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 syno-
nym 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 repre-
sentation of chemical structures with the IUPAC Interna-
tional Chemical Identifier (InChI). A 13-page section
lists scientific abbreviations, acronyms, and symbols. A two-
page 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 three-
page 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. Unfortu-
nately, 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