Papa and Mama

"Interaction is necessary," the Old Yan said absentmindedly.

Shen Qi shrugged and said, "Alright, this isn't my business. You can handle it yourself."

Cheng Haonan asked, "Director Shen, the purification of CO1B is complete. What's next?"

The research, development, registration, and sales of a new chemical drug typically involve several steps. The first step is mechanism research. For example, the secretion of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens region of the mesolimbic dopamine system is the most basic mechanism of nicotine addiction. Through this mechanism, the physiological effects of nicotine absorbed when smoking tobacco create a strong sense of pleasure, which in turn leads to dependence.

Based on this mechanism, research teams from scientific institutions or pharmaceutical companies begin to develop compounds. For example, American scientists have synthesized a new compound in the laboratory by taking the nicotine receptor in neurons as the primary target for nicotine activity.

At this point, the prototype of a smoking cessation drug has been created, but it is not yet ready for market.

The subsequent steps were handled by pharmaceutical companies. They optimized the compound, completed various tests according to regulations, and then registered and marketed it. After being commercialized by Pfizer Inc., the compound was successfully registered with the FDA under the brand name Chantix and launched on the market.

In terms of prestige, mechanistic research is undoubtedly the most prestigious, followed by the first synthesis of a compound in a laboratory. Scientists who win Nobel Prizes primarily come from these research fields.

Mass-producing drugs, then registering and selling them—you might not win awards, but you can make money.

The basic mechanisms of nicotine addiction have already been studied.

Shen Qi and his team have now achieved the second step: for the first time in the laboratory, they have synthesized a new compound with smoking cessation effects, internally codenamed C01B.

Pfizer Inc. is a pharmaceutical giant that produces the famous male enhancement drug Viagra.

It's impossible to determine at this time whether Shen Qi's C01B or Pfizer's Chantix is superior; testing is required.

Who will do the testing?

Anyway, Shen Qi and the other two aren't going to do it.

So what's next? Shen Qi's suggestion is. "C01B has reached this stage and already has patent rights. If any pharmaceutical company is interested in this patent, we'll sell it to them."

"Isn't this a generic drug?" Old Yan asked.

Shen Qi said, "It can't be considered a generic drug. Based on the same mechanism, our synthetic route and final product are different from those of the Americans. For us, the work on C01B is finished. We can start the next project."

As for what the next chemistry project will be, Shen Qi said it will definitely still be organic synthesis. Regarding TM, he suggested that the two of them think about it more, and the principle is that it should have a certain degree of innovation.

Retrosynthesis is the most basic approach to Organic Synthesis Route Design. Chemists first conceive of a target molecule (TM), and then design the synthetic route by doing the reverse.

Starting with TM, we work backward step by step, first considering which intermediates can be synthesized from TM, then considering which raw materials can be used to synthesize intermediates, and finally the raw materials are the starting materials.

There are three basic principles: First, each step should have a suitable and reasonable reaction mechanism and synthesis method. Second, the entire synthetic route should be simplified as much as possible. Third, raw materials should be available on the market, and the more readily available and cheaper the raw materials, the better.

Designing synthetic routes is a great test of a chemist's logical reasoning ability, and also requires a thorough understanding of various Organic Chemistry reactions.

Organic synthesis is based on a wide variety of carbon-carbon bonds and functional group transformation reactions. To date, chemists have developed thousands of synthetic reactions, with more than 500 commonly used reactions named after individuals.

Last year, Shen Qi couldn't remember all the names and reactions, but this year he can almost.

As for the purification and detection of reaction products, this is basic operation, and everyone, whether a chemistry expert or a recent chemistry graduate, needs to be proficient in it.

Becoming an excellent organic synthesizer is a comprehensive test, and route design is the first and most important step in synthetic work.

Determining the TM (Tracking Technology) in route design is the very first step, the most difficult part of any undertaking.

Shen Qi, Old Yan, and Cheng Haonan returned to the center and each began to imagine.

What are you imagining?

For a specific purpose, the three of them hypothesized a target molecular structure.

What exactly is its intended use?

Is it a panacea that heals and saves lives, or a deadly poison that kills without a trace?

Is it a healing purifier, or a dark source of pollution?

There are no restrictions during the hypothetical phase; everyone is encouraged to fully utilize their imagination.

The principle of the hypothetical phase is that if the use of the target molecule cannot be determined for the time being, then its structural novelty should be considered.

Some new compounds may already have some use, while others may not yet have any known use, but they are meaningful because they are synthesized due to their novel structures. Such compounds are called chemical treasures.

What's most appealing and exciting for chemists in Organic Chemistry is the discovery of new structures and the creation of new products.

This is so much like the work of God.

However, God's job is not easy; baseless and aimless speculation will inevitably lead to fruitless efforts and wasted time.

Shen Qi's purpose was very clear: the TM he envisioned was either a super interesting new structure similar to C60 from back then, or a chemical drug molecule structure that could cure his wife's illness.

Shen Qi thought about it all day, his head ached, but he couldn't come up with an answer.

Shen Qi's work troubles vanished the moment he got home.

Shen Nuo Fei is over seven months old, and she's quite active, crawling around on the living room carpet.

"Wow!" Shen Nuo Fei exclaimed upon seeing Shen Qi, realizing that this man was someone very close to her.

"Nofi, say 'baba,' it's 'baba' now." Shen Qi squatted on the ground, teaching his daughter to pronounce it.

"Wah wah!" Shen Nuo Fei cried out enthusiastically, but she still couldn't clearly pronounce "Daddy."

"Nofi, say 'Mama,' it's Mama now!" Ou Ye squatted down next to Shen Qi, not wanting to be left behind. "I gave birth to the child, and I fed her the milk, so my daughter definitely has to learn to say 'Mama' first."

Shen Nuo Fei rolled over, but she was too fat and couldn't roll halfway over before getting stuck on the carpet.

Shen Qi helped his daughter complete the side roll, and she pointed to her nose expectantly, coaxing, "Daddy, Daddy."

Ou Ye shoved Shen Qi aside, seized the advantageous position, and pointed to her forehead, saying to her daughter, "Mommy, Mommy."

Shen Nuo Fei glanced at Shen Qi, then at Ou Ye, looking puzzled.

"Daddy, daddy." Shen Qi was having a blast; playing with the baby was the happiest time of his day.

"Dad my foot! Have you finished your work on Mathematical Grand Unification?" Ou Ye was determined to make her daughter call her "Mom" first.

Shen Qi argued, "Wife, I can only start the next part of the work after you finish your number theory section! That's the basic procedure. Be good, Nofi, call me Mommy, call me Mommy."

"You're so cheeky." Ou Ye laughed; Shen Qi still indulged her at home.