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Salvarsan was a synthetic arsenic-based drug discovered in 1909 by Ehrlich and his team. In 1910, Ehrlich introduced Salvarsan (3-amino-4-hydroxyphenylarsenic), also known as arsphenamine or compound 606, to the market as a cure for syphilis caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum.
Eventually, compound 606 was synthesised and introduced as an agent against syphilis. The compound was later marketed as Salvarsan, receiving its name from the Latin word salvare , which means to preserve, to heal. In 1909 and 1910, the first human tests on patients with syphilis and relapsing fever were extremely successful, and Salvarsan was marketed from 1910. For the first time, an infectious and fatal disease in humans could be treated with a man-made molecule, and Salvarsan brought Ehrlich world-wide fame. Generally, the use of arsenic-based drugs has ceased, especially as a result of the development of Penicillin. Nevertheless, Melarsoprol and an arsenic-based drug closely related to Atoxyl are licensed to treat sleeping sickness.