The Story of Viagra, the Little Blue Pill That Changed Sex Forever

“The times where I’ve been unable to perform have been some of the more emasculating moments of my life,” says 24-year-old Matt, referencing the sexual encounters he’s had cut short by his uncooperative penis.

SpiroChem strengthens its Advisory Team and welcomes Dr. Nick Terrett

SpiroChem’s team combines a vast and diversified synthetic and medicinal chemistry experience, with one mission: solving problems at every stage of the discovery pipeline. By troubleshooting early, and even anticipating problems, we accelerate discovery programs. We are actively engaged in R&D collaborations with leading academic research groups, and we always seek advice and critical assessment of our innovation from industry leaders. With one question in mind: “we are at the top of our game, but how can we get even better?”. Whether it is at the lab level (improved workflows) or company level (new scientific and technological concepts), we always aim higher.

Working with veterans of the life science industry who have made their mark is how we progress every day and pioneer groundbreaking concepts and solutions to advance and accelerate discovery chemistry. It is therefore a pleasure to welcome Dr. Nick Terrett to our advisory team.

Nick is a medicinal chemist with 35 years’ experience in drug discovery, in both large pharmaceutical (Pfizer, Merck) and small biotech companies (Ensemble Tx) across the UK, US, and Switzerland. He has advanced several candidates into the clinic and was chemistry project leader and inventor for sildenafil (marketed as Viagra® and Revatio®). Nick has also worked on new discovery technologies establishing Pfizer’s first combinatorial chemistry platform and while at Ensemble Therapeutics developed DNA-encoded chemistry libraries and advanced macrocycles as valuable ‘beyond Rule of 5’ modalities. Nick obtained his PhD from the University of Cambridge UK and is now based in New Jersey. He advises biotech and chemical services companies.

The unique synergy of first-class chemists and vast experience within our Scientific Advisory Team plays a fundamental role in supporting the consistent and continued success of SpiroChem’s medicinal chemistry discovery services.

The Story of Viagra, the Little Blue Pill That Changed Sex Forever

“The times where I’ve been unable to perform have been some of the more emasculating moments of my life,” says 24-year-old Matt, referencing the sexual encounters he’s had cut short by his uncooperative penis.

Matt isn’t alone. Browse the MRA safe spaces of Reddit or the dusty corridors of Yahoo Answers – or, in fact, speak to other men who have found themselves in a similar situation – and you’ll see there’s a great deal of shame attached to erectile dysfunction. The validity of that shame is one thing; the remedy – for the majority of men, for the past 20 years – is another: Viagra.

For Matt and many others, those little blue pills call help to “replace this feeling of powerlessness with a sense of control”.

Viagra was first marketed to the public 20 years ago this month, its brand name usurping the less catchy “sildenafil citrate”, the medication’s active chemical. Before its introduction, supposed solutions for limp-dick were crude at best and eye-watering at worst. British scientist Dr Nicholas Terrett – who is one of Viagra’s inventors, and named on its original patent – quips over the phone that the methods of old “were no fun at all”, consisting of either “introducing a drug into the urethra” or “having a prosthetic device implanted into your penis”.

Suddenly, though, here was “a drug that was orally bioavailable – you just popped a pill”, adds Terrett. And funnily enough, this method proved much more popular than anything involving urethras: within the first few weeks of hitting the market, the diamond-shaped tablets had been prescribed to an estimated 40,000 men.

Famously, Viagra was never intended solely as a boner-boosting drug. Originally developed in 1989 as “UK-92480” by Pfizer scientists Peter Dunn and Albert Wood, it was designed to treat high blood pressure and angina, a chest pain caused by reduced blood flow to the heart. By 1991, Dr Terrett was on board and a British patent for Viagra as a heart medication had been filed.

It’s for this reason that many media reports have painted the proposed angina medication’s sexual side effects as a stroke of “luck”. However, according to Terrett, that the drug might be able to combat erectile dysfunction was a possibility hypothesised before its first medical trial.

The team of Pfizer scientists – based in Sandwich, Kent – discovered that the mechanism that opened blood flow up to the heart muscles “was pretty widespread through the body… and [so] if we could find a drug that would interact with the mechanistic target, we could maybe treat respiratory disease, gastric disease… and erectile dysfunction”, says Terrett. Consisting of healthy volunteers in South Wales, the first medical trial for Viagra showed much more promise in treating that last condition that any of the others researchers had considered, as did other early trials.

