DSM outlicenses coupling technology
chemistries to US pharmaceutical specialist PharmaCore in a move
that will allow the latter firm to create new chemical building
blocks that are not available at present.
PharmaCore is licensing DSM's aryl nitrile based cross coupling technology. This allows a wide variety of aryl nitriles to participate in cross coupling reactions to produce derivatives useful in the manufacture of drugs and drug intermediates, including unsymmetrical biaryls, styrenes, alkylated aromatics, and alkynylated aromatics.
PharmaCore said it would immediately apply the technology toward its molecular building block business, which concentrates on using organic synthesis to create a large number of novel active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and intermediates for use by drug developers.
DSM's chemistry would not only allow PhamaCore to create compounds that are not currently available elsewhere, but also makes it possible to offer compounds that would be considerably more expensive if produced via traditional means.
Joe Miller, vice president of chemistry at PharmaCore, noted that certain classes of aryl nitriles are significantly less expensive than the corresponding compounds based on aryl halides.
"This will give PharmaCore a real economic edge with respect to our competitors in the preparation of these target blocks," he said.
At present, PharmaCore's catalogue of building blocks contains more than 1,000 different compounds.
