How to classify pharmaceutical intermediates?

What is a pharmaceutical intermediate?
Pharmaceutical intermediates are a type of fine chemical product in the production process of pharmaceutical raw materials to active pharmaceutical ingredients or drugs. The synthesis of chemical drugs relies on high-quality pharmaceutical intermediates. This chemical product does not require a production license for drugs and can be produced in ordinary chemical plants. As long as it reaches a certain level, it can be used for drug synthesis. China requires over 2000 types of raw materials and intermediates to be matched with the chemical industry each year, with a demand of over 2.5 million tons. After years of development, the chemical raw materials and intermediates required for pharmaceutical production in China are basically compatible, with only a small portion needing to be imported. Moreover, due to the abundant resources and low raw material prices in our country, many intermediates have been exported in large quantities.
How to classify pharmaceutical intermediate products?
There are many types of pharmaceutical intermediate products, which can be divided into major categories according to their application fields, such as antibiotic drug intermediates, antipyretic and analgesic drug intermediates, cardiovascular system drug intermediates, anti-cancer drug intermediates, etc. There are many types of specific pharmaceutical intermediates, such as imidazole, furan, phenolic intermediates, aromatic intermediates, pyrrole, pyridine, biochemical reagents, sulfur-containing, nitrogen-containing, halogen compounds, heterocyclic compounds, starch, mannitol, microcrystalline cellulose, lactose, dextrin, ethylene glycol, sugar powder, inorganic salts, ethanol intermediates, stearic acid salts, amino acids, ethanolamines, potassium salts, sodium salts, and other intermediates.
In addition, in recent years, due to increasingly strict drug regulatory requirements, increasing difficulty in drug research and development, and rising prices, multinational pharmaceutical companies have gradually shifted from a "vertical integration" business model to a "development cooperation" business model in order to shorten the time to market for patented drugs, reduce research and development and production costs, maintain good profit margins throughout the entire lifecycle of drugs, and improve their own operational efficiency. They have professionally decomposed the research, development, and production processes of patented drugs and outsourced them to professional institutions such as pharmaceutical contract research companies and pharmaceutical customization R&D and production companies, namely pharmaceutical customization R&D and production (CMO)