（PREFACE) Chiral molecules are ubiquitous in nature and have ever-increasing importance in the pharmaceutical industry.Actions taken by regulatory bodies throughout the world have resulted in drug companies focusing efforts on the development of single enamtiomer products.ln recent years,several valuable texts have been published that cover in detail the various sources and methods of preparation for obtaining optically active materials. There has been a need, however,for a guide for workers in the pharmaceutical industry seeking information on commircially available chiral drugs and the processes for synthesizing them.The goal of this book is to present the chemical professional with a comprehensive listing of available chiral durgs including specific data of interest for each entry in the listing.This book is intended to complement the companion volume, Chiral lntermidiates. Part l of the book,divided into four chapters,provides an introduction to topics relevant to the field of chiral chemistry and includes a brief overview of chirality,a short discussion on the current market drivers in the area of chiral chemistry,and a basic presentation of hte varous sources and methods for obtaining chiral compounds. This book will provide an introduction to the types of sources and methods currently in use for obtaining chiral molecules and will prove to be an invaluable resource for information on available chiral drugs. The reader is encouraged to investigate other sources for more detailed information on the technology and processes utilzed for identifying,isolating,and preparing chiral pharmaceuticals and their corresponding intermediates. （簡介）本書原著由英國Ashgate Publishing Ltd.齣版，與《手性中間體手冊》為姊妹篇，是極為全麵和詳盡的手性化閤物手冊。該書由兩個部分組成。第1部分包括4章，分彆對手性化閤物相關的主題進行瞭論述，包括簡要迴顧瞭手性的概念及其發展，討論瞭手性化閤物領域目前市場的主流以及手性化閤物的各種來源和獲得的方法。第2部分介紹瞭超過2500個手性藥物。每個化閤物條目下包括化學名、商品名列錶、同係物；CAS注冊號、EINESC號、默剋索引（第12版）號；物理性質（包括特徵鏇光）、主要應用；化學結構；生産和供應廠商。同時本書還提供瞭功能強大的索引，包括CAS注冊號索引、EINESC號索引、名稱和同係物索引以及生産和供應廠商名錄。