Ch. 1. Introduction -- Ch. 2. The prehistoric period -- Ch. 3. Pre-hellenic civilisations -- Ch. 4. Greece and Rome -- Ch. 5. The Arab world -- Ch. 6. Herbals -- Ch. 7. Chemical medicines -- Ch. 8. Systematic medicine -- Ch. 9. Alkaloids -- Ch. 10. Non-alkaloidal plant products -- Ch. 11. Plant product analogues and compounds derived from them -- Ch. 12. The origins of hormone therapy -- Ch. 13. Neurohormones -- Ch. 14. Peptide hormones -- Ch. 15. Sex hormones -- Ch. 16. Adrenal cortex hormones -- Ch. 17. Prostaglandins -- Ch. 18. Hormone analogues -- Ch. 19. Vitamins -- Ch. 20. Antimetabolites -- Ch. 21. Blood and biological products -- Ch. 22. Antibiotics -- Ch. 23. Antibiotic analogues -- Ch. 24. Pharmacodynamic agents from micro-organisms -- Ch. 25. Analogues of pharmacodynamic agents from fungi -- Ch. 26. The first synthetic drugs and their analogues -- Ch. 27. Drugs originating from the screening of dyes.

Ch. 28. Drugs originating from the screening of organic chemicals -- Ch. 29. Drugs discovered through serendipitous observations involving humans -- Ch. 30. Drugs discovered through serendipity in the laboratory -- Ch. 31. Concluding remarks.