Chemical Upcycling of Expired Pharmaceuticals as a Source of Value-Added Chemicals for Organic Synthesis and Medicinal Chemistry

• Published in: Molecules
• Main Authors: Teresa Abad-Grillo, Grant McNaughton-Smith
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2024-10-01
• Subjects: expired pharmaceuticals; extraction of active ingredients; chemical upcycling; azaspiro compounds; potentially bioactive compounds
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/29/20/4811

Pharmaceutical and veterinary products are a class of contaminants of emerging concern, and their presence in the environment is due to continuous and incorrect disposal. Environmental scientists have been accumulating data on their adverse effects on animal populations since toxicological effects on wildlife were first published. Therefore, recycling strategies are needed. Valuable active ingredients can be extracted from expired pharmaceuticals and recycled according to various strategies. In an effort to reveal the potential of the chemical upcycling of expired pharmaceuticals, the active ingredients gabapentin and pregabalin were extracted and used as starting materials to prepare a small collection of promising substrates endowed with functionalities and structural three-dimensionality. Gabapentin <b>1</b> was transformed into aminoalcohol <b>3</b>, spiroamine <b>4,</b> and the bioactive azaspirolactam <b>5</b>. The lactam analog <b>6</b> was synthesized from pregabalin <b>2</b>. Due to the biological profile of <b>5</b> and the structural similarity of the <i>N</i>-alkylated derivatives <b>5l</b> and <b>6b</b> with the drug piracetam, a collection of potentially bioactive structural analogs <b>5a-l</b> and <b>6a-b</b> were also prepared. Simple extraction, synthesis, and purification procedures were used as a means of chemical and economic revaluation, resulting in moderate to good yields at a low cost.