Procaine: the synthetic cocaine

In 1923, Richard Willstatter of the University of Munich succeeded in creating, the first synthetic cocaine molecule based on the coca leaf alkaloid molecule named :

 PROCAINE

synthetic cocaine

Synthetic cocaine

The new molecule also had the anesthetic and psycho-stimulating effects of cocaine, but it has a serious shortcoming: its anesthetic power was 50% below cocaine and had no hemostatic properties (which prevent bleeding).

After Procaine, a lot of sinthetics derivatives were created. (lidocaine)

Today they are the absolute owners of the market of the anesthetics.