SBIR Phase II: Chiral Polymers for Pharmaceutical Purification

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project develops new chiral stationary phases for pharmaceutical purification. Drug manufacturers seek new chiral stationary phases with high throughput, extended chiral selectivity, high loading capacity, with the ability to tolerate a wide range of mobile phases. To meet this need, artificial saccharides will be synthesized and polymerized into a 100% stereo specific chiral stationary phase for liquid chromatography of enantiomers. These polymers have remarkable propertie such as stereo specificity, five asymmetric centers, functionality for tailoring phase/ligand recognition, extensive crosslinking capability, and ether bonding. This chemistry was demonstrated in Phase I and in Phase II will lead to a new family of chiral polymers to speed drug discovery and reduce the cost of drug manufacture. The broader impact of this research will be to provide artificial polysaccharides to provide novel activities versus the natural products currently sold. Polysaccharides have multiple, chiral centers, unparalleled optical integrity; and the highest density of functional groups of all known molecules. Artificial polysaccharides are most readily functionalized and tailored to form desired chiral selectors. This project will molecularly design chiral selectors. The impact of this research extends beyond drug purification to sugar separations, high performance fibers, tissue scaffolds, and nano machinery.