In Part 2 of our Pharm to Table deep dive on MK‑7845, Dani and LC shift from invention to implementation, welcoming process chemists Nastaran Salehi Marzijarani and Ben Turnbull to the pod. We explore how the team re‑imagined the synthesis to enable robust, scalable supply—and why a classic multicomponent reaction you probably remember from school, the Joullié–Ugi reaction, ended up stealing the show. Along the way, we unpack route selection trade‑offs, lifecycle thinking in process chemistry, and what it really takes to bring an antiviral to life at scale.

Read and listen to some of the papers we discussed today:

Asymmetric Synthesis of MK-7845, an Investigational Treatment for COVID-19 - Org. Lett.

Part 1 of MK-7845 series: SE4:E7: From Discovery to Process, Part 1: Building a 3CL Protease Inhibitor Through Smart Fluorine Placement and Design Intuition

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In this first installment of our two‑part Pharm to Table special on MK‑7845, Dani and LC sit down with medicinal chemist Valerie Shurtleff to unpack the discovery journey behind this 3CL protease inhibitor—from early structural insights to an unexpectedly effective difluorobutyl isostere. Val walks us through how the team balanced potency, VLE, metabolic challenges, and design intuition to land on a well‑rounded preclinical candidate - one of the most dynamic programs of her career. Along the way, she reminds us why asking good questions, collaborating relentlessly, and occasionally surviving a “Hot Ones” challenge are all essential scientific skills. It’s an episode packed with chemistry, creativity, and just enough fluorine to keep things spicy.

Stay tuned for Part 2, where we shift from invention to implementation and explore how the process chemistry team brought MK‑7845 to life at scale.

Read some of the papers we discussed today:

Invention of MK-7845, a SARS-CoV-2 3CL Protease Inhibitor Employing a Novel Difluorinated Glutamine Mimic - J. Med. Chem.

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Join us for a conversation with Yining Ji Chen, recipient of the 2025 ACS Rising Star Award, on how mechanistic insight powers innovation in pharmaceutical process research. We dive into her career journey and standout projects—from Pd-catalyzed C–N coupling for HCV therapy to dynamic phosphorylation in nucleotide synthesis—plus her creation of LED‑NMR for real-time photochemical reaction monitoring. Hear how deep mechanistic understanding drives robustness and safety, why she moved to the Data‑Rich Measurements group, and which emerging analytical technologies excite her most. A celebration of scientific rigor shaping efficient, reliable pharma processes!

Read some of the papers we discussed today:

A multifunctional catalyst that stereoselectively assembles prodrugs - Science

A rational pre-catalyst design for bis-phosphine mono-oxide palladium catalyzed reactions - Chem Sci

LED-Illuminated NMR Spectroscopy: A Practical Tool forMechanistic Studies of Photochemical Reactions - ChemPhotoChem

From at-line to online NMR: coupling probe-based autosampler with benchtop NMR - Reaction Chemistry and Engineering

Follow the Pharm to Table podcast on X - ⁠⁠⁠⁠@PharmtoTablePod

⁠⁠⁠⁠Visit our website at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pharm-to-table⁠⁠⁠⁠