Serendipity in the search for “morning-after pills” led to clomiphene for the induction of ovulation

Abstract

The approval of the oral contraceptive on June 23, 1960, by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), changed society forever. For the first time, a pill designed and tested by men, supported by influential women, allowed women to control their fertility. For the first time, the FDA approved a medicine to be taken by humans without a disease. The chance discovery of a new group of medicines called nonsteroidal antiestrogens, created an opportunity for the pharmaceutical industry. These compounds were shown to be postcoital antifertility agents in rats and mice. In the 1960s, the development of a ''morning-after pill'' would have had an enormous market. Numerous companies focused discovery efforts to evaluate the development of their patented nonsteroidal antiestrogens: Merrell (clomiphene), Upjohn (U-11,100A), and ICI Pharmaceutical Division (ICI46,474). However, the antifertility effects of antiestrogens in rats and mice does not mean that the new medicine would be an antifertility agent in women. In this case, clomiphene did exactly the opposite of what it was predicted to prevent. Clomiphene became the first medicine to induce ovulation in subfertile women. This article describes the twists and turns of drug discovery and development over the past half century. The conclusion emphasizes the evolution of drug development over decades, based on fashions in medical research and discoveries in clinical pharmacology. As a result, new uses for old molecules, that started life as ''nonsteroidal antiestrogens,'' have revolutionized women's health as members of the new group of medicines called selective estrogen receptor modulators. (Fertil Steril Sci Ò 2020;1:3-13. Ó2020 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.

COVID-19 Testing and Case Rates and Social Contact Among Residential College Students in Connecticut During the 2020-2021 Academic Year

“…Prepandemic residential housing numbers were not available, although some schools reported a decreasing overall number of on-campus students (Eastern Connecticut State University, University of Bridgeport, and Yale University) 39 , 40 , 41 or limiting rooms to 2 students (Connecticut College, Quinnipiac University, Southern Connecticut State University, University of Connecticut, and Wesleyan University). 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 To dedensify the residential population, each of the 18 colleges and universities offered a mix of in-person and remote learning options. All institutions followed the CT DPH isolation and quarantine guidelines and reserved part of their residential space to accommodate on-campus students.…”

Füllung der Gesetzeslücken im schweizerischen Adhäsionsverfahren

“…1753 Wird das Adhäsionsverfahren bloss als das zu verbindende Verfahren über den Zivilpunkt definiert, folgt daraus, dass es sich beim Adhäsionsverfahren um eine besondere Form des Zivil verfahrens handelt. 1754 Es kann entsprechend nicht von einer dritten Verfahrensform ge sprochen werden, die jeweils vorherrschenden Grundsätze jedes Verfahrens werden durch die formelle Verbindung nicht tangiert. 1755 Es werden zwei Verfahren mit-und nebeneinander ge führt.…”

“…1755 Es werden zwei Verfahren mit-und nebeneinander ge führt. 1756 Zudem äusserte sich Jordan zum gegenseitigen Verhältnis der beiden verbundenen Verfahren dahin gehend, dass die Strafsache gegenüber dem Zivilpunkt als Hauptsache erscheine und das Zivilverfahren von diesem abhänge. 1757 Daraus folgerte er, dass im Fall einer Kollision der Normen der beiden Verfahrensarten die strafprozessualen Normen vorgehen würden.…”

Turning scientific serendipity into discoveries in breast cancer research and treatment: a tale of PhD students and a 50-year roaming tamoxifen team

“…This story has been told recently in full [ 61 ]. However, for the sake of illustrating the play of chance in discovery, it is a prime example of Serendipity.…”

“…A noteworthy public health strategy had gone from the laboratory to the clinic. However, this advance of SERMs in medicine only occurred because of a chance meeting [ 61 ] and one experiment [ 64 ].…”