Chemists from the University of Magdeburg succeed for the first time in synthesizing the highly effective naturally occurring substance, Neosorangicin A.

In order to artificially produce the naturally occurring substance, the scientists used what is known as relay synthesis – instead of immediately creating the entire complex molecule, they first synthesized the critical sections, which served as staging posts en route to the complete substance. The research success does not lie solely in the components produced, but in the proof of the development process.

The results have just been published in the renowned specialist scientific journal, Chemistry – A European Journal from Wiley-VCH, one of the leading scientific publishers in chemistry and materials science.

Neosorangicin A is what is known as a secondary metabolite that is produced by myxobacteria in order to compete with other microorganisms. Existing research has shown that Neosorangicin A interferes in a central process in the bacteria in that it inhibits the bacterial RNA polymerase, that is, the enzyme that bacteria need in order to read their genetic information and multiply. So far, the substance has been effective against various groups of bacteria, including gram negative pathogens. These bacteria are increasingly causing problems for hospitals worldwide and are particularly difficult to treat, because they possess an additional protective outer layer that repels many active ingredients. Neosorangicin A is thus one of a class of substances that are of particular interest for the development of future reserve antibiotics.

“The molecule contains 16 so-called chiral centers, places where spatial atom arrangement must be extremely precise,” says Prof. Dieter Schinzer.

Professor Schinzer and his team developed a convergent synthesis strategy. Instead of building the complex molecule in a long sequence step by step, the researchers initially produced three highly complex key building blocks separately and only combined them with one another at the end of the process. The production of individual sub-structures required up to 19 chemical reaction steps. With special coupling reactions they ultimately succeeded in building the complete carbon skeleton of Neosorangicin A.

The World Health Organization (WHO) considers antibiotic resistance to be among the greatest threats to global health. A global analysis published in 2024 in The Lancet estimated that around 1.14 million deaths were directly caused by bacterial resistance, and 4.71 million deaths were associated with it. By 2050, every year up to 1.91 million people could die directly as a result of resistant bacterial infections, if no more effective countermeasures are developed.

“Resistant infections are no longer an abstract future scenario, but a global medical problem,” Schinzer states, emphasizing the need for new antibiotic structures.

The research project, which was entitled “SME Innovative-21: NEOSORA” was supported by, among others, the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) within the SME Innovative program as well as the European Fund for Regional Development (EFRD).

Journal: Chemistry – A European Journal
DOI: 10.1002/chem.71360
Article Title: Relay Approach: A Convergent Synthesis of Key Fragments En Route to (+)-Neosorangicin A
Publication Date: 2-Jul-2026

Source: EurekAlert