• Question: what is the hardest thing about making new drugs?

    Asked by EvieParker to Steven, Jenny, Hannah on 17 Nov 2016.
    • Photo: Jenny Batson

      Jenny Batson answered on 17 Nov 2016:

      The hardest thing is making a drug that can reach the site where it needs to work at a high enough concentration to have the desired effect without causing any other effects and that still works well in a large number of patients. A lot of drugs look good in the lab but fail in patient trials but we’re putting a lot of effort into preventing that from happening!
      Jenny

    • Photo: Steven Street

      Steven Street answered on 18 Nov 2016:

      Hi EvieParker,

      Hmm good question!

      I think the hardest thing about making new drugs is working out the correct route to assemble them. Even if a synthetic route looks like it will work on paper, it can take months to try out, and even then things won’t work and you have to work out how to solve all of the problems! It took me 1 year of work to work out how to make my compounds originally!

      Steve

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