Is the name of the abortion pill, RU-486, just an unusual coincidence, or does the name really come from an abbreviation for saying “Are you for 86?” (or “Are you for killing someone?”).
Note that I am not arguing whether or not the abortion pill or the act of abortion counts as killing someone, I am merely asking if that is how the pill got its name. If not, what does the name of the pill actually mean?
RU stands for Roussel Uclaf, the french company that first produced the steroid. The 486 is just a code for identifying a particular experimental compound: 11B-[p-(Dimethylamino)phenyl]-17B-hydroxy-17-(1-propynyl)estra-4,9-dien-3-one. The names Mifeprex, or Mifepristone, were only applied to the drug after it had shown its utility.
It’s the initials of the pharmaceutical company (Roussel-Uclaf), and the number is just an internal company code number. The drug’s chemical name is mifepristone.
RU-469 seems like a better way to stay unimpregnated.
Ah, but for the randomness of science, that WOULD have been the name.
Ah, compound #469 - please show yourself worthy of clinical development…
