TOPIC:The Search For Efficiency in Synthesis: From Natural Products to Catalysis
SPEAKER:Prof. Silas Cook，Department of Chemistry，Indiana University
TIME:May 17 (Tuesday)PM14:00
LOCATION:Room 528, Chemistry Building A (化学A楼528演讲厅)
INVITER 张书宇 特别研究员

Abstract: The future of synthetic organic chemistry depends on the development of low-cost, robust, environmentally friendly transformations.  Our laboratory seeks to develop new reactions that enable the efficient synthesis of medicinally relevant small molecules. By examining known mechanistic data, we identify gaps in understanding that can be exploited to create new reaction pathways. Further mechanistic refinement in our laboratory leads to a better understanding of these catalytic processes at a level of conceptual depth that permit the design of new reactions in a rational and systematic fashion. The seminar will describe our recent efforts to develop an affordable synthesis of the antimalarial drug artemisinin.  Intriguing reactivity in palladium catalysis discovered en route to the englerins, a family of anti-renal cancer natural products, will also be highlighted.

Biography: Silas began his academic career at Reed College (Portland, OR) in 1995. While there, he quickly recognized the importance of organic chemistry in a wide range of disciplines – from cell biology to nuclear chemistry. After earning his B.A. in 1999, Silas took a position at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation (GNF) in San Diego, CA. There he worked to unravel various signal transduction pathways related to kinase and GTPase cell signaling. In 2001, he began his graduate studies in total synthesis at Columbia University (New York, NY) under the auspices of Professor Samuel J. Danishefsky. Upon the completion of his Ph.D. in 2006, he took a postdoctoral position in the laboratory of Professor Eric Jacobsen at Harvard University (Cambridge, MA). In 2009, Silas began his independent appointment in the Chemistry Department at Indiana University.