Dr. Antoni Torrens Jover

Senior Vice President Medicinal Chemistry at ABAC Therapeutics SL

I was born near Barcelona and studied Pharmacy with the aim of working in drug discovery, so I did my PhD in organic chemistry to become a medicinal chemist. I always enjoy designing and discovering new active molecules, but what motivates me the most is to focus on their development into useful medicines.

I have been very active in scientific associations because I really like to contribute to advancing the science of medicinal chemistry by promoting cooperation and fostering contacts and exchanges between medicinal chemists in Europe and around the world.

Besides medicinal chemistry, I am passionate about football and field hockey, and my main hobbies are hiking and contemporary music, particularly electronic house music.

Dr. Antoni Torrens obtained his PhD in Pharmacy at the University of Barcelona. He has more than 30 years’ experience in drug discovery and development. He joined ESTEVE Pharmaceuticals in 1989, where he was Director of Discovery Chemistry. He has directly contributed to the discovery and development of several drug candidates for infection, pain, and CNS diseases. He has authored more than 30 papers, 112 granted international patents, and has edited one book. He has been involved in several academic and industrial EU-funded drug discovery projects. He is currently a member of the Executive Committee and Treasurer of the European Federation for Medicinal Chemistry and Chemical Biology (EFMC) and was previously President of the Spanish Medicinal Chemistry Society.

Selected publications

Frigola, J., Pares, J., Corbera, J., Vano, D., Merce, R., Torrens, A., … & Valenti, E. (1993). 7-Azetidinylquinolones as antibacterial agents. Synthesis and structure-activity relationships. Journal of medicinal chemistry, 36(7), 801-810.

Frigola, J., Torrens, A., Castrillo, J. A., Mas, J., Vano, D., Berrocal, J. M., … & Redondo, J. (1994). 7-Azetidinylquinolones as antibacterial agents. 2. Synthesis and biological activity of 7-(2, 3-disubstituted-1-azetidinyl)-4-oxoquinoline-and-1, 8-naphthyridine-3-carboxylic acids. Properties and structure-activity relationships of quinolones with an azetidine moiety. Journal of medicinal chemistry, 37(24), 4195-4210.

Torrens, A., Castrillo, J. A., Frigola, J., Salgado, L., & Redondo, J. (1999). Optical resolution and enantiomeric purity determination of the analgesic cizolirtine. Chirality: The Pharmacological, Biological, and Chemical Consequences of Molecular Asymmetry, 11(1), 63-69.

Torrens, A., Castrillo, J., Claparols, A., & Redondo, J. (1999). Enantioselective synthesis of (R)-and (S)-cizolirtine; application of oxazaborolidine-catalyzed asymmetric borane reduction to azolyl phenyl ketones. Synlett, 6(06), 765-767.

Torrens, A., Mas, J., Port, A., Castrillo, J. A., Sanfeliu, O., Guitart, X., … & Buschmann, H. (2005). Synthesis of new benzoxazinone derivatives as neuropeptide Y5 antagonists for the treatment of obesity. Journal of medicinal chemistry, 48(6), 2080-2092.

Diaz, J. L., Zamanillo, D., Corbera, J., Baeyens, J. M., Maldonado, R., Pericàs, M. À., … & Torrens, A. (2009). Selective sigma-1 (sig1) receptor antagonists: emerging target for the treatment of neuropathic pain. Central Nervous System Agents in Medicinal Chemistry (Formerly Current Medicinal Chemistry-Central Nervous System Agents), 9(3), 172-183.

Díaz, J. L., García, M., Torrens, A., Caamaño, A. M., Enjo, J., Sicre, C., … & Almansa, C. (2020). EST64454: a Highly Soluble σ1 Receptor Antagonist Clinical Candidate for Pain Management. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 63(23), 14979-14988.