0
THE CHEMICAL AND RELATED LITERATURE OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND' LEO J. STEVENS Smith, Kline & French Laboratories, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
AUSTRALIA and, t o a lesser degree, New Zealand are becoming increasingly important as industrial countries ( 1 ) . Extensive investigations undertaken by Australian government agencies, such as the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (C.S.I.R.O.), on plants and plant principles of that continent, and other investigations have greatly contributed to various fields of knowledge. The importance of chemical and related literature originating in Australia and New Zealand is likewise increasing markedly. The history of the development of scientific activity, and of the scientific literature associated with it, in Australia and New Zealand, covers only a relatively short period of t i m e h a r d l y a hundred years. Yet considerable scientific achievements have been accomplished. Australia. A few historical facts are necessary for an understanding of the evo!ution of Australian science and scientific literature. While the exact date of the discovery of Australia is unknown, the Chinese had some knowledge of its existence as far back as the thirteenth century. A ''Terra Australis" was hinted in a map dedicated to King Henry VIII of England. The fist European explorers to land in Australia were Dutch (1606); the first Britisher was Wm. Dampier in 1688. However, it was the English Captain Cook on H.M.S. "Endeavour" who sighted New Zealand October 6, 1769, and West Australia April 19, 1770. The first British colony wasestablished in 1788 near Botany Bay; yet, as late as 1862, a sizable part of the Australian continent was still unexplored. The British colonies in Australia developed slowly into six independent states, New South Wales being the oldest; these became the Commonwealth of Australia January 1,1901 ( I ) . As mentioned before, the Dutch reached Australian ' Presented before the Division of Chemical Literature at the 133rd Meeting of the American chemical society, sari ~ ~ April, 1958.
shores more than 150 years before Cook's landing. Thus, the Dutch navigator Pelsart described a Western Australian macropod Thylogale eugmii in 1627 which perhaps may be called one of the earliest items of scientific literature evolving from that continent (2). The observations of Cook himself were published in London in 1773 (3). An early attempt to organize science in Australia was the foundation of the Philosophical Society in Sydney in 1821 (5). Historically speaking, the medical and pharmaceutical literature by far antedates the chemical literature in Australia. Medical journalism started in Australia as early as October 14, 1804, when a Dr. Thomas Jamison published an article on smallpox in the Sydney Gazette. The first pharmaceutical society was formed in Victoria in 1857; the first retail pharmacy was openedin Adelaidein 1845 (4). The purely chemical literature made its appearance last in Australia. For example, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute was founded in 1917 hut did not start publishing its own journal before 1934(6). Research in chemistry proceeded very slowly and sporadically a t first, but in 1926 the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research was established. The Australian Journal of Chemistry was founded in 1947. As for Australian universities, that of Sydney was the first to be established, in 1850. Chemistry was not a subject of study in the early years of Australian academic life. The first chair of chemistry was established in 1882 (U. of Melbourne), and was given to Sir David Orme-Masson, often referred t o as "father" of Australian chemistry. New Zealand. Cook annexed New Zealand for England but the British government at first did not recognize the annexation. It was not until January 22, 1840, that Hobson hoisted the Union Jack over the territory. New Zealand aftenvards became a British colony and,~eventually, a dominion within the ~ ~ i ~ ~ British~ Commonwealth of Nations in 1931 (1). Science, re-
TABLE 1
NmZdand
Department of Soience and Industrial Research (N. 2.) Wellineton 192R Cawthorne 1nst&te ~ ~N.Z. 1919 l ~ Waikato Soientific A&ociati&,kilton on, N.Z. Dairy Research Institute, Palmerston. N.Z. (8. P) New Zealand Institute of Chemistry New Zealand Medical Resemeh Council. Well-
Royal Society of New Zealand, 1867 New Zealand Association of Bacteriologists, ~ 1945 ~ ' British Medical Association, Branch of New Zenland
University of New Zealand, Wellington, 1870 (8,9) Auckland UnivemitvColleee, Auokland. 1882 Viotorm University College, Wellington, 1897
ington
566
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION
,
search,and scientific literature inNewZealand developed Iat,er than t,he corresponding evolution in Australia. A summary of scientific institutions in the two count,ries in given in Table 1. Over the period of the last twenty-five years an impressive scientific literature has evolved in Australia and, to a much lesser extent, in New Zealand, oomprising a great number of chemical, preclinical, and clinical periodicals. (See Table 2 (9)). PATENTS AND PATENT PROCEDURES
The Australian government allows patents (10) for a period of 16 years. Medicinal products are not patentable if the product is a mere mixture of known ingredients. Likewise, a process for producing such a product by a mere admixture is not patentable (11). Patent applications in Australian are automatically laid open to public inspection, thus being an early source of valuable chemical information. New Zealand also grants patents for a term of 16 years (12). THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY
