pharmaceutical, substance used in thediagnosis,treatment, or prevention ofdisease and for restoring, correcting, or modifying organic functions. (See alsopharmaceutical industry.)

Records of medicinal plants and minerals date to ancient Chinese, Hindu, and Mediterranean civilizations. Ancient Greek physicians such asGalen used a variety of drugs in their profession. During the 16th centuryad, after Westernmedicine began to recover from its long sleep during the Dark and Middle Ages,pharmaceutical practice began to develop rapidly. In 1546 the first pharmacopoeia (list of drugs and their preparation) appeared in Germany, and the profession ofpharmacy is considered to have begun in 1617 with the founding of the Society of Apothecaries in London. Among the earliest modern pharmaceuticals were theanesthetics;morphine was first used in about 1804,ether in 1842,chloroform in 1847, andcocaine in 1860. Other substances isolated in the 19th century includedstrychnine (1817),quinine (1820), andnicotine (1828).Joseph Lister first used phenol (carbolic acid) to prevent infection in 1865.

Pharmaceuticals are generally classified by chemical group, by the way they work in the body (pharmacological effect), and bytherapeutic use.Alkaloids were the first pure pharmaceuticals derived from natural substances (plants); they include quinine, nicotine, cocaine, atropine, and morphine. Drugs of animal origin include glandular extracts containing hormones, such asinsulin for use in treating diabetes.

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Antibiotics, vaccines, human blood-plasma fractions, and steroid hormones are other important pharmaceuticals manufactured from natural substances.Vitamins, which were formerly obtained from natural sources, are now often made in the laboratory.

In the preparation of dosages, many pharmaceuticals are ground to varying degrees of fineness. Many medicinal substances are added to water, alcohol, or another solvent so that they can be used in solution form. These may include spirits, elixirs, and tinctures.Ointments are one of many semisolid preparations, which also include creams, pastes, and jellies. Solid pharmaceuticals include pills, tablets, lozenges, and suppositories. In this form thecompounds are more stable, with less risk ofchemical reaction, and the dosage is easier to determine. Storage and packaging also is made simpler, and solid forms are more efficient to produce.