“Around the same time, other studies were revealing more information about the biochemical pathway involved in the erection process,” writes researcher Ian Osterloh in Cosmos magazine. “This helped us understand how the drug might amplify the effects of sexual stimulation in opening up the blood vessels in the penis. With UK-92480’s chances of treating angina now slim, we decided to run pilot studies in patients with erectile dysfunction.”

These clinical trials saw a “phenomenal response” from the majority of participants, says Terrett, and with that the drug’s future was set: in March of 1998 the FDA approved its use in the US for treating erectile dysfunction, and by June of the same year Newsweek was calling it the “hottest new drug in history almost everywhere in the world”.

Taking Too Much Viagra and Getting Your Penis Amputated Is No Laughing Matter

Since then, Viagra has made Pfizer more than £1 billion a year. Besides its efficacy in a field a lot people care a lot about, the drug has benefitted from a string of savvy marketing campaigns. Dorothy Wetzel – who started the Consumer Marketing department at Pfizer – oversaw the first round of adverts, which included a print ad featuring a photo of an older couple and the tagline “Let the dance begin”, as well as a TV spot featuring former US presidential candidate Bob Dole.

Wetzel told me that the aim was “always a balancing act between wanting to be a responsible healthcare marketer and representing the inherent truths of human sexuality”. One of these truths, she contends, is that “the ability to perform sexually is key to a man’s sense of self” – and clearly, judging from Matt’s comments and the transcribed fretting you’ll find online, she was spot on.

For Wetzel, the reason Viagra has become so iconic is because “pills and sex have always had a prominent role in our culture”. In the same way that “the birth control pill stood for female freedom”, Viagra allowed for a “kind of Peter Pan fantasy”, where men could be “forever their essential vital selves”.

In recent years, however, there’s been a growing number of younger men taking Viagra – or non-Pfizer alternatives, such as Cialis and Levitra – often recreationally. This started as a post-rave antidote for “pilly willy”, because stimulants – as you may know – can adversely affect a boner’s structural integrity. While no specific studies have been carried out, it’s thought that this combination of drugs could cause certain health issues. Still, that doesn’t stop people like Matt from using Viagra alongside “stimulants, such as MDMA or speed, but also with alcohol if I think I might have trouble [getting it up]”.

As the Spectator reported in early March, Viagra is now being specifically marketed to young men, framed as a “lifestyle” drug rather than a medical one.

I spoke to Meika Loe, author of The Rise of Viagra, about this trend. She sees it as worrying, indebted to our “McDonaldlised world” and a “porn culture” that urges us to be “robotic, sexualised creatures… with perfect 3D erections”. While writing her book, Loe spoke to many young men who she saw as being “part of the pharmaceutical generation – they have learned to solve problems with pills”. Rather than relying on a quick chemical fix, she would like to see people being “more vulnerable with each other, not less”, and treating “the whole body [and the] relationship” rather than just popping a pill.

Terrett is equally worried about the “salacious angle” many media outlets approach Viagra from, and emphasises it is a drug intended for medical, not lifestyle, purposes. With this in mind, the real success for Terrett has been seeing the effect Viagra has had on men’s health in general – besides opening up the blood vessels within millions of penises, it has also sparked vital conversations about male sexual health.

Another benefit, he says, which has gone widely underreported, is that increased discussion around erectile dysfunction has led to “a discovery that a lot of people had impotence as a consequence of cardiovascular disease that limited blood flow and impaired the mechanism that caused erection”. So, in getting a diagnosis, this discussion has directly “extended their lives”.

In 2013, Viagra’s UK patent expired, allowing rival companies to offer alternatives and prompting Pfizer to release a little white pill at a fraction of the cost of its little blue pill. Pfizer’s US patent extends until 2020, but in late 2017 the company started selling its cheaper alternative in America, too.

This week, the UK became the first country where consumers can buy Viagra over the counter without a prescription – an effort to combat the online trade in dodgy counterfeit pills, which can be dangerous and have been found to contain everything from blue printer ink to brick dust.

One-fifth of British men are thought to have erection problems, with NHS sildenafil prescriptions tripling to nearly 3 million from 2015 to 2016. While customers will still have to fill out an online questionnaire or answer some questions at a pharmacy before the sale of these new Viagra Connect pills can be completed, Pfizer says they will offer these men “a new and convenient route of access to treat the symptoms of erectile dysfunction”.

Whether for medical or recreational use, the demand for Viagra has never been higher. And now, 20 years to the week since the drug was green-lit for use by the FDA, with the introduction of these new non-prescription pills, they’re also more available than ever. How that will affect the next 20 years of sex and male health is anyone’s guess.

