Glycopolymer sensor arrays to detect pathoadaptations in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Clare Mahon, University of Durham
Date: 06 December, 2023
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Bacterial pathogens can evolve and diversify within hosts, leading to persistent infections that are highly challenging to treat. These evolutionary transitions can be difficult to detect even with state-of-the-art omics techniques, as multiple genetic changes can lead to the same phenotypic outcome. The opportunistic bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa, for example, causes persistent respiratory infections in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). These infections cause progressive lung disease that severely limits their life-expectancy, with the median age at death estimated to be 30.8 years. Infections are usually established in early childhood, from environmental P. aeruginosa strains which do not pose huge risks to healthy individuals. Because they cannot be cleared by the immune system of CF sufferers, they persist in the lungs for many years. Over time they adapt to the environment of the lung, displaying new behaviours, or ‘pathoadaptations,’ which affect the severity of the disease. Infections become very difficult to treat, as bacteria become resistant to antibiotics and form extended biofilms.

I will describe an array of diagnostic molecular probes that can discriminate acute and chronic genotypes of P. aeruginosa based on phenotypic variation in their surface properties linked to important pathoadaptations. Using a combination of fluorescently labelled glycopolymers, this sensing array can distinguish genetically-engineered mutant strains differing in the expression of key virulence factors. The same sensing array can also be used to differentiate genetically variable P. aeruginosa isolates from CF patients sampled from different evolutionary lineages, and samples of the same lineage isolated from the same patient at different time points. This approach could provide the underpinning technology for new diagnostic tools to map the progress of persistent bacterial infections and inform treatment strategies.

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Host: Dr William Peveler

Common challenges in electrochemistry: from the production of green hydrogen and ammonia to batteries and back

Group: Energy Conversion and Storage Seminar
Speaker: Ifan Stephens, Imperial College London
Date: 01 March, 2023
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room A4-41a (Conference Room)

Dear All,

The Energy Conversion and Storage group in School of Chemistry is hosting Ifan Stephens from Imperial College London on the 1^st of March 2023.

He is planning to stay in Glasgow until 3^rd of March so If you would like to talk to Ifan please let Dr Alex Ganin (alexey.ganin@glasgow.ac.uk) know.

Ifan will give a talk “Common challenges in electrochemistry: from the production of green hydrogen and ammonia to batteries and back” March, 1^st  14 : 00 in the Joseph Black Building Conference room (A4-41a) which will cover three following topics:

(i) O₂ evolution for water electrolysis on iridium based and nickel based oxides

(ii) N₂ reduction to NH₃ on Li-based electrodes in organic electrolytes

(iii) parasitic gas evolution in Li ion batteries

Below is a brief abstract:

Electrochemistry will play a pivotal role in our transition away from fossil fuels to a net zero society. While batteries and fuel cells are set to decarbonise transportation, electrolysers can enable the sustainable synthesis of our most coveted chemicals, such as H₂ and NH₃. It turns out that some of the reactions that we aim to accelerate in water electrolysis, such as H₂ evolution, are exactly the reactions that we wish to inhibit in Li ion batteries and during N₂ reduction. To that end, in our group we translate techniques and insight from electrosynthesis to battery science and vice versa.

Our studies incorporate electrochemical measurements, electrochemical mass spectrometry, operando optical spectroscopy, secondary ion mass spectrometry, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and density functional theory; using the combination of these techniques, we build a holistic picture of the factors controlling these technologically critical reactions.

Supramolecular peptide self-assembly: new concepts in structure and function

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Ignacio Insua (Nacho), U. of Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Date: 04 November, 2022
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Peptides and proteins are the main functional molecules in living organisms. Their active structure relies on the supramolecular folding of amino acid chains, and efforts to study and expand protein function involve synthetic peptides with simplistic yet precise modes of assembly. In this talk, new peptides with different modes of self-assembly will be presented, discussing their structural features and application as stimuli-responsive and biomimetic materials. These peptides were designed to impose preferential directions of self-assembly, allowing the obtention of nanomaterials across all dimensions of space: particles, fibres or sheets, all tailored for each application.

