Nitroglycerine

Nitroglycerin (also known as nitro, glyceryl trinitrate, or GTN) is a heavy, colorless, oily, explosive liquid most commonly produced by nitrating glycerol with white fuming nitric acid under conditions appropriate to the formation of the nitric acid ester.

Chemistry

Nitroglycerin is a nitric acid triester of glycerol, which has been used to make dynamite and propellants for over a century. It is a dense, colorless, oily, explosive liquid produced by nitrating glycerol.

Medical uses

In medicine, nitroglycerin is commonly used as a heart medication (under the trade names Nitrostat, Nitrolingual, Nitro-Dur, Nitro-Bid, Minitran, Deponit, Transderm-Nitro, and others). It is used to treat and prevent chest pain from not enough blood flow to the heart (angina) and heart failure.

Side effects

Common side effects include headache and low blood pressure. Serious side effects may include an irregular heartbeat. It is unclear if use during pregnancy is safe for the baby. Nitroglycerin and related compounds, also known as nitric oxide donors, are used medically for their vasodilatory effects.

History

Nitroglycerin was discovered by Ascanio Sobrero in 1847, at the University of Turin in Italy, but it was Alfred Nobel who, with his invention of dynamite and subsequent industrial production, made the product commercially viable.

See also

• Alfred Nobel
• Angina
• Heart failure

External links

• Nitroglycerin at Drugs.com

Nitroglycerine Resources
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