The chemical industry of Australia is very young. Before 1939 it had developed only slowly. In that year C.S.I.R.O. established a Division of Industrial Chemistry, which rapidly expanded until it now has a staff of more than 100 research scientists, good laboratory facilities, and pilot plant equipment. The chemical industry of Australia, in comparison with government and academic research, has so far contributed relatively little. The Drug Houses of Australia, Ltd., have completed (1952) a new Central Research Institute in Sydney. This is an exceptional case, and the majority of the small chemical manufacturers of which the .4ustralian chemical industry is largely comprised often have no scientific staff (7). AUSTRALIAN PLANT PRODUCTS
The Australian flora is abundant and rich in natural products-alkaloids and other substances. Its chemistry was first systematically studied by Baker and Smith in 1885; the former was a botanist, the latter a chemist. They concentrated on the genus Eucalyptus (Myrtaceae). Another Australian plant, Duboisia myoparoides (Solanaceae), was found to contain the important alkaloid scopolamine. The plant was a main source of this base during the war (7). The often cited C.S.I.R.O. has played a leading role in Australian plant and natural product research. The organization undertook a systematic field survey of the Queensland flora, looking for useful alkaloids. During this survey 753 d i e r e n t species from 110 dierent families were tested. The work was begun in 1944, the results being published in 1949 (15, 14). This systematic survey of Australian native plants was continued, and subsequent results of the testing nrere published in 1952 (15). Other Australian contributions to the chemistry and pharmacology of plant principles may be found in the current Australian literature. Among special texts dealing with toxic plants of Australia, that of Gardner and Bennetts is mentioned (16). A hook by Connor deals with poisonous plants of New Zealand (17). VOLUME 35, NO. 10, NOVEMBER, 1958
TABLE 2 Fim, TUc
oppeo7once Appcorsa
Published by:
AUSTRALIA The Annual Report of the Institute of seienoe and Industry The Australian Journal of Ap- C.S.I.R.O..Melboilrne plied Soie?oe The Austrahan Journal of Ex- Adelaide perime"ta1 Biology and Medical Selenee The Austrahan J o u m d of Science Sydney The Australian Journal of Soien- C.S.I.R.O., Melbourne tifie Rese*roh The A u t r a h m J o u m ~ l o Chemf C.S.I.R.O.. Melbourne
~i%mtralian Journal of Bio- Melbourne lopica1 science Journhl and Proceedings of the Australian Chemical Royal Australian Chemical Institute Melbourne Institute Reviews of Pure and Applied Australian Chemical Chemistry (8) Institute, Melbourne Australaman Journal of P h a r Melbourne maw Auatrslhaian Annals of Medicine Sydney Melbourne Australian OBicial Journal of Patents, Trade-Marks and Deaigna
1922 A
Q 1924
Q
1938 BM 1948
1947 Q
1947 Q 1934 1950 Q
1919 1951
M
1981
S.4
BM
NEW ZEALAND Journal of Science and TeohnolOW.
Series A: Agricultural Research Series B: General Research The Journal of the New Zealand 1natitute of Chemistry The Transactions and Pmoeedings of the Royal Soolety of New Zealand Ncw Zehlhnd Medical Journal
Wellington
1919
Wellington Wellington
1919 BM 1936 5 X year
Wellington
18R8
New Zealand branch of t h e Britiah Medics1 Association, Welling-
1902 BM
ton
I, irre ulsrly; M, monthly; BM, bimonthly; nually; s e m annually; W, weekly. 0
sX,
0.quarterly: A,
an-
LITERATURE CITED ( 1 ) "Encyclopedia BriGnnica," Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc. Chicago, 1949, Vol. 2, pp. 715-16. ( 2 ) ABBIE,A. A,, Awtmlian J . Sei., 17, 1-9 (1954). ( 3 ) COOK,J., "An Account of a Voyage Round the World [in 176&17711" linl H A W K E ~ W OJ .R. editor. ~. "An Account
-..- , . - .-. - -. ( 4 ) STEPHENS, T. A,, Austmlasian J. Phmm., 32, 730-2, 759 (1951). (5) SCOTT,E., Awtmlian- J. Sei., 1, 105-16 (1939). (6) CU~MMINS, J . E., Chen. & Ind. (London), 1953, 204-10. ( 7 ) "The World of Learning," 8th ed., Europa Publimtions Ltd.. London. 1956. no. 50-60. (8) "The h r l d of ~ e a & g ~ ,7th " ed., Europa. Publications Ltd., London, 1956, pp. 50-60. ( 9 ) "List of Periodicals Abstracted by Chemical Abstracts. . .," Chemicsl Abstracts Service, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 1956. (10) SCWIITZ,N . S., Foreign Patents as a Source of Chemical Information, [abstracted in] Program, Am. Chem. Soc., Div. Chem. Lit.. Snecial Meetine. Pittsbureh. Pa.. Jan. D G . RAYENSCROFT, "Patents ThroughWHITE,W. w.; ~ N B. out the World," Trade Activities, Ino., New York, 1952 (~19281, pp. 47-50. Ibzd., pp. 259-62. WEBB, L. J., "An Australian Phytochemiesl Survey. I. Alkaloids and Cyanogenetic Compounds in Queensland Plants." Commonwealth Sci. Ind. Research Oreanierttion No. 241. 1949. ~ u s t r i l i s Bull. . (14) WEBB,L. J.', "Guide to t h i Medicinal and Poisonous Pbnts of Queenslsnd," ibid., 1948, 232. (15) WEBB, L. J., "An Australian Phytochemicd Survey. 11. Alkaloids in Queensland Flowering Plants," ibid., 1952, 268. C . A,, AND H. W. BENNETTS, "The Toxic Plant8 ( 1 6 ) GARDNER, of Western Australia," We'est Australian Newspapers Ltd., Perth, 1956. (17) CONNOR, H. E., "The Poisonous Plants in New Zealand," New Zealand Dep. Sci. Ind. Research, Bull. No. 99, 1951.
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