 

Ignacio Insua (Nacho) obtained his PhD from the University of Birmingham in 2017 under the supervision of Dr. Paco Fernandez-Trillo. He then worked in the groups of Prof. Greg Qiao (U. of Melbourne, Australia) and Prof. Javier Montenegro (U. of Santiago de Compostela, Spain). He is currently a Marie-Curie fellow at this last institution, starting as Lecturer in January through the Ramon y Cajal programme.

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Host: Prof Dave Adams

Manipulating Phase Transitions and Porosity in Metal–Organic Materials: From Solid Refrigerants to Microporous Water

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Jarad Mason, Harvard University
Date: 15 June, 2022
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Materials that undergo phase transitions in response to specific signals and materials that contain micropores tailored to interact with specific guest molecules are needed to address many important global challenges. Here, I will describe two recent examples of how metal–organic phase-change materials and porous materials can be leveraged to provide new opportunities for energy and biomedical technologies. First, I will discuss how hydrocarbon order–disorder phase transitions and spin-crossover transitions can drive large barocaloric effects—thermal changes induced by hydrostatic pressure—that offer new opportunities for solid-state cooling. In particular, I will highlight the structural and chemical factors that influence relationships between pressure and the thermodynamics and kinetics of high-entropy phase transitions in different classes of organic and metal–organic materials. Second, I will describe a new approach to transporting gas molecules in aqueous solutions that overcomes limitations associated with the low solubility of nearly all gases in water. Specifically, I will show how aqueous solutions of microporous nanocrystals can be designed to feature low viscosities, long-term colloidal stability, and permanently dry micropores—even when surrounded by liquid water. This allows high densities of gas molecules, including oxygen, to be stored and released in aqueous environments, which has exciting implications for many biomedical and energy applications.

Host: Mark Symes

Colloidal Magnesium Nanoparticles for Plasmonics

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Emilie Ringe, University of Cambridge
Date: 11 May, 2022
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs) have a broad technology potential as an attractive platform for surface-enhanced spectroscopies, non-bleaching labels, hyperthermal cancer therapy, waveguides, and so on. Most plasmonic metals studied to date are composed of either copper, silver, or gold. The former two can pose significant challenges related to oxidation, the latter is often perceived as cost-prohibitive, and all three are rare. Aluminum has emerged over the past two decades as an earth-abundant alternative; its performance in the UV is exceptional but its LSPR quality factor sharply decrease in the red region owing to losses attributed to interband transitions. 

One of the newest metals for plasmonics is magnesium. It is earth-abundant, biocompatible, and has a higher plasmonic quality factor than aluminum across the visible (and than gold and copper in the blue). In the past ten years, several fabricated magnesium structures have emerged, demonstrating the optical behaviors expected of plasmonic metals. Our group has chosen a different approach: we have developed colloidal, scalable batch and flow syntheses capable of size control from ~50 to 1000 nm. This enabled to study the fascinating size and shape-dependent optical, chemical, crystallographic and catalytic properties of these novel structures. 

This talk will review the advances we have made over the past four years on magnesium plasmonics. The unusual shapes of single crystal and twinned magnesium crystals, owing to its HCP structure, will first be discussed, followed by the formation and stability of the native oxide layer. Then, approaches to control nanoparticle shape will be presented, followed by experimental and numerical results on the plasmonic properties of colloidal magnesium, both far-field and near-field techniques such as optical spectroscopy and electron-energy loss spectroscopy. Finally, our approach to exploiting the chemical reactivity of magnesium for galvanic replacement, and the bimetallic plasmonic-catalyst structures obtained, will be reviewed.

