School of Chemistry, the University of Glasgow, University Avenue, Glasgow, UK.
Nat Chem. 2022 Nov;14(11):1311-1318. doi: 10.1038/s41557-022-01016-w. Epub 2022 Oct 6.
Robotic systems for synthetic chemistry are becoming more common, but they are expensive, fixed to a narrow set of reactions, and must be used within a complex laboratory environment. A portable system that could synthesize known molecules anywhere, on demand, and in a fully automated way, could revolutionize access to important molecules. Here we present a portable suitcase-sized chemical synthesis platform containing all the modules required for synthesis and purification. The system uses a chemical programming language coupled to a digital reactor generator to produce reactors and executable protocols based on text-based literature syntheses. Simultaneously, the platform generates a reaction pressure fingerprint, used to monitor processes within the reactors and remotely perform a protocol quality control. We demonstrate the system by synthesizing five small organic molecules, four oligopeptides and four oligonucleotides, in good yields and purities, with a total of 24,936 base steps executed over 329 h of platform runtime.
机器人合成化学系统越来越常见,但它们昂贵、只能应用于一组特定的反应,且必须在复杂的实验室环境中使用。一个能够随时随地按需、以全自动方式合成已知分子的便携式系统,可能会彻底改变获取重要分子的途径。在这里,我们介绍了一种便携式手提箱大小的化学合成平台,其中包含合成和纯化所需的所有模块。该系统使用化学编程语言与数字反应器生成器结合,根据基于文本的文献合成来生成反应器和可执行协议。同时,该平台会生成反应压力指纹,用于监测反应器内的过程,并远程执行协议质量控制。我们通过合成五个小分子有机化合物、四个寡肽和四个寡核苷酸来演示该系统,收率和纯度都很好,总共执行了 24936 个碱基步骤,平台运行时间为 329 小时。