The Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (SOA) Deemed to be University here will take up research collaboration with US-based THINQ Pharma and Ayurvidya Healthcare Innovations for developing drugs from natural and synthetic products to treat difficult diseases.
The subject was discussed at a meeting here on Saturday between SOA President Prof Manojranjan Nayak and US company president and eminent scientist Dr Mukund S Chorghade in the presence of other scientists.
The collaboration will aim at development of new drugs and drug products from natural and synthetic origins.
Researchers comprising scientists from the US company and drawn from different disciplines of the SOA including pharmacy, biotechnology, medical sciences and engineering will constitute the team which will take the project forward.
Dr Chorghade, who was accompanied by Dr Debendra Kumar Mohapatra, Chief Scientist, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, is a Fellow of the American Chemical Society (ACS). His research interests are in Drug Discovery and Development, Process Chemistry Derived Medicinal Chemistry and Traditional Indian Medicine.
He is credited with the discovery of the sterically-protected and electronically-activated metallporphyrin catalysts called ‘chemosynthetic artificial livers’ which find utility in drug metabolism, valorisation of biomass and environmental remediation.