Development of an Optimized Synthetic Process for Onradivir Featuring a “One-Pot” Miyaura–Suzuki Coupling Reaction
Influenza A virus (IAV) is a highly contagious pathogen responsible for significant global morbidity and mortality, with an estimated 1 billion infections annually. Onradivir, a next-generation PB2 inhibitor derived from Pimodivir, shows superior activity against drug-resistant IAV variants but faces manufacturing challenges. We report a scalable 7-step synthesis featuring two key innovations: (1) a silver-catalyzed radical cyclopropylation (89.5% conversion) replacing hazardous Grignard reagents; (2) a streamlined one-pot Miyaura–Suzuki coupling achieving 66% yield for intermediate 8. The route eliminates column chromatography through strategic recrystallizations, reduces Pd catalyst loading, and employs cost-effective ethyl acetate solvent. Process optimizations at 15 g scale demonstrate a consistent 5.8% yield for the API (representing a 7-fold improvement over the original method), with all intermediates either crystallized or telescoped to minimize purification losses. The developed methodology facilitates the commercial development of Onradivir and provides a general platform for the synthesis of structurally complex PB2 inhibitors.
Authors
- Haowei Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1998-9413)
- Qifan Zhou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5738-3511)
- Xumu Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5700-0608)
- Yujian Yang
- Yuanmei Wen
- Yongqing Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1090-0865)
- D. T. W. Liang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-3362-5879)
- Binhao Rong
Institutions
- Southern University of Science and Technology (CN)
- National Center for Drug Screening (CN)
- Shenzhen Institute for Drug Control (CN)
- Southern Medical University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Organic Process Research & Development
- Published
- 2025-10-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.oprd.5c00175
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- HIV/AIDS drug development and treatment
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.40