The Lab Notes

As synthetic chemists we are very familiar with making chemical bonds, particularly C-C bonds, and building complex molecules. Having said that, fundamentally, with sufficient energy and entropy in the driving seat, it should be quicker and easier to break molecules apart. Deconstructive processes are not, however, as common as one might think- particularly cleavage of…

1. Using an approved drug as a diazomethane surrogate1 A recent paper published in Angewandte Chemie describes the use of Temozolomide (TMZ) as a solid weighable diazomethane surrogate. TMZ is an approved drug and is the standout treatment for gliobastoma.  It is stable weighable solid, with reasonable water solubility.  Under physiological conditions , pH 7.4,…

Whilst I was working towards my PhD in the early 90’s I remember reading ‘The Hot Zone’ by Richard Preston.1 Although non-fiction it read very much like a Michael Critchton2 thriller- describing the emergence and spread of viral hemorrhagic fevers and filoviruses such as Ebola and Marburg. Viruses such as Ebola are somewhat self-limiting in that the…

Mayfield, UK | March 15th 2020 With major events cancelling across Europe and the US over the past few days, we know that many of our customers are asking questions about our forthcoming training courses and conferences. With the increasing number of Covid-19 cases and travel restrictions / bans, we have a duty of care…

Dr John Studley (JS) spoke to Heather Johnson (HJ) from Merck ahead of Heather's presentation at our Organic Process Research & Development Conference. JS - The Science paper describing the design of a biocatalytic cascade for the manufacture of Islatravir (Science 2019, 366, 1255,) published by Merck and Codexis at the end of last year, represents…

Dr John Studley (JS) from Scientific Update spoke to Dr David Barnes (DB) from Abbvie in the US  ahead of our 'Organic Process Research and Development' Conference which is taking place in Clearwater, Florida on 9-11 March. We are looking forward to your presentation ‘Discovery of Novel Catalytic Technologies in the Development of Complex Clinical…

We are delighted to announce a new event ‘Empowering Women in Organic Chemistry’ (EWOC Europe) which will take place at AstraZeneca’s Macclesfield site on Thursday 11th June 2020. This is a ‘not-for-profit’ event but due to attendee number restrictions, we will be charging a nominal fee (£75 industry / £20* academia) to cover catering costs…

Dr Will Watson Technical Director at Scientific Update Ltd has had an enjoyable few days at the Britest Limited Process Understanding Day in Cheshire. Will was asked to talk about Scientific Update and why companies should invest in their employees professional development. He also highlighted our range of training courses and conferences that we offer to organic chemists worldwide. …

**Spoiler Alert** Below are the answers and references for our 2019 Named Chemical Reaction Quiz. If you want to try the quiz before looking at the answers click Here...                                                    …

The delegates at our 6th Winter Process Chemistry Conference in Birmingham, UK had a little homework to do. See how you get on with our 2019 Named Chemical Reactions Quiz. Answers and references will be posted in the new year