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MEET Mr VIAGRA .. BUT WITH 5 KIDS, HE DOESN’T SEEM TO NEED HIS OWN INVENTION.

The man being acclaimed as the father of Viagra was tracked down yesterday amid intense public attention.

But if you passed unassuming British scientist Dr Nicholas Terrett in the street, you wouldn’t give him a second glance.

The bespectacled and balding father of five children, including twins, hardly looks the type to set the world alight.

His invention, however, will do just that for millions and virility drug Viagra has taken the world by storm.

Modest Dr Terrett, 40, whose hobby is DIY, appears to have no need for the drug himself.

He and wife Sheila’s large family would seem to indicate no problems in that department.

Yesterday, Mrs Terrett was clearly bursting with pride when quizzed about her husband’s amazing discovery.

She said: “It is a nice achievement and he was very excited when he realised what he had.

“But the publicity has taken us a bit by surprise and it has been a bit sensationalised, which is a shame.”

The family live in a modest semi-detached, converted oast house in Wingham, Kent.

Dr Terrett enjoys the simple things in life, like being with his children, playing the piano -and wallpapering.

Pfizer, the drug company who stand to make millions from Viagra, have been trying to play down the role of any one employee in its development.

They insist the wonder drug – which was actually invented six years ago – came about as a result of a team effort.

However, Dr Terrett is among those specifically named in documents released by the Patent Office.

When quizzed about his involvement, the doctor admitted: “Me and my team discovered how useful the drug might be.”

Mrs Terrett painted a picture of her husband as a modest, home-loving man who is likely to shun the glare of even more publicity which will accompany the drug’s anticipated UK launch in September.

She said: “Nicholas is a great husband and a very caring dad.

“We are very happy together. With the children and decorating the house, we don’t get time for anything else.

“He likes playing the piano but we don’t do anything exciting, really. We don’t go bungee jumping or anything.”

The couple met while studying at Cambridge University, which Dr Terrett attended between 1976 and 1979. Sheila was an undergraduate reading history.

She added: “We started going out in our second year. He didn’t ask me out and I didn’t ask him. It was a bit of a mutual thing.”

They married in 1981 then Dr Terrett went back to Cambridge University to take a PhD in chemistry.

Their first child, Ben, was born in 1987. They now have another four children – Jack, nine, Fay, eight, and four- year-old twins Rebecca and Alison.

A neighbour described the Terretts as “a lovely family”.

She added: “Dr Terrett deserves all the success in the world.

“But we haven’t heard if he is making a lot of money from all this.”

The neighbour also quipped: “With five children, we are wondering if he has been using Viagra himself to demonstrate its effectiveness.”

Pfizer spokeswoman Ann Denby confirmed: “Dr Terrett is named on the patent.”

Other Pfizer employees involved refused to discuss their role in its development.

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Author:	Oxley, Ken
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Meet the Man Responsible for 5 Billion Orgasms

On March 27, 1998, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officially approved the use of Viagra, an oral medication that treats impotence, invented by British scientist Dr. Nicholas Terrett. Since then, men and women have turned to the drug to keep their sex lives, well, alive.

Viagra, with the chemical name Sildenafil, was originally intended to treat hypertension (high blood pressure) and angina pectoris (a form of cardiovascular disease). But chemists at the Pfizer pharmaceutical company found that the drug can induce penile erections typically within 30 to 60 minutes. Seeing the potential to market the drug as a cure for impotence, Sildenafil was patented in 1996 and was approved by the FDA two years later as treatment for “erectile dysfunction,” the then new clinical name for impotence.

Dr. Nicholas Terrett has been regarded as the ‘Father of Viagra.’

It was in 1991 that Andrew Bell, Dr. David Brown, and Dr. Nicholas Terrett discovered the potency of Sildenafil to cure angina. Terrett was the one named in the 1991 patent for Sildenafil as a treatment for heart problems, and therefore, he has been widely recognized as the ‘Father of Viagra.’ He has been described as a simple and modest man who enjoys “being with his children, playing the piano, and wallpapering.”

In 1994, Terrett and his colleague Peter Ellis found that the drug can be very effective in enhancing the flow of blood to the penile region in patients suffering from erectile dysfunction. They discovered that Sildenafil increases the muscle relaxing effects of nitric oxide, a chemical that gets released during sexual stimulation. The relaxation of the muscle in the penis allows a higher rate of blood flow and aids in producing an erection.

