Chemists designing new compounds have to do a lot of simulating and predicting before a new molecule is developed. This is a slow and meticulous process, but now a new machine developed at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign is able to synthesize small molecules completely automatically. In effect, it allows chemists to draw a new molecule and have the machine put it together without any assistance.
The machine works by bringing together multiple pre-made molecular blocks that can predictably snap together. Blocks are delivered one at a time using a mechanism that washes away any excess reagents before the next step is taken. This has already led to the development of more than a dozen different classes of drugs and the potential exists for making many thousands more.
Martin D. Burke, M.D., Ph.D, the lead scientist on the project, has recently started REVOLUTION Medicines, a company that will commercialize the technology. Here he is talking about the new molecule-making machine:
Here’s a snippet from the study abstract in Science:
Here we report the synthesis of 14 distinct classes of small molecules using the same fully automated process. This was achieved by strategically expanding the scope of a building block–based synthesis platform to include even Csp3-rich polycyclic natural product frameworks and discovering a catch-and-release chromatographic purification protocol applicable to all of the corresponding intermediates. With thousands of compatible building blocks already commercially available, many small molecules are now accessible with this platform.
Study in Science: Synthesis of many different types of organic small molecules using one automated process…
Related press release: Third Rock Ventures Launches REVOLUTION Medicines with $45 Million Series A to Redesign Evolution’s Products to Treat Serious Diseases…
Source: University of Illinois…