With a new method to synthesize a popular painkiller from plants rather than fossil fuels, a team of researchers led by biochemistry professor John Ralph PhD’82 has found a way to relieve two headaches with one process.
The group has been awarded a patent for a method to synthesize acetaminophen — the active ingredient in Tylenol — from a natural compound derived from plant material. The approach offers a renewable alternative to the current manufacturing process, which uses chemicals derived from coal tar. It also creates a useful product from an abundant but difficult-to-manage component of plant cell walls called lignin.
Read the full article at: https://grow.cals.wisc.edu/departments/on-henry-mall/from-poplar-to-painkiller