Viagra, also called Sildenafil, was originally intended to treat high blood pressure and heart problems.

Viagra was such a massive hit. In the first year alone, the then $8-$10 pills yielded around a billion dollars in sales. Though it was only available by prescription, the drug was also marketed on mainstream television. It not only made an impact in the pharmaceutical and medical industries, Viagra also got into the general public’s consciousness.

Viagra has its competitors, among them Cialis (tadalafil) and Levitra (vardenafil), but none comes close to the recall and reputation of the original drug. Today, an estimated 30 million men in the United States suffer from erectile dysfunction. And drug companies are not just targeting old men now, they are also looking to engage men in their 30s and 40s.

Viagra instantly became a massive hit despite being a prescription drug.

Ozy.com estimates that Viagra has been responsible for about 5 billion orgasms. How did they get to this conclusion? They explain:

“Take Viagra’s revenue from Pfizer’s annual financial reports and divide that by the approximate cost of a single pill ($30), and you’ve got approximately how many pills were popped. Take into consideration that the drug only works for about half of men and that just because Viagra goes down your gullet, doesn’t mean the deed is done — sometimes your teen comes home early or work calls (how rude!). Finally, assume that one-third of women and 80 percent of men orgasm during sex. Simple.

“Granted, we’re assuming the price of Viagra has remained stable (in fact, to be on the safe side, it’s risen dramatically) and that without the little blue pill, these couples wouldn’t be having sex — thanks to vibrators, that doesn’t mean women wouldn’t still be orgasming. Nonetheless, 5 billion is close. You’re welcome, Dr. Terrett.”

It is now also being marketed to younger men in their 30s and 40s.

Whether or not this number is accurate, we can’t deny the place Viagra has occupied in modern society. It’s definitely one of the most famous, controversial, and influential medical inventions in recent history.

This Man Is Responsible for 5 Billion Orgasms

Catch up on the day’s headlines and go deep on where we’re at.

Why you should care

Because there are precious few better legacies than enabling that much pleasure.

Casanova, Cleopatra and Wilt Chamberlain. All legendary for their insatiable thirst for love and sex. But their legacies of seduction are no match for Dr. Nicholas Terrett and his team of British scientists, though in a roundabout way. Since Terrett’s compound, sildenafil citrate, was approved by the Federal Drug Administration to treat erectile dysfunction (ED) in 1998,

Viagra has had a hand in approximately 5 billion orgasms.

Now, close your mouth. That much sex would register on the Richter scale. But think about it — other than the condom and alcohol, there probably isn’t a better intercourse-aiding invention. Of course, the data isn’t perfect and our assumptions can be debated to varying degrees, but there’s no question: Viagra is still the king of the all-night romp. Charles Walker, an assistant professor of urology at Yale University, agrees. He says his patients’ experience with the drug has been “overwhelmingly good,” and that dyspepsia, headache, flushing and nasal congestion are all a “small price” to pay for magic under the sheets.

So how the hell did we get to 5 billion? Easy. Take Viagra’s revenue from Pfizer’s annual financial reports and divide that by the approximate cost of a single pill ($30), and you’ve got approximately how many pills were popped. Take into consideration that the drug only works for about half of men and that just because Viagra goes down your gullet, doesn’t mean the deed is done — sometimes your teen comes home early or work calls (how rude!). Finally, assume that one-third of women and 80 percent of men orgasm during sex. Simple.

Granted, we’re assuming the price of Viagra has remained stable (in fact, to be on the safe side, it’s risen dramatically) and that without the little blue pill, these couples wouldn’t be having sex — thanks to vibrators, that doesn’t mean women wouldn’t still be orgasming. Nonetheless, 5 billion is close. You’re welcome, Dr. Terrett.

For their part, Pfizer sidestepped a request for comment, instead providing a brochure-esque response, including such revelationary insights as “Viagra can help a man with ED get and keep an erection.” Wow! Or: “20 years ago, people considered ED a natural part of aging to be tolerated.”

Well, actually, many still do. Including Celeste Hirschman, a San Francisco-based sex and relationship therapist, who says people jump far too quickly for medical solutions to natural problems — simply put: “Bodies change.” But your man’s inability to get it up may be a blessing in disguise, she says. Couples should shift their focus to other “delicious” activities, including erotic massage and a nice, long, warm-up session. And if you aren’t interested in anything like that, then there’s something wrong with the relationship, not the equipment, says Hirschman. Sage advice. Maybe we can soon credit Hirschman with 5 billion.

This OZY encore was originally published Feb. 15, 2015.

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