Stay in touch
Prime news from our network.
#read
New process at Leipzig University enables more precise and sustainable drug synthesis
Researchers at Leipzig University have developed a new process that enables the targeted polarity reversal of chemical compounds and thus facilitates the precise synthesis of drugs. Under the leadership of Professor Christoph Schneider from the Institute of Organic Chemistry, the team has succeeded in reversing the natural polarity of carbonyl groups in order to efficiently produce certain molecular structures. This method offers a solution to a long-standing challenge in organic and medicinal chemistry. The results were published in the "Journal of the American Chemical Society".
21/01/2025
The carbonyl group, which is characterised by a double bond between carbon and oxygen, plays a central role in organic chemistry. Due to its natural polarity, it was previously difficult to synthesise compounds with two carbonyl groups at a certain distance from each other. The team used a special functional group, a so-called hydrazone, to reverse this polarity. With the help of a customised catalyst, the desired molecules could be produced efficiently. This strategy has already been used to synthesise various active medical ingredients, including the anti-epileptic drug pregabalin.
Another advantage of the process lies in the control of the chirality of the molecules produced. Chirality refers to the asymmetrical arrangement of atoms in a molecule, which leads to mirror-image forms that can have different effects in the human body. The chiral catalyst used ensures that predominantly only one of these forms is produced, which is crucial for the efficacy and safety of drugs.The innovative process could revolutionise the production of medicines, as it enables sustainable and targeted synthesis and eliminates the need for toxic heavy metal catalysts. The researchers see this as an important contribution to the further development of medicinal chemistry and hope that their method will serve as a basis for future developments and applications.
Press release from "Universität Leipzig" dated 21 January 2025
The above texts, or parts thereof, were automatically translated from the original language text using a translation system (DeepL API).
Despite careful machine processing, translation errors cannot be ruled out.