Chemistry: Halogen soup
Chemists have developed a simple method for making testosterone-like molecules containing halogen atoms. Halogenated natural products have been isolated from marine organisms and are often biologically active, so it's hoped the methodology will boost the development of novel therapeutics.Kazuaki Ishihara and his colleagues mixed a simple halogen-containing 'donor’, a compound that contained phosphorus, and a small-molecule scaffold and thus isolated complex products containing halogen atoms. The reaction is selective for a specific product, giving the manufacturer a high degree of control over the three-dimensional structure of the end products.The simple manufacturing process, described in this week's issue of Nature, uses simple ingredients to form complicated molecules and may enable chemists and biochemists to understand how similar halogenated natural products are made in nature.
CONTACT-Kazuaki Ishihara (Nagoya University, Japan)Tel: +81 52 789 3331; E-mail: ishihara@cc.nagoya-u.ac.jp Phil S. Baran (Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA) N&V authorTel: +1 858 784 7373; E-mail: pbaran@scripps.edu