
Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have discovered a new chemical reaction that has the potential to lower the cost and streamline the manufacture of compounds ranging from agricultural chemicals to pharmaceutical drugs.
The reaction resolves a long-standing challenge in organic chemistry in creating phenolic compounds from aromatic hydrocarbons quickly and cheaply.
Phenolic compounds, or phenols, are broadly used as disinfectants, fungicides and drugs to treat many ailments such as Parkinson’s disease. Creating a phenol seems deceptively simple. All it requires is replacing a hydrogen molecule on an aromatic hydrocarbon with an oxygen molecule.
“This is a chemical transformation that is underdeveloped and at the same time pivotal in the production of many chemicals important to life as we know it,” said Dionicio Siegel, an assistant professor of chemistry in the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin.
The secret that Siegel and his colleagues discovered is a substance called phthaloyl peroxide. This chemical was studied in the late 1950s and early 1960s, but it has been largely ignored during the intervening years.
The scientists were conducting basic studies on phthaloyl peroxide, building on previous research, and decided to use it to tackle the age-old problem of transforming aromatic hydrocarbons into phenols.
The advantage to using phthaloyl peroxide is that the reaction does not require the use of acids or catalysts to work, and it can add oxygen to a wide variety of starting materials.
“There are no special conditions,” said Siegel. “You just combine the reagents, mix them and go. It’s very simple and straight forward.”
The paper describing this discovery was published last week in Nature.
The new process can be applied to other problems in organic chemistry. One particular area of interest is creating metabolites to drugs. Metabolites are the products left after the body finishes breaking down, or metabolizing, a substance. When testing drugs, scientists need to take into account not just how the drug itself reacts in the body, but also how the metabolites react.
“We’ve had a long-standing interest in accessing metabolites of drugs or compounds that are used in biological systems,” said Siegel. “Just as it’s important that the drug doesn’t have deleterious side effects, it’s equally important that the metabolite doesn’t have an effect. You need to be able to test them, and there’s not really a direct way to access metabolites other than using liver microsomes, and that’s not efficient and it doesn’t always work.”
Another area where Siegel and his colleagues are applying what they have learned is in developing even more reactive agents that will expand the scope of chemicals that can be transformed. Siegel hopes to get this new process into the hands of others quickly. He is working with chemical supply companies to market the phthaloyl peroxide compound and/or the precursors and make it available to people in research and the pharmaceutical industry.
“It hasn’t even come out yet,” said Siegel, “but there are a lot of people that are already picking up the technique and working on it.”
The Latest Bing News on:
Phenolic compounds
- Nutrition Pros Reveal: The Health Benefits of Cardoonon December 3, 2023 at 1:28 pm
This article discusses the benefits and quantity recommendation of cardoon, a vegetable related to artichokes. It is high in phenolic compounds, sesquiterpene lactones, and B-complex vitamins, which ...
- Novel Technologies for Enrichment, Extraction, and Determination of Phenolic Compounds in Foods - Volume 1on November 29, 2023 at 10:35 pm
Phenolic compounds (PCs) are the most abundant secondary metabolites of plants, which are known to possess a wide range of health-beneficial properties, such as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory ...
- Food Rich in Phenolic Compounds and Their Potential to Fight Obesityon November 29, 2023 at 10:35 pm
The incidence of obesity and its metabolic diseases diabetes mellitus is rising at an alarming rate. Moreover, obesity is a major risk factor in some chronic diseases, such as diabetes, and ...
- Scientists and the cork industry work together to preserve wine qualityon November 29, 2023 at 10:04 am
Spain produces 50% of the world's cork and 30% of all cork stoppers. Cork is a natural polymer which has been a crucial element used to seal bottles, being of great importance for the wine industry.
- Cava Healthcare Announces Issuance of Canadian Patent on Curcuphenol Compounds for Increasing Immune Destruction of Metastatic Cancerson November 27, 2023 at 4:00 pm
Vancouver, British Columbia - TheNewswire - November 28, 2023-Cava Healthcare Inc. (Cava), a biopharmaceutical company, is pleased to announce the issuance of its Canadian Patent for curcuphenol ...
