
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
- I'm a Female Dietitian. Here Are My Top 10 Foods to Prevent Heart Disease in Womenon March 22, 2023 at 9:17 pm
A diet full of whole foods, plants and healthy oils can reduce the risk of heart disease in women, new research shows.
- 1 injured after explosion at phenol plant in U.S. Texason March 22, 2023 at 8:20 pm
An investigation in under way. The INEOS Phenol Cumene plant opened in 1978 and produces cumene, an organic compound that is used in a variety of petroleum products, according to the company's website ...
- Pasadena explosion: Crews extinguish fire caused by propane transferon March 22, 2023 at 7:58 pm
The explosion occurred at about 12:30 p.m. at the INEOS Phenol plant, 3503 Pasadena Freeway, happened during a propane transfer involving a tanker truck, officials said. The exact cause of the ...
- Explosion, fire injure 1 at Houston-area chemical planton March 22, 2023 at 12:13 pm
Officials are investigating an explosion and fire at a chemical plant in suburban Houston that injured at least one person.
- The high phenolic content of traditional Mexican food contributes to better healthon March 20, 2023 at 5:50 pm
Phenolic Content and Public Health Relationship. Image Credit: lunamarina / Shutterstock.com. Introduction. Traditional Mexican cuisine is charact ...
- Melamine-Phenolic Molding Compounds Market Share from 2023 to 2028 | Comprehensive Industrial Analysis and Demand Projectionson March 20, 2023 at 2:44 am
Mar 20, 2023 (The Expresswire) -- "Final Report will add the analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on this industry." The “Melamine-Phenolic Molding ...
- Phenolic Molding Compound Market Share 2023-2028 | Industrial Size Analysis and Demand Forecaston March 20, 2023 at 2:40 am
Mar 20, 2023 (The Expresswire) -- "Final Report will add the analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on this industry." The “Phenolic Molding Compound ...
- The Phenol Disinfectant Market Is Expected To Grow At Significant CAGRon March 15, 2023 at 12:48 am
Phenolic compounds used as antiseptics or disinfectants include pure phenol and substitution products with halogens and alkyl groups. They act to denature and coagulate proteins and are general ...
- Phenolic Substances Concerned in Hardening the Insect Cuticleon January 12, 2023 at 3:59 pm
Slider with three articles shown per slide. Use the Previous and Next buttons to navigate the slides or the slide controller buttons at the end to navigate through each slide.
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
- Action on drug pricing, availability can’t wait any longeron March 22, 2023 at 9:01 pm
They were the negotiators who worked with multiple health insurers and public plans like state Medicaid programs, using accumulated purchasing power to leverage favorable prices from the drug ...
- Drug shortages are rising and pose a national security risk, new report warnson March 22, 2023 at 7:42 pm
Democrats on the Senate Homeland Security Committee released a report that found that new drug shortages increased by nearly 30% from 2021 to 2022.
- Rising Rate of Drug Shortages Is Framed as a National Security Threaton March 22, 2023 at 4:51 pm
That group found that there is a higher risk of shortages for drugs with a low price, complex manufacturing process or quality problems marked by a history of recalls, said Vimala Raghavendran, vice ...
- Drug shortages are surging in the U.S., ranging from IV saline to antibioticson March 22, 2023 at 4:13 pm
Almost 300 drugs had an active shortage in 2022, a Congressional report finds. The issue poses a national security risk.
- New drug shortages in the US increased nearly 30% in 2022, Senate report findson March 22, 2023 at 4:12 pm
When a pharmaceutical plant in Shanghai that made contrast material for radiological scans shut down last year, half the United States' supply of the radioactive substance immediately became ...
- Lawmakers Look To Lower Prescription Drug Prices By Targeting Pharmacy Benefit Managerson March 22, 2023 at 3:49 pm
Lowering the cost of prescription drugs is a goal shared by both Republicans and Democrats in Washington. They may not fully agree on how to do it, but they do seem to agree that one part of the ...
- Coleman man pleads guilty to dealing, manufacturing methon March 22, 2023 at 3:01 pm
Midland County Circuit Court Judge Stephen Carras gave a 38-year-old Coleman man an opportunity to turn his life around. Steven Kilbreath pleaded guilty on March 16 to dealing and manufacturing ...
- FDA Lacks the Tools to Prevent Surprise Drug Shortages, Senators Sayon March 22, 2023 at 12:29 pm
US regulators, coping with more than 100 drug shortages, don’t have enough information to predict which medications will run low next, according to an analysis discussed in a Senate committee ...
- Rising drug shortages pose national security threat, Senate panel sayson March 22, 2023 at 8:19 am
A new Senate report found that drug shortages in the U.S. are increasing in frequency and duration, due to over-reliance on foreign countries like China and India, which is posing national ...
- Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Need to Stay Focused on Supply Chain Auditon March 22, 2023 at 7:00 am
Pharma is doing more on-site supply chain audits with no sign they’re relaxing on quality or supply chain integrity, according to one industry observer.
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Drug manufacturing
[google_news title=”” keyword=”drug manufacturing” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]