Green Chemistry in the Pharmaceutical Industry Workshop
In developing a new therapy, pharmaceutical companies need to address potential environmental, health, and safety impact issues over its entire lifecycle: from the chemicals selected in the R&D process to the use of raw materials and natural resources in manufacturing to end-stage recycling and disposal. To encourage young scientists to think about the environmental impact of their research, scientists from Pfizer and Boston University conducted a highly interactive workshop at Boston University on Green Chemistry practices (25 October 2008). Seventeen students from Boston University, Boston College, and Harvard participated in the workshop, which focused on a “hands on” case study on the greening of the Lyrica process. The workshop organizers were Dr. John Wong, Biocatalysis Center of Emphasis, Pfizer Global Research & Development, and Dr. Michael Pollastri, Boston University Department of Chemistry.
