Synthetic chemistry sits at the heart of drug discovery and development, providing drug discovery scientists with the tools that they need to understand and address the role of a specific target in the pathogenesis of a particular disease. Our talented synthetic chemists have been delivering challenging molecules for our clients for 25 years, using their experience and expertise to devise creative solutions and unlock the potential of our clients’ projects.
Access to innovative synthetic chemistry services and expertise is critical to the success of any drug discovery program. Our chemists work in teams to design and synthesize novel compounds via the best synthetic route. This process is made easier by having access to tools enabling the team to facilitate innovation and achieve excellence in chemistry.
At Charnwood Discovery, we recruit from a global talent pool to bring together the best minds in synthetic chemistry. We also invest in their continuous professional development, keeping them at the cutting edge of the latest developments in their field of expertise.
Our synthetic chemistry team is well positioned to add value to our clients’ projects, moving them forward towards their next key milestone.
Our Chemistry Team
The Charnwood Discovery’s synthetic chemistry team is made up of highly experienced chemists with >70% qualified to PhD level.
We have a range of backgrounds in house, including:
- Peptides
- Carbohydrates
- Nucleosides
- Macrocycles
- Pro-drug and Pro-moieties
- Protac linkers
Providing a culture for our chemist to grow and learn is key to the success of your synthetic chemistry projects.
Dedicated Process Research & Development Team
Our highly experienced chemical development team has project-proven expertise in the scale up of chemical reactions and syntheses from the milligram scale up to 500 grams of API to support non-GLP safety studies.
The team has successfully developed process-ready routes for a number of our clients, preparing technical transfer documentation to facilitate the successful transition of our processes to third-party GMP providers.
Data Driven
We have invested significantly in open-access analytical chemistry capabilities, including a suite of Waters Acquity I-class UPLC-MS systems and a JEOL 400 MHz multiprobe NMR spectrometer.
These systems are all networked and integrated into our Dotmatics ELN system, providing our chemists with rapid access to the information that they need to progress their work in a data-driven manner.
Purification Systems
Our purpose-built chemistry labs are equipped with automated purification systems, enabling our chemists to rapidly purify their materials and advance their work.
We also run a dedicated in-house purification service, which is managed by our analytical chemistry team.
Route Development
Site-wide licencing to expert-curated chemical databases from Reaxys, as well as unrestricted access to the associated peer-reviewed and patent literature.
These tools provide our chemists with a platform for efficiently interrogating and addressing challenging synthetic issues, thus facilitating idea generation for the synthesis of novel chemical entities.
Efficient & Cost Effective
A dedicated team of global procurement specialists at Amici work in collaboration with our chemistry teams to secure efficient and cost-effective access to the reagents and materials required to drive projects forward.
We pride ourselves on being upfront and honest with our clients, openly sharing our results in a way that allows us to adapt to emerging data and overcome challenging synthetic issues.
Charnwood Discovery has invested in a wide range of reaction technologies and equipment that give our synthetic chemists the tools that they need to achieve their desired targets.
Flow Chemistry
Asynt fReactor flow chemistry systems give our chemists the option of developing their chemistry into continuous-flow processes. Often affording faster and safer reactions, as well as cleaner reaction profiles.
This adaptable system is especially useful for chemistries that are not amenable to batch processing. Continuous flow-processes can also be conducted under photochemical conditions, further expanding our synthetic reach and the ease with which we can address complex synthetic questions.
Peptide Synthesis
PurePep® Chorus Peptide Synthesizer equipped with 4 reaction channels that can be heated and agitated simultaneously, allowing for the rapid solid-phase parallel synthesis of linear peptides.
Principal Chemist, Dr James Krupa leads our expert team of peptide chemists and has extensive experience in the synthesis and purification of linear (up to 30-mer) and cyclic (up to heptacyclic) peptides
Electrochemistry
IKA Electrosyn 2.0 electrochemistry system equipped with a wide range of electrodes.
Access to electrochemical transformations further expands our synthetic chemistry service boundary, enabling our chemists to prepare complex molecular structures that would otherwise be difficult to access using conventional approaches, as exemplified by our synthesis of a series of anilides via the nickel-catalysed amination of aryl-halides.
Photochemistry
Our synthetic chemistry team has access to photochemistry equipment and expertise, as exemplified by our work towards metallaphotoredox cross-coupling and light-mediated cycloaddition reactions.
Our continued investment in enabling technologies gives our chemists the tools that they need to rapidly address challenging synthetic issues and achieve their goals.
Further capabilities
Our team routinely conduct ambient and high pressure gas-phase reaction chemistries, including hydrogenation, hydrogenolysis, carbonylation and ozonolysis reactions.
We have been able to minimize the risk to our team by introducing a COware reaction system, allowing for the in situ formation of CO during carbonylations, therefore removing the risk of a CO gas cylinder in the lab.
