IROST Researchers Focus on Producing Medicine for Rare Diseases
“Statistics show that about $3 billion is spent annually on importing medicine and pharmaceutical raw materials and intermediates into the country. They are converted into final products by the chemical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries in the country,” Hassan Zamanian, the IROST chairman said.
Emphasizing synergy and cooperation among different research centers in the country that are operating in the field of medicinal chemistry, he pointed out that acquiring and creating technical knowhow for the production of many of these materials requires the development and expansion of the quality and specialization of research institutes operating in this field, adding, "Based on this, the founding of the Pharmaceutical Chemistry Research Institute in the IROST can be synergistic with other centers and institutions operating in the field of production of pharmaceutical raw materials and intermediates.”
“Founding a specialized research institute in the field of pharmaceutical chemistry industry [in the IROST] can help in the formation and creation of knowledge-based companies as well as the training of professional staff in the field,” Zamanian added.
He went on to say that the newly established Pharmaceutical Chemistry Research Institute will operate with four research groups: Synthesis of Organic Pharmaceutical Compounds; Synthesis of Inorganic Pharmaceutical Compounds; Herbal Medicines; and Formulation and Scale Up of Pharmaceutical Materials.
"In the group of synthesis of organic pharmaceutical compounds, researchers focus on the synthesis of raw materials, intermediates and organic pharmaceutical ingredients. In the second group of the synthesis group of inorganic medicinal compounds, the researchers focus on doing research related to the synthesis of raw materials, intermediates and active inorganic medicinal materials," he added.
He also said that the group of herbal medicines will focus on conducting research on extracting, identifying and purifying the active ingredients of medicinal plants and natural compounds that have medicinal and health-cosmetic applications.
According to the IROST chairman, the pharmaceutical formulation and scale-up group will work on drug formulation, shaping and scale-up (acquiring and completing the technical knowhow of semi-industrial and industrial production) and finally documenting the technical knowledge (reviewing the technical and affordability of the resulting compounds in the projects and valuing the technical knowledge).
Zamanian stated that the IROST Institute of Chemical Technologies has done significant activities in the field of production of pharmaceutical raw materials and extraction of active ingredients of medicinal plants since its founding, adding, “Some of the semi-industrial projects implemented in this institute is in the field of medicinal chemistry and according to the available facilities and also the possibility of obtaining laboratory services from other centers and institutions, the existing potential in different departments of the organization and the country will be utilized in line with its purpose.”
“Projects such as the production of salicylic acid on a scale of 10 kilos per batch, the design and construction of a solid-liquid extraction device, the preparation of dental alginates, the semi-industrial production of xanthan gum, the preparation of the medicinal substance for ferrous fumarate, the semi-industrial production of Benton 34 and Gelton, and the semi-industrial production Daikon (sodium diacetate), which are semi-industrial projects that have been implemented in IROST Institute of Chemical Technologies in the field of medicinal chemistry,” the IROST head concluded.
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