The history of cholinesterase inhibitors: who was Moschnin(e)?

The synthesis of the first organophosphate cholinesterase inhibitor (tetraethyl pyrophosphate, TEPP) is often credited to the French organic chemist Philippe de Clermont, working in the laboratories of Adolphe Wurtz in Paris. The two de Clermont’s publications dealing with TEPP clearly state however that the first synthesis of TEPP was achieved by another student of Wurtz, named Moschnine. While de Clermont is well known, nobody really knows who Moschnine was. This brief communication attempts to give an overview about the life and achievements of the Russian chemist Wladimir Petrovich Moshnin from Moscow.