MadSci Network: Medicine
Query:

Re: Odd Names Given to Medicines

Date: Tue Oct 3 14:53:43 2000
Posted By: Michael Onken, Admin, MadSci Network
Area of science: Medicine
ID: 969413820.Me
Message:

"Who thinks up the odd and seemingly non-scientific names of Medicines?
These names are not IUPAC chemical names. Who assigns the names? The companies who developed them? Some ad agency w/o any chemical knowledge? "Ibuprophen" seems to be some kind of contraction of chemical words..."

All of the above. There are actually several elements that go into assigning names to drugs (or any chemicals). As you've noted, few drugs are known by their IUPAC (for "International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry") names. In fact, a quick search through the Merck Index suggests that most biological organic compounds (like amino acids, fatty acids, sugars, nucleotides, etc.) are not referred to by their IUPAC names. The reason for this is that most of these compounds were isolated and identified before the IUPAC naming system was developed, and so their names are based on either their source or their structural similarity to other compounds. This is especially true in the case of medicines.

First are the source names. Most of the medicines that are in use today are derivatives of naturally occuring alkaloids isolated from plants, fungi, bacteria, and sometimes animals. For the original (underived) alkaloids, the names are quite straightforward: penicillin comes from the Penicillium mold; acetyl-salicylate (aspirin) comes from the Salix (or Spirea) plant; adrenalin (epinephrine) comes from the adrenal gland (epinephron); etc. Usually, the derivatives' names try to reflect these names, this is important since drugs are usually catergorized by their structures and derivatives have, by definition, similar structures. For instance, ephedrine from the Ephedra plant and cocaine from the Coca plant are both strong stimulants with differing secondary effects: ephedrine is also a decongestant and cocaine is also an anesthetic. So derivatives were found that were much less stimulatory but maintained their secondary effects: pseudoephedrine (pseudo for "false") is a commonly used decongestant; and novocaine (novo for "new") is a commonly used local anesthetic.

Next, let's look at structural names. For most drugs, the chemical, and thus medicinal, activity of any drug depends on a specific aspect of its structure, usually in one or more heterocyclic groups (a heterocyclic compound is any organic ring structure composed of carbons and other atoms, usually nitrogens or oxygens, that can be aromatic or non-aromatic), and derivatives containing the same groups usually have the same or similar activities. Again, drugs are usually catergorized by their structures. For instance, there is a class of anti-fungal drugs that each contain three aromatic rings in their structure, at least one of which must be an azole (an aromatic, five-membered ring with one or more nitrogens). These drugs are referred to collectively as "azoles", because this group appears to play the most important role in killing fungi. However, even with the shorthand of "azole" or "phenyl" for the rings, the IUPAC names for these compounds are very long, e.g. 1-[2-(2,4,-dichlorophenyl)-2-[(2,4- dichlorophenyl)methoxy]ethyl]-1H-imidazole. Unfortunately, this name is easy to misspell and easier to forget, which could cause significant problems for doctors writing prescriptions as well as pharmicists reading prescriptions. So, the common (or generic) names are created to ease their administration. (Even in the lab, where many of the organic compounds do not have common names, we use acronyms to the point that only a very few biological researchers could tell you that HEPES is N-[2-Hydroxyethyl]piperazine-N'-[2-ethanesulfonic acid].) In the case of the azole given above, the name actually makes perfect sense: the drug is an azole and an anti-fungal, or antimycotic (mycos is Greek for fungus); so it's called miconazole. A related antimycotic with two azole rings and a fluoridated phenyl group is called fluconazole. As you pointed out, beside using group names (or acronyms) many medicines simply use contractions of their full names, like sudafed for pseudoephedrine or ibuprofen for isobutylphenyl propionic acid (rearranged slightly).

As to who assigns these names, inevitably, it is the scientist or company that discovers the compound that gets to name it. This has lead to several instances of trademark infringement which have ultimately resulted in the creation of many of the generic names. Generally, the less chemical sounding names, like "Tylenol", are trademarked company names, and the chemical contractions, like "acetaminophen" (acetoaminophenol) are used as generic names. Since doctors and pharmacists are constantly confronted with new medicines, the easier and more memorable a brand name is, the more likely it will be prescribed, such that coming up with a good brand name is very much a form of advertizing. For labelling purposes, the first company to develop a drug must also supply the generic name, which nowadays is usually a contraction of the IUPAC name.


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