Vol. 43 No. 4 (2026): August (Next Issue)
Historic Note

Chemistry enters the fight

  • Walter Ledermann Dehnhardt
Walter Ledermann Dehnhardt
Centro de Estudios Humanistas Julio Prado

Published 2026-07-06

Keywords

How to Cite

1.
Ledermann Dehnhardt W. Chemistry enters the fight. Rev. Chilena. Infectol. [Internet]. 2026 Jul. 6 [cited 2026 Jul. 24];43(4). Available from: https://revinf.cl/index.php/revinf/article/view/2770

Copyright (c) 2026 Walter Ledermann Dehnhardt

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

The iatrochemistry begins with Paracelsus (1493-1541), a doctor who revolutionized the science of his time, rejecting Galen's legacy and looking for therapeutic solutions with vegetables and minerals. By leaning towards alchemy in search of the philosophal stone, that would transform metals into gold, led chemistry down the wrong path, returning to science with Van Helmont and Boerhaave in the 17th and 18th centuries.Chemotherapeutics were born with Ehrlich in the 19th century and Domagk in the 20th – arsenicals and sulfonamides – the first step towards  antibiotics.