What do Walt Disney and Henry Ford have in common with Felix Hoffmann, 'father' of the humble Aspirin? Answer: they have all been inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in Ohio in the US. The museum features exhibits of men and women whose extraordinary inventions have made a contribution to medical, social or economic progress.
In 1897 Bayer chemist Hoffmann managed to synthesise acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), the active ingredient of Aspirin, in a chemically pure and stable form and in doing so laid the foundations for an analgesic medicine whose spectrum of action now extends far beyond the treatment of pain. In 1971, scientists discovered that ASA has the ability to prevent blood platelets from clumping together and Aspirin is now used to protect against recurrent myocardial infarction or stroke and for acute treatment of myocardial infarction. The most recent scientific studies have even indicated that ASA may help to prevent colorectal cancer.
Donald Keck, president of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation, said that the inventors portrayed in the museum 'have all made a contribution to making our lifestyle what it is today.'