Host: Dr William Peveler

Towards the Electrification of Metal-Ligand Cooperative Catalysts

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Niklas von Wolff, Université Paris Cité, CNRS
Date: 27 April, 2022
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Liquid Exfoliation of Supramolecular Materials into Programmable Nanosheets

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Jona Foster, University of Sheffield
Date: 20 April, 2022
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-19 (Main Lecture Theatre)

Liquid exfoliation is a simple and scalable approach for converting layered materials into free-standing single- and few-layer nanosheets with high aspect ratios. Early studies focussed on inorganic two-dimensional materials such as graphene but more recent examples have shown this approach can be adapted to exfoliate supramolecular structures. The high surface area, aspect ratios, and nanoscopic dimensions of these supramolecular nanosheets combined with their diverse and tunable chemistry make them ideal for a wide range of catalytic, sensing, electronics and separation applications.¹ However, despite intensive research into these materials, the formation of monolayer nanosheets with high aspect ratios in good yields remains a challenge.

In our work, we have developed a library of metal-organic framework nanosheets (MONs) based on the metal-paddlewheel secondary building unit (Figure 1a). By synthesising isoreticular series of layered frameworks incorporating dicarboxylate linkers with different functional groups we have sought to understand the design principles behind nanosheet formation.^2-4 We have also post-synthetically functionalised the frameworks with different functional groups to enhance exfoliation and add new properties. We are working with academic and industrial collaborators to develop MONs for a wide range of sensing, catalytic, electronic and separation applications.^4-6

We also recently utilised liquid exfoliation to access monolayer hydrogen-bonded organic nanosheets (HONs) with micron-sized lateral dimensions (Figure 1b).⁷ These HONs show remarkable stability and maintain their extended crystallinity and monolayer structures even after being boiled in water.

1. J. Nicks, K. Sasitharan, R. R. R. Prasad, D. J. Ashworth, J. A. Foster, Adv. Func. Mater., 2021, ASAP, DOI:10.1002/adfm.202103723
2. D. J. Ashworth, A. Cooper, M. Trueman, R. W. M. Al-Saedi, L. D. Smith, A. J. H. M. Meijer and J. A. Foster, Chem.- A Eur. J., 2018, 24, 17986–17996.
3. D. J. Ashworth, T. M. Roseveare, A. Schneemann, M. Flint, I. D. Bernáldes, P. Vervoorts, R. A. Fischer, L. Brammer and J. A. Foster, Inorg. Chem., 2019, 58, 10837–10845.
4. D. J. Ashworth and J. A. Foster, Nanoscale, 2020, 12, 7986–7994.
5. J. Nicks, J. Zhang and J. A. Foster, Chem. Commun., 2019, 55, 8788-8791.
6. K. Sasitharan, D. G. Bossanyi, N. Vaenas, A. J. Parnell, J. Clark, A. Iraqi, D. G. Lidzey and J. A. Foster, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2020, 8, 6067–6075.
7. J. Nicks, S. A. Boer, N. G. White and J. A. Foster, Chem. Sci., 2021,12, 3322-3327

Host: Prof Ross Forgan

Exploring the coiled coil as a new ligand for use in coordination chemistry

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Anna Peacock, University of Birmingham
Date: 02 March, 2022
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

Proteins are versatile and powerful ligands for metal ions, capable of achieving unusual coordination chemistries and therefore chemical properties. Often these features can be challenging to reproduce with small molecules ligands, and as such there is much interest in the development of robust miniature protein scaffolds as novel ligands for use within inorganic chemistry. That begs the question, might the metal ions not utilised by Nature, not also benefit from proteins as ligands?

With this in mind, work within our group has focused on the coordination of lanthanide ions to such a new class of ligands. Our ligands consist of a supercoil of helices, a coiled coil, into the hydrophobic core of which is engineered a binding site suitable for lanthanide ion coordination.[1] We have embarked on an investigation into how, with protein design, one can design lanthanide sites with a high degree of precision and control.[2,3,4] The design strategies employed will be presented and how these can be used to tune the desired coordination chemistry, and in turn the chemical properties (e.g. the use of gadolinium coiled coils as MRI contrast agents), will be presented. As will our work to develop multimetallo designs,[5] featuring either the same, or distinct metal binding sites. Thereby presenting an opportunity to design multifunctional complex systems.

[1]     Berwick, M. R., Lewis, D. J., Pikramenou, Z., Jones, A. W., Cooper, H. J., Wilkie, J., Britton, M. M., Peacock, A. F. A. (2014) De Novo Design of Ln(III) Coiled Coils for Imaging Applications, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 136: 1166-9.