- Cheers to health: Exploring wine's wellness secretson November 27, 2023 at 4:00 pm
Phenolic compounds can be classified as flavonoids, non-flavonoids (stilbenes and phenolic acids), and compounds produced after fermenting. Meanwhile, non-phenolic compounds include glutathione, ...
- 12 Potential Health Benefits of Royal Jellyon November 26, 2023 at 4:01 pm
In multiple test-tube and animal studies, specific amino acids, fatty acids and phenolic compounds found in royal jelly appear to have potent antioxidant effects (3). While these results are ...
- Get headaches from drinking red wine? Study offers clue about whyon November 22, 2023 at 11:10 am
A flavonol naturally occurring in red wines may interfere with the body’s ability to metabolize alcohol, causing an accumulation of toxins that can lead to swift headaches, suggests the study ...
- Researchers May Have Found The Answer To Why Red Wine Causes Headacheson November 22, 2023 at 7:01 am
The research has found phenolic flavonoids -- compounds derived from grape seeds and skin -- can be 10 times higher in red wines as compared to white wines.
- Why does red wine cause headaches? New study offers clueon November 22, 2023 at 6:10 am
“In that form, it blocks the metabolism of alcohol.” Red wine has a tenfold higher amount of phenolic compounds, especially flavonoids, than white wine, which makes the beverage a “primary contender ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Phenolic compounds
[google_news title=”” keyword=”phenolic compounds” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
The Latest Bing News on:
Drug manufacturing
- Over 50 cough syrup manufacturers in India fail quality tests: Government reporton December 4, 2023 at 12:09 am
Over 50 companies in India that manufacture cough syrups have failed quality tests, according to a government report. The report, released by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), ...
- Chemistry graduate held again for cooking meth at home, Rs 50 lakh drug seizedon December 2, 2023 at 8:26 pm
A chemistry graduate was arrested for cooking meth at home in Hyderabad. The TS Anti-Narcotics Bureau raided a meth lab and seized drugs worth ₹50 lakh. Find out more about the arrest and drug seizure ...
- Mumbai police arrest drug financier from Solapuron December 1, 2023 at 10:36 pm
MUMBAI: The city crime branch probing the drug manufacturing factory in Solapur on Thursday arrested the main accused who was the partner in the manuf.
- Contract Pharmaceutical Dose Manufacturing Industry Composition, Size, Market Share and Outlook Report 2023on December 1, 2023 at 1:23 am
The "Contract Pharmaceutical Dose Manufacturing Industry - Composition, Size, Market Share and Outlook, 2023 Edition" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.This expert trend ...
- Extending dog years: New drug could increase lifespan of dogs, company awaits FDA approvalon November 30, 2023 at 3:24 pm
A biotech company said it's one step closer to marketing a drug to expand the lifespan of dogs after the FDA gave it a "technical section complete." ...
- Arizona attorney general sues pharmaceutical manufacturers for insulin price inflation schemeon November 30, 2023 at 5:01 am
Over the past 20 years, the price of insulin in Arizona has increased faster than prices for other consumer goods and services in the state.
- Users of diabetes drug Mounjaro lost more weight than those on Ozempic, large study findson November 28, 2023 at 7:39 pm
Overweight and obese adults who took the injected medication Mounjaro lost more weight and were more likely to meet specific weight loss targets than people on a similar competitor, Ozempic, according ...
- Drug to Extend Dog Lives Receives Encouraging Newson November 28, 2023 at 4:53 pm
The biotech company engineering the canine lifespan-extending drug described the FDA's nod of approval as a "milestone." ...
- With 8.09% CAGR, Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) Market Size Worth $262.54 Billion by 2030 | Vantage Market Researchon November 28, 2023 at 6:36 am
The Global Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Market achieved a valuation of $141.3 Billion in 2022 and is anticipated to exceed $262.54 Billion by 2030, reflecting a compounded annual growth rate ...
- Biden looks to boost domestic drug manufacturing amid shortageson November 28, 2023 at 2:30 am
Amid widespread drug shortages, President Biden is outlining a plan to increase domestic production of essential pharmaceuticals — including by leveraging a defense law used to bolster countermeasures ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Drug manufacturing
[google_news title=”” keyword=”drug manufacturing” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]