Imagine using DNA not as a genetic blueprint, but as a tiny, precise 3D-printed scaffold to hold chemical tools in place. By swapping water for special salty liquids, these scaffolds can guide chemical reactions to create very specific mirror-image molecules. It is like replacing a blunt tool with a precision laser to build complex chemicals more efficiently.
Almost half of the costs in chiral chemical production are wasted on difficult separation and purification tasks. Traditional synthetic routes in organic solvents are inefficient for high-precision molecular mirroring.
A modular toolkit including XNA oligomers, sequence-defined polymers, and microfluidic devices for catalysis in non-conventional solvents.
If you are a drug manufacturer dealing with high downstream processing costs for chiral molecules — this project developed a modular toolkit using nucleic acid scaffolds that improves stereoselectivity. This reduces the need for expensive and demanding purification steps.
If you are a producer dealing with the limitations of traditional organic solvents — this project developed a system using ionic liquids and XNA oligomers. This allows for a radically different approach to designing chemical reactions outside of standard synthetic routes.
If you are a biotech company dealing with the instability of biological catalysts in industrial settings — this project developed sequence-defined polymers and membrane reactors. These provide a stable platform for catalysis monitoring and reaction control.
Based on available project data, it targets the downstream processing costs which currently account for almost half of production costs in the chiral chemicals market by improving separation and purification.
The project has achieved semi-preparative scale synthesis of unnatural XNA oligomers, but it is currently in the stage of initial studies regarding membrane immobilization.
Based on available project data, the project has developed a modular toolkit, new microfluidic device designs, and sequence-defined polymers, though specific patent numbers are not listed.
The project created new fluorescent and more reactive compounds specifically designed to enhance the monitoring of the Diels-Alder reaction.
The project period runs from 2023-05-01 to 2026-04-30, indicating it is currently in the development and testing phase.
The consortium is heavily research-oriented, consisting of 10 partners across 6 countries. With 5 universities and 4 research institutions, the academic weight is high (90%), while industrial participation is low at 10% (1 industry partner and 1 SME), suggesting the technology is in an early stage of commercial translation.
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