Creating Better Medicines with Precision Chemistry
Official title: Highly Selective Cu-Catalyzed Reactions for Precision Deuteration and Alkyne Hydrofunctionalization
Funded at University of Tennessee Knoxville · NIH-11117055 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work aims to develop new chemical methods to make medicines safer and more effective by precisely adding a special type of hydrogen called deuterium.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Tennessee Knoxville NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Knoxville, United States) |
| Project start | July 15, 2022 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $382,500 |
| NIH project number | 5R35GM147441-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11117055 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This foundational chemistry work does not involve direct patient participation, but future patients needing safer and more effective medications could ultimately benefit.
✕Less likely to help
Patients seeking immediate treatment or direct participation in a clinical trial would not find a direct benefit from this basic chemistry research.
What this research studies
Many new medicines are being developed with deuterium to improve their safety and effectiveness, but current methods for adding deuterium are not very precise. Our team is creating highly selective chemical reactions to incorporate deuterium into drug molecules with great accuracy, minimizing unwanted impurities. We are also developing new analytical tools to ensure these deuterated molecules are perfectly characterized. This foundational chemistry will help scientists create a new generation of safer and more potent medications.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to the development of new and improved medications that are safer and work better for patients.
How similar studies have gone: Preliminary studies have shown promising results, indicating that deuterium can be precisely incorporated into small molecules with very few impurities.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Tennessee Knoxville
Knoxville, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Clark, Joseph — University of Tennessee Knoxville
- Study coordinator: Clark, Joseph
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Tissue fission and fusion: how cells shape organs during development
A study in zebrafish will explore how forces inside and between cells drive the splitting and joining of tissue to form body organs.
-
Strategies for HIV-to-HIV kidney transplants to increase organ donations
This project looks at making HIV-to-HIV kidney transplantation more common to help people with HIV get transplants faster by boosting organ donation and changing practice.
-
BRIDGEX: Safer, clearer AI-guided robotic surgery through shared learning
A project to let surgeons and engineers share and improve explainable AI tools for robotic surgery, while protecting patient data.
-
Optogenetic control of bacterial persistence to study biomaterial infections
A small NIH grant aims to use blue light to turn on a bacterial persistence mechanism in a lab model, helping us understand and fight infections on medical devices.
-
How fever and hot spots inside immune cells boost neutrophil defense against Staphylococcus aureus
This project studies how fever and hot spots inside immune cells affect neutrophil defense and bacterial survival, with a focus on Staphylococcus aureus.
-
Conquering Pain Together: A Family-Based Pain Support for Appalachian Breast Cancer Patients on AET
A family-centered program tests a supportive, culturally tailored approach to reduce pain for breast cancer patients on endocrine therapy in Appalachia.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.