[2]     Berwick, M. R., Slope, L. N., Smith, C., King, S. M., Newton, S. L., Gillis, R., Adams, G., Rowe, A., Harding, S., Britton, M. M., Peacock, A. F. A. (2016) Location dependent coordination chemistry and MRI relaxivity, in de novo designed lanthanide coiled coils, Chem. Sci., 7: 2207-16.

[3]     Slope, L. N.; Hill, M. G.; Smith, C. F.; Teare, P.; de Cogan, F. J.; Britton, M. M.; Peacock, A. F. A. (2020) Tuning Coordination Chemistry Through the Second Sphere in Designed Metallocoiled Coils, Chem. Comm., 56: 3729-32.  

[4]     Slope, L. N.; Daubney, O. J.; Campbell, H.; White, S. A.; Peacock, A. F. A. (2021) Location dependent lanthanide selectivity engineered into structurally characterized designed coiled coils, Angew Chem., 60: 24473-77.

[5]     Teare, P., Smith, C. F., Adams, S. J., Sellamuthu, A., Ciani, B., Jeuken, L. J. C., Peacock, A. F. A. (2018) pH dependent binding in de novo heterobimetallic coiled coils, Dalton Trans., 47: 10784-90.

Registration: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIsduipqjMuHdzldjq4RqZxIa_Rwc4KOFRW  

Host: Dr William Peveler

Squaramide-based supramolecular biomaterials

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Roxanne Kieltyka, Leiden University
Date: 02 February, 2022
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom meeting

The application of adaptive materials in areas from biomedicine to electronics has invigorated the development of new supramolecular materials with specific function. Due to the non-covalent interactions that hold them together, these polymers show great potential because of their easy preparation with tailorable compositions, environmental responsiveness, self-healing upon damage, and recyclability. In the biomaterials field, their easy processing permits the mixing of monomers functionalized with biomolecules such as peptides, and their responsiveness to different stimuli opens the door to designer materials that can be used to deliver therapeutic payloads or as scaffolds for tissue engineering. In order to realize these end-stage applications, there is a need for structurally simple monomers with high synthetic accessibility that can robustly self-assemble into polymeric architectures in the presence of complex molecular cargo. Squaramides, structurally minimal ditopic hydrogen-bonding units, show tremendous potential in this regard due to their high synthetic accessibility from commercially available precursors and robust self-assembly into supramolecular polymers. In this talk, I will share our exploration of the squaramide synthon as a building block for supramolecular polymers and their application to nanoparticles and hydrogel materials for biomedical applications such as drug delivery and 3D cell culture.

Registration: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0rfumsrTgtG9TuX1tStaE04XPLmmif0Mff

Host: Dr William Peveler

Multifunctional lanthanide metallocenes: from high-performance single-molecule magnets to small molecule activation

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Prof Selvan Demir, Michigan State University
Date: 19 January, 2022
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

Molecules that possess an energy barrier to spin inversion have intriguing potential applications in areas such as magnetic refrigeration, molecular spintronics and high-density information storage. For these applications, however, key performance characteristics such as large spin-relaxation barriers and high magnetic blocking temperatures are required. Lanthanides have been proven to be particularly well-suited for the design of single-molecule magnets owing to their large magnetic moments and magnetic anisotropy that stem from strong spin-orbit coupling of the 4f orbitals. By using lanthanide ions such as Tb³⁺, Dy³⁺, and Er³⁺ which possess intrinsically large orbital angular momentum, significantly higher barriers and blocking temperatures can be achieved. A general methodology to enhance single-molecule magnet properties in mononuclear lanthanide complexes comprises matching the ligand field symmetry with the anisotropic electron density distribution of the maximal M_J state. Employing this methodology, the synthesis of mononuclear rare earth metallocene complexes that function as new lanthanide-based single-molecule magnets will be presented. Another particularly successful strategy towards improving magnetic blocking temperatures is to generate strong magnetic exchange between lanthanide centers through the employment of radical bridging ligands. If the magnetic exchange coupling is large enough then quantum tunneling of the magnetization can be suppressed. Here, the synthesis of several radical-bridged lanthanide single-molecule magnets will be presented and effective suppression of quantum tunneling pathways using various organic bridging radical ligands will be demonstrated.

