Illustrated Glossary of Organic Chemistry

Thalidomide: A drug marketed as a racemic mixture for pregnant women from 1957 to 1961 in about fifty countries. (R)-Thalidomide has sedative and antiemetic effects, whereas the S enantiomer is a teratogen. This drug was responsible for thousands of birth defects (shortened, malformed, or missing arms and legs) before it was withdrawn from sale.


(R)-Thalidomide (sedative and antiemetic)


(S)-Thalidomide (teratogen)