Home / News / Arran Chemical Company forms U…

Arran Chemical Company forms Unique Industry – Academia Collaboration with Athlone Institute of Technology

Four year PhD scholarship will deliver novel, greener chemical synthesis modalities

Athlone, Ireland, 08 Jul 2019 – Arran Chemical Company, a member of the Almac Group, has embarked on a unique collaboration project with Athlone Institute of Technology (AIT) to support a four year PhD programme which will see the use of biocatalysis in the asymmetric synthesis of chiral amines and diamines.

Leading the project is Lauryn Bracken who was the 2019 recipient of AIT’s President’s Doctoral Scholarship award.  Lauryn, from Tullamore, County Offaly, Ireland, recently completed a BSc (Hons) in Pharmaceutical Science at AIT and will commence the project in October.  She will be jointly supervised by Dr. Noreen Morris, Lecturer in Chemistry and Dr. Sean Reidy, Lecturer in Chemistry, AIT, in collaboration with Professor Tom Moody, VP of Technology Development and Commercialisation, Almac Sciences & Arran Chemical Company and Dr. Peter Cairns, Technical Manager, Arran Chemical Company.

The project will focus on greener and more economic alternatives to chemical production methods for the synthesis of chiral amines and diamines. Approximatively 80% of Active Pharmaceutical Intermediates (APIs) contain groups derived from amines. It is therefore essential that new methodologies are explored to expedite their synthesis.

The basic concept of the project is to displace multistep chemical routes currently used for the synthesis of chiral amines and diamines to simpler, lower cost and less polluting enzymatic processes. Biocatalysis offers an attractive approach for synthesis resulting in greener processes and real benefits for both the environment and overall cost of goods. General benefits of enzyme chemistry include use of water as a safe solvent, lower temperatures and selectivity that is unachievable by chemical methods.

AIT has established strong links with Arran Chemical Company over many years and, together, have carried out a variety of projects on the synthesis and separation of amines. This project has the backing of Professor Moody, who commented: “We are delighted to be supporting AIT once again and look forward to working together over the next four years.  Almac will supply the college with all the necessary biocatalysts needed for this investigation and, of course, guidance and expertise from our specialists in this field. We wish Lauryn every success in her PhD project.”

Dr Morris stated “This project has the exciting prospect of exposing both the student and supervisors to new and exciting areas of research. A collaboration with Arran Chemical Company, an established chemical company with a wealth of experience which works with clients globally, will raise the profile of Athlone Institute of Technology as a base of R&D excellence and lead to further opportunities for collaborative research in the future.”

End

About Arran Chemical Company
Arran Chemical Company – a member of the Almac Group – is a fine chemical company specialising in the manufacture of products for pharmaceutical and health care, flavour/fragrance, personal care, and other specialised chemical and industrial applications.

We are specialists in chiral chemistry using both chemocatalysis and biocatalysis technologies, but also have practical operating experience over a wide range of modern synthetic reactions. We offer our clients superior chemical solutions with a high rate of success.

About Almac Group

A unique culture delivering exceptional solutions

The Almac Group is an established contract development and manufacturing organisation providing an extensive range of integrated services across the drug development lifecycle to the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors globally.

Our innovative services range from R&D, biomarker discovery development and commercialisation, API manufacture, formulation development, clinical trial supply, IRT (IVRS/IWRS) through to commercial-scale manufacture.

The international company is a privately owned organisation that has grown organically over the past five decades now employing over 5,000 highly skilled personnel across 17 facilities including Europe, the US and Asia. Click here to view our facilities.

We have a global reputation for excellence built over 50 years of client service, delivering expertise right across the drug development lifecycle and offering a tailored solution to each of our clients.

To keep up to date with our latest news, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.