5560 J. Med. Chem. 2009, 52, 5560–5560
CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 90th Edition. Edited by David R. Lide. CRC Press (Taylor and Francis Group), Boca Raton, FL. 2009. 2804 pp. 22.5 19 cm. ISBN 13 978-1-4200-9084-0. $149.95. The venerable “Rubber Handbook”, the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, is now in its 90th edition. My review will concentrate on what is new in this edition. However, it is worth mentioning that the section on physical constants of organic compounds contains exactly the same number of compounds (10 877) as in the 89th edition. It also contains some of the same peculiarities. For example, the only synonym listed for 2-(acetyloxy)benzoic acid is acetylsalicylic acid. Also, no synonym is listed for diacetylmorphine. Aspirin and heroin are not listed in the separate synonym index of organic compounds that follows the compound listing. A number of new sections will be of particular interest to medicinal chemists. A two-page section discusses the representation of chemical structures with the IUPAC International Chemical Identifier (InChI). A 13-page section lists scientific abbreviations, acronyms, and symbols. A twopage section lists Nobel laureates in chemistry and physics from 1901 to 2008. There is a four-page table containing the apparent equilibrium constants for enzyme-catalyzed reactions. The section on the structures and functions of some common drugs will be of some use. One-hundred-seven drugs are listed alphabetically by generic name, arranged according to their pharmacological categories. However, there are no references to the synthetic method first used, to the initial patents, or to early papers dealing with the
pharmacology of the drugs. Trade names are provided, and there is an index to both trade and generic names. A threepage section lists constituents of human blood. In this section references are provided for each entry. There are 33 pages containing the aqueous solubilities and Henry’s law constants of organic compounds. Also new is a seven-page compilation of mass spectral peaks of common organic solvents. Finally, there is a seven-page listing of proton NMR shifts of common organic solvents with references provided for each solvent listed. Not new, but useful nevertheless, is a very extensive listing of dissociation constants of organic acids and bases. Unfortunately, references are not given for the individual values. Also worth noting are lists of the types of compounds that are prone to form peroxides, data on the flammability of chemical substances and on octanol-water partition coefficients, and a listing of chemical carcinogens. I have not had the opportunity to review the CD-ROM version of this 90th edition. However, if it is like the 89th edition version, users will find it easier to search than the hard-bound copy. It is also much lighter and fully worth the extra $20. J. Keith Guillory College of Pharmacy The University of Iowa Iowa City, Iowa 52242
DOI: 10.1021/jm9009026 Published on Web 07/08/2009
