Context

Pharmaceuticals comprise a wide variety of chemical compounds designed to guarantee safe and effective therapies. Within these, the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) deliver the beneficial health effects. However they also impact the environment, especially aquatic ecosystems and water resources as a result of their use and production. The goal of TransPharm is to develop more sustainable and greener APIs that simultaneously reduce the environmental footprint and the dependence on third countries for API production.

Objectives

The aim of the project is to contribute to a more independent and competitive European pharmaceutical industry, which can ensure the timely delivery of sustainable and green therapeutics.

	Optimize the use of existing and new data for greening drug synthesis and development
	Identify greener and more sustainable-by-design APIs as a proof of concept
	Reduce the inputs and outputs of API synthesis by introducing shortcuts in synthesis schemes
	Provide new methodologies to assess the sustainability of pharmaceuticals over their entire life cycle
	Provide a perspective on future possibilities on the actual use of greener pharmaceuticals
	Transfer the knowledge to concerned stakeholders

Expected results

• Software tool for flow chemistry modelling using AI
• In silico toolbox for Benign-by-Design with a focus on environmental biodegradability
• Toolbox on green production of API and pharmaceuticals with flow chemistry and electrochemistry technologies
• Toolbox on sustainability assessment going beyond LCA
• Training platform for academia, industry and health sector

Targeted impacts

• Better understand the environmental impact of pharmaceuticals
• Generating scientific evidence related to their development, production, use and disposal
• Development and future use of greener pharmaceuticals
• Share knowledge with relevant target groups across the healthcare value chain
• Reliable access to key manufacturing capacity to bring back production to Europe