Chemical industry news and analysis

Fluorine makes you an offer you can’t refuse

What might we do if we had a new, electron-donating equivalent element?

Generative AI pipeline creates promising antimicrobial peptides

AI model extrapolates beyond training data to predict diverse antimicrobial structures

New type of painkiller approved in US

Sodium channel blocker prevents nerves transmitting pain signals

Putting the F in pharma

Adding fluorine to drug molecules can be tricky, but is often worthwhile. Rachel Brazil talks to the chemists trying to tame the ninth element

Highlights

Putting the F in pharma

Adding fluorine to drug molecules can be tricky, but is often worthwhile. Rachel Brazil talks to the chemists trying to tame the ninth element

On the trail of the male contraceptive pill

As multiple novel male contraception compounds enter clinical trials, is family planning about to undergo a second revolution? James Mitchell Crow reports

The promise of drugs that send proteins to the shredder

Andy Extance charts how research into revolutionary targeted protein degradation therapies is moving from serendipity to strategic discovery

Chemicals industry roundup 2024

Europe continues to struggle with high energy and feedstock costs, while US and Asia negotiate supply gluts

Pharmaceuticals roundup 2024

Diabetes and weight loss drugs have surged in popularity, revealing supply frailties

Pharmaceutical

Fluorine makes you an offer you can’t refuse

What might we do if we had a new, electron-donating equivalent element?

Generative AI pipeline creates promising antimicrobial peptides

AI model extrapolates beyond training data to predict diverse antimicrobial structures

New type of painkiller approved in US

Sodium channel blocker prevents nerves transmitting pain signals

Putting the F in pharma

Adding fluorine to drug molecules can be tricky, but is often worthwhile. Rachel Brazil talks to the chemists trying to tame the ninth element

Regulation

New type of painkiller approved in US

Sodium channel blocker prevents nerves transmitting pain signals

New Purdue bankruptcy deal cuts out Sacklers’ legal immunity

$7.4 billion proposal will fund support for victims of US opioid crisis

Eight workers dead in Indian munitions factory explosion

Seven others injured during incident at state-owned explosives plant

J&J’s Intra-Cellular deal could signal more mega-mergers for 2025

£15 billion deal for neuroscience biotech aims to replace revenues from patent expiries

Red 3 dye banned in US food and drugs

Additive was already banned in US cosmetics and around the world

Sharing the burden of contraception could also mean sharing the risk

What if risk assessments for contraception considered the sum of risk to both members of a couple?

Industrial chemistry

Generative AI pipeline creates promising antimicrobial peptides

AI model extrapolates beyond training data to predict diverse antimicrobial structures

Far more drugs could be taken orally by formulating them with silica nanoparticles

Many more medicines could be made water soluble making taking them easier for patients

Mapping metabolite disturbances by drugs

High-throughput metabolomic profiling gives insight into unpredictable drug effects

Metal–organic framework captures carbon dioxide at industrially relevant temperatures

Material could improve energy efficiency of capturing carbon from industy’s exhaust gases

Fluorspar to fluorine chemicals without going via hazardous hydrogen fluoride

Safer way to turn calcium fluoride mineral into valuable industrial materials

Banned pigments found in tattoo inks sold in the EU

Nine out of 10 green and blue inks analysed violate Reach regulations

Nanopore sequencing set to transform our understanding of proteins

Rapid sequencing technique can not only deal with proteins hundreds of amino acids long but can detect modifications

How F1 plans to transition to ‘100% sustainable fuel’

Rule changes intend to make Formula One more environmentally friendly from 2026. But what are the changes, and can a sport known for gas-guzzling engines really go green?