Excitation of light-harvesting pigment-protein complexes is the first step in photosynthesis. The absorbed energy is transferred to reaction centers where it is used to fuel biological processes. Pump-probe and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy have been traditionally used to study the energy flow within these systems. However, in the past decades two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy (2DES) emerged as a powerful technique for detailed study of the ultrafast energy transfer within photosynthetic systems.

Striking transformations in the chemical complexity of the Earth's atmosphere have led to a multitude of pathways to aerosol formation. Likewise, the search for more efficient fuels and engine designs has resulted in similar increases in the composition of combustible fuels. These changes present opportunities to the scientific community to develop a molecular-scale understanding of the available chemical pathways in both environments.

Excellent progress is being made on the construction of the new STEM-1 (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) building.  The project will eventually include the construction of two buildings, each of which will be 100,000 square feet in size. The buildings will be adjacent to each other, with a skybridge joining them.

Phorbol, a Tigliane natural product first isolated in 1934 by Dr.Flaschenträger and Dr. Wolffersdorff, drove 17 research groups to develop the synthesis of it for over 30 years and report over 40 synthesis papers because of their potent biological activities to promote the tumor by activation of the protein kinase C and the anticancer activity.  The structure of the phorbol, first determined by Dr. Heck in 1967, was a congested tetracyclic skeleton with both cyclopropane cis link to a fully asymmetric center ring.

Bond formation via metal-catalyzed selective C–H functionalization is well appreciated and often relies on the directing capability of the substrate. That is, the appropriate positioning of a Lewis basic functional group can present the metal catalyst center at a specific site, enabling activation of otherwise unreactive C–H bonds. The Lewis basicity of alcohols can be exploited to impart directing capabilities allowing for the capacity to induce metalation.

The first part of my talk centers on the application of cation clock reactions for the determination of relative reaction kinetics in sialidation reactions. The formation of glycosidic bonds is perhaps the most important bond forming reaction in glycoscience, playing a critical role in the assembly of all glycoconjugates. In general, the control of the glycosylation reaction is a key ingredient to engineering better stereoselective oligosaccharide synthesis irrespective of the assembly strategy used.

Glycosylation reactions stereoselectivity depends on various factors and among them, side-chain configuration and conformation have been showing significant roles in influencing the reactivity and selectivity in bicyclic glycosyl donors. Moving to monocyclic donors, this effect has been revealed in glycosylation reactions of sialic acid donor series and simple pyranoside series. We studied the extension of this concept towards furanosides by synthesizing two suitably protected epimers of 5-methyl-D-xylose from D-xylose.

Carbohydrates are the most abundant class of molecules in the biosphere. Glycosylated secondary metabolites play a major role in carbohydrate chemistry expanding the scope of potential drug motifs. Glycosylated natural products are made out of sugars covalently O-, C-, N- or S- linked to the aglycone counterpart. In the course of synthesizing potential glycosidic therapeutics, effective and straightforward regio and stereoselective glycosylation methods are in high demand.

Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS’s) are widely used to coat paper and cardboard for food packaging because of their desirable grease, water, and heat resistant properties.