Registration: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIld-qurDorGdf4UvWucp-zPhOnZV5dkVET 

Host: 

Cyclotaxanes as Synthetic Challenges

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Tanja Gaich, University of Konstanz, Konstanz (Germany)
Date: 20 May, 2021
Time: 09:00 - 10:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Nano-assasins for pancreatic cancer therapy

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Clare Hoskins, University of Strathclyde
Date: 05 May, 2021
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

(NB change of date to 5th May)

Pancreatic cancer is the 4th most aggressive cancer in the western world with less than 34% of patients surviving past 5 years. Lack of specific symptoms results in a delay in diagnosis. Theranostics are new platforms, which offer simultaneous diagnosis and therapy resulting in a decrease in treatment time. Here treatments are conjugated onto diagnostics by thermally reversible binding allowing for triggered drug release and hence a rapid and localised clinical effect is achieved. Hybrid nanoparticles are composed of an iron oxide core surrounded by a rigid metallic shell. These particles undergo manipulation due to inherent magnetism of the core whilst laser irradiation of their shell results in localised heating due to exploitation of their surface plasmon resonance. Hence, they can be utilised as diagnostics using MRI and laser irradiation can be used as an initiator for drug release. We have developed a series of 'theranostic assassins' based on hybrid nanoparticles which have shown potential for overcoming the challenges relating to pancreatic cancer, providing externally triggered site-specific delivery of therapeutic compounds. In this talk, I will give an overview of our progress to date, discuss the transferrable nature of these technologies and future studies needed before clinical translation can be achieved. 

Registration: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0lce6pqD4pGN1_fq5OLS4OjBukVTnyOrhC 

Host: Dr William Peveler

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Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Elizabeth New, University of Sydney, Sydney (Australia)
Date: 29 April, 2021
Time: 09:00 - 10:00
Location: Zoom meeting

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Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Richmond Sarpong, University of California, Berkeley, CA (USA)
Date: 22 April, 2021
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Photoresponsive soft materials made by molecular self-assembly

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Prof. Dr. Bart Jan Ravoo, University of Munster (WWU)
Date: 24 March, 2021
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

Registration: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwudeqprDkrG9WUtX3QGEB0n8-dWF0fE6r7 

Host: Dr William Peveler

IR spectroscopy of a mosquito: A new (and needed) method to study malaria vectors

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Dr. Mario González Jiménez, University of Glasgow
Date: 12 March, 2021
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/j/95500690988?pwd=aFJ2NmdrSmdQbkZ6L3cxVkpseUpYUT09

Abstract

Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles arabiensis mosquitoes are the primary vectors of malaria in Africa. These mosquitoes, which often live sympathetically, are morphologically indistinguishable despite their large differences in behaviour and ecology (willingness to enter and rest in houses, biting behaviour, use of hosts, breeding conditions, resistance to insecticides, etc.) that mark vector control strategies. In addition, their vector competence depends on their age, for the simple reason that the period of development of the parasites in their body after biting an infected person is usually more than 10 days. [1]
However, despite the need in the field, an efficient method to characterise the age or species of large numbers of mosquitoes is still lacking. Currently, the species is determined by expensive PCR methods and the age by microscopic analysis of their ovaries using dissection.
We developed a cheap, fast method that does not require highly trained personnel to perform. [2] It consists in the employment of machine learning algorithms to model the changes that occur in the infrared spectrum of the cuticle with age and between species. After examining the IR spectra of more than 40,000 mosquitoes from Burkina Faso, Tanzania, and labs in Scotland, our method can currently predict the age and species of field mosquitoes with 89% and 95% accuracy, respectively.

