title: Microwave and continuous flow technologies in drug discovery.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Microwave and continuous flow microreactors have become mainstream heating sources in contemporary pharmaceutical company laboratories. Such technologies will continue to benefit from design and engineering improvements, and now play a key role in the drug discovery process.
  
  
  METHODS
  The authors review the applications of flow- and microwave-mediated heating in library, combinatorial, solid-phase, metal-assisted, and protein chemistries. Additionally, the authors provide a description of the combination of microwave and continuous flow platforms, with applications in the preparation of radiopharmaceuticals and in drug candidate development. Literature reviewed is chiefly 2000 - 2012, plus key citations from earlier reports.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  With the advent of microwave irradiation, reactions that normally took days to complete can now be performed in a matter of minutes. Coupled with the introduction of continuous flow microreactors, pharmaceutical companies have an easy way to improve the greenness and efficiency of many synthetic operations. The combined force of these technologies offers the potential to revolutionize discovery and manufacturing processes.
authors.affiliation: Northeastern University, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, 102 Hurtig Hall, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sadler
authors.forename: Alexander R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Moeller
authors.forename: Graham B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D002626:Chemistry, Pharmaceutical / Q000379:methods*; D020650:Combinatorial Chemistry Techniques / Q000379:methods; D055808:Drug Discovery / Q000379:methods*; D006361:Heating / Q000379:methods; D008872:Microwaves