

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 617 pages
• Publisher: Academic Press; 2 edition (January 26, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0126437327
• ISBN-13: 978-0126437324
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 7.4 x 2.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #271,022 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #13 in	Books > Science > Chemistry > Clinical
  #13 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Chemistry > Clinical

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding..., May 5, 2005

By	Ashutosh Jogalekar "(Joglekar)" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is probably the best book of its kind in the vast and multidisciplinary field of drug design and action. Richard Silverman is an acclaimed chemistry Professor at Northwestern University, and in this book, he provides the most comprehensive and lucid exposition of the chemical basis of drug action that I have seen. No matter how complicated biological systems and their interactions are, at the basic level, it's all chemistry, and mostly organic chemistry. An organic chemist will find this book extremely illuminating in a way that would not have been made clear through his traditional education.
The book opens with a short but clear discussion of drug discovery, combinatorial chemistry, and clinical testing and trials. Then it leads the reader through a variety of enzyme catalyzed reactions, with examples of major drugs studded all the way. Silverman shows us how nature is the master organic chemist, employing the familiar reactions of chemistry in an unsurpassed way. The chapter on enzyme inhibition is long and detailed, and it's breathtaking. Which is important because almost all major drugs act by inhibiting enzymes. The examples which Silverman chooses to illustrate are both important (including many bestselling anti-cancer, anti-viral, and antibiotic drugs to name a few), as well as very interesting. The last parts of the book deal with DNA binding drugs, and with pathways of drug metabolism and excretion. Along all the way, the emphasis is on the chemical reactions that drugs undergo, which after all is what controls their properties. The lucidity of the book is such that a beginning graduate well-versed with the basic principles of general and organic chemistry can easily understand all the contents.
This book is so interesting and illuminating that it's one of the very few academic books which I have actually read from the first to the last page, with every word in between. In fact, it even makes great bedside reading! Truly a must-have book for all chemists and biologists of every kind, interested in how drugs work.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Book for chemists and medicinal chemists, February 8, 2009

By	Eric Ballard "Scientist" (Charlottesville, VA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Some books of this nature tend to focus on the synthesis of drug molecules and less about how they work and why. This book is just the opposite and walks the reader through a logical progression of drug discovery, design and target specificity. This book makes a great introduction to Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics which could be considered the bible of the subject.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Check out the new edition of this book, February 3, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Organic Chemistry of Drug Design and Drug Action (1) (Hardcover)

There is a new considerably expanded and updated edition available of Silverman's already classic text as of Jan/04. ISBN is 0-12-643732-7. Check it out... price is comparable to the earlier edition.