"Towards directing photochemical reactions with mode-specific infrared excitation in solution"

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Prof Julia Weinstein, University of Sheffield
Date: 05 March, 2021
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/j/92428720409?pwd=emk3MFh5cDZvcHpoM1dqR1FCWVRJdz09

Abstract

 

Light absorption in molecules initiates a plethora of reactions on the ultrafast timescale. Designing the ways to control such processes, and direct light energy along a preselected pathway, is a fascinating problem that has been capturing scientists' imagination for decades if not centuries. One process of particular interest is photoinduced electron transfer, which is the primary step in photosynthesis and many applications related to light-harvesting and photocatalysis.  Our approach to controlling photoinduced electron transfer is to change vibronic interactions in the excited state using mode-specific IR-excitation.  We show that the yield of an electron transfer reactions in the excited state can be radically altered – from 100% to none - by mode-specific infrared excitation of vibrations which are coupled to the electron transfer pathway.  It was particularly surprising to see this effect at work in solution! Some proposed design criteria necessary to achieve such an effect will be discussed, and illustrated on the example of photoactive Pt(II)-based systems - Donor-Acceptor pairs that are similar in design to molecular systems utilized in chemical and biological light harvesting (aka photosynthesis!). We will also discuss how multipulse experiments, such as UV(pump)-IR(pump)-IR(probe) and a  beautiful method of two-dimensional infrared spectroscopy, 2DIR, are used in such experiments and help identifying reaction coordinate. 

Delor et al, Toward control of electron transfer in donor-acceptor molecules by bond-specific infrared excitation. Science 2014, 1492, doi:10.1126/science.1259995;  

Directing the path of light-induced electron transfer at a molecular fork using vibrational excitation. Nature Chemistry, 2017, 9(11), 1099-1104. doi:10.1038/nchem.2793

 

Biography

 

Professor Julia Weinstein obtained her PhD in electron transfer from Moscow Lomonosov State University in 1994, where she later became a member of staff. In 2000 she moved to the Unievrsity of Nottingham as a Royal Society/NATO postdoctoral Fellow. In 2004 she was awarded an EPSRC Advanced Research Fellowship. Since 2005, Julia works at the University of Sheffield, where she is currently a professor of physical chemistry.

 

Julia's research interests are in anything light-induced, but primarily in ultrafast structural dynamics and electron and energy transfer in molecules, as well as their applications in bioimaging, catalysis, and PDT. The work of her group on understanding mechanisms of ultrafast electron transfer led to a 2017 RSC award in Chemical Dynamics. She leads the laser laboratory at Sheffield, the Lord Porter Laser Laboratory opened in 2017.

 

 

The Simplicity of Rearrangements

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Nuno Maulide, University of Vienna, Vienna (Austria)
Date: 04 March, 2021
Time: 09:00 - 10:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Plasmonic surface lattice resonances and their applications

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Prof Alexander Grigorenko, University of Manchester
Date: 19 February, 2021
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/j/97931764773?pwd=ZS9oUFI5YUNqZXNZWktvK28xK29Vdz09

 Abstract:

“We will discuss plasmonic surface lattice resonances which appear when metal nanoparticles are arranged in ordered arrays. If one of the diffracted waves propagates in the plane of the array, it may couple the localized plasmon resonances, leading to an exciting phenomenon of the drastic narrowing of plasmon resonances down to 1−2 nm in spectral width. This presents a dramatic improvement compared to a typical single particle resonance line width of >80 nm. The very high quality factors of these diffractively coupled plasmon resonances and related effects have made this topic a very active and exciting field for fundamental research, and increasingly, these resonances have been investigated for their potential in the development of practical devices for communications, optoelectronics, photovoltaics, biosensing, and other applications. We describe the basic physical principles and properties of plasmonic surface lattice resonances and pay special attention to the conditions of their excitation in different experimental architectures by considering the following: in-plane and out-of-plane polarizations of the incident light, symmetric and asymmetric optical (refractive index) environments, the presence of substrate conductivity, etc. We will also review recent progress in applications of plasmonic surface lattice resonances in various fields.”

Biography:

Prof. Grigorenko graduated from Moscow Physical Technical University in 1986 and got his PhD in 1989. He worked in the General Physics Institute for 10 years under the guidance of A. M. Prokhorov – laser inventor. After a spell as a postdoc in Bath and Plymouth Universities, he became a Lecturer and then Professor at the University of Manchester (from 2002). Prof. Grigorenko enjoys science in general and optics in particular.

Meeting link:

https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/j/97931764773?pwd=ZS9oUFI5YUNqZXNZWktvK28xK29Vdz09

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Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Srinivasa Reddy, CSIR Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Jammu (India)
Date: 28 January, 2021
Time: 09:00 - 10:00
Location: Zoom meeting

NANOSTRUCTURED (POLY)PEPTIDE MATERIALS FOR THERMORESPONSIVE AND CELL-DIRECTED THERAPIES

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Prof Kristi Kiick, University of Delaware
Date: 20 January, 2021
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

Macromolecular structures that are capable of selectively and efficiently engaging cellular targets offer important approaches for mediating biological events and in the development of hybrid materials. We have employed a combination of biosynthetic tools, bioconjugation strategies, and biomimetic assembly to produce thermoresponsive (poly)peptides derived from sequences of resilin, elastin, and collagen. These materials can be designed to control localization of biomolecules with tunable microscale mechanics, and materials with select properties have demonstrated promise for healing vascular graft materials in vivo. In addition, these types of materials not only show controllable micro- and nanoscale morphologies, but also have promise for targeted drug delivery to damaged tissue in vivo.

Biographical Information

Kristi Kiick is the Blue and Gold Distinguished Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Delaware, holding affiliated faculty appointments in the Departments of Biological Sciences and of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Delaware and in the School of Pharmacy at the University of Nottingham, where Kiick has conducted research as a Leverhulme Visiting Professor and Fulbright Scholar. Her internationally recognized research focuses on the synthesis, characterization, and application of protein, peptide, and self-assembled materials for applications in tissue engineering, drug delivery, and bioengineering, with specific research in cardiovascular, vocal fold, and cancer therapies. A Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors and of the American Chemical Society, she has published more than 150 articles, book chapters, and patents, and has delivered over 200 invited and award lectures. Kiick’s honors have included several awards (Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation New Faculty, Beckman Young Investigator, NSF CAREER, DuPont Young Professor, and Delaware Biosciences Academic Research Award) as well as induction also as a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and of the American Chemical Society Division of Polymer Chemistry.

Host: William Peveler

Necessity is the Mother of Invention: Natural Products and the Chemistry they Inspire

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Sarah Reisman, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA (USA)
Date: 14 January, 2021
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Clinical implementation of a Raman spectroscopy device for detection of residual basal cell carcinoma during skin surgery

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Dr Radu Boitor, University of Nottingham
Date: 11 December, 2020
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Clinical implementation of a Raman spectroscopy device for detection of residual basal cell carcinoma during skin surgery 

Surgical removal is the main treatment method for basal cell carcinoma (BCC). The completeness of tumour removal is routinely assessed via histopathology, which can be used to identify tumours with high sensitivities and specificities. However, its intra-operative use during tissue-conserving surgery (such as in Mohs surgery) is limited by time-consuming tissue preparation steps and the diagnostic variability inherent in subjective image interpretation. 

We have developed and built a table-top device that can detect residual BCC on the resection surface of removed skin tissue specimens by using a combined Raman spectroscopy and auto-fluorescence microscopy approach. The Fast Raman device can measure the excision surface of skin specimens up to 2x2 cm in 30 minutes. The instrument is automated and highlights the presence of BCC objectively, enabling its use by clinical staff without extensive training. 

The Fast Raman device was recently integrated into the Mohs clinical workflow at the Nottingham NHS Treatment Centre and was used to obtain proof-of-concept results by measuring fresh tissue specimens intra-operatively. We measured a total of 115 fresh skin tissue layers (from 113 patients) from head-and-neck area, including nose, temple, eyelid, cheek, forehead, eyebrow, and lip. These measurements have provided an indication of instrument performance and have highlighted some of the challenges of translating such spectroscopic techniques from the laboratory into the clinic.

Structure-function relationships in modular PKSs and their application to genetic engineering

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Kira Weