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MeTHF is an interesting solvent and a useful alternative to THF. One of the primary differences is that MeTHF is not miscible with water whereas THF is. This means that at the end of a reaction, you can add an aqueous quench and work up the reaction without having to add another solvent. MeTHF also gives clean phase splits whereas THF mixed solvents can give problems with emulsions and long sitting times to get clean phase splits.

MeTHF has some other interesting properties as well. Bromo derived Grignards are more soluble in MeTHF than in THF itself. It is also more easily dried. Not only can it serve as a replacement for THF, but it also has been used as a replacement for dichloromethane (pdf) which is a big advantage.

The main drawback currently is price. I quick check of Aldrich gives a 2L bottle of 2-mehyltetrahydrofuran for $165. By contrast, a 2L bottle of THF is only $88.90. I think the price will come down if more people start using it. After all, it comes from furfural which comes from corn and is renewable. Also with ethanol being considered as a fuel alternative, the ability to increase capacity for 2-methyltetreahydrofuran can be increased and the price will certainly come down.

Here is the page from Penn Speciality Chemicals with a lot more information on MeTHF.

For a reference on MeTHF for replacing dichloromethane: David H. Brown Ripin, Synlett 2003, No. 15, p 2353.

Technorati Tags: THF, solvent change, solvents

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This article reports on significant advances reported by GlalxoSmithKline on their work with a potential bird flu vaccine.

GSK Reports Significant Advance in H5N1 Pandemic Flu Vaccine Program

The main point is that they have managed to get a very good immune response from a low dose level. Here’s the key qoute from the press release.

The vaccine, which uses a proprietary adjuvant, enabled over 80% of subjects who received 3.8 micrograms of antigen to demonstrate a strong seroprotective immune response. This level of seroprotection meets or exceeds target criteria set by regulatory agencies for registration of influenza vaccines. Efficacy results at these levels of antigen dosage have also not been reported for any other H5N1 vaccine in development to date, including those using other adjuvants such as alum.

This is truly a breakthrough since getting enough vaccine to treat enough people has long been a major concern.

Technorati Tags: bird flu, drug development, GlaxoSmithKline, H5N1

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