Mechanism of Action

From grinding up kidneys and injecting the extracts into animals to the famous Goldblatt clamp experiment, we trace decades of bold science that uncovered the body's most elaborate blood pressure system piece by piece. In part one of a two-part story... more

From mercury injections in early syphilis and heart failure patients to the discovery of carbonic anhydrase and the rise of sulfa drugs, we follow how physicians first learned to manipulate fluid balance. We also explore the development of acetazolam... more

Dive into the first real medications used to treat dangerously high blood pressure. From muscle poisons and anti-malarials to a plant root used for centuries, we trace how hydralazine and reserpine emerged as early antihypertensive therapies. We also... more

Before thiazides and ACE inhibitors, clinicians relied on bleeding, low-salt diets, metabolic experiments, and even nerve-cutting surgeries to manage dangerous blood pressure. This episode explains how these early interventions—and key discoveries ab... more

We trace the origins of how medicine first understood and measured blood pressure. From early fluid-pressure experiments and invasive animal studies to the invention of the modern blood-pressure cuff, we follow the slow realization that chronically e... more

Hosted by Dr. Adam Brown, a rheumatologist with a deep passion for medical history, Mechanism of Action invites you on a journey through the hidden chapters of modern medicine. From the first whispers of mysterious illnesses to the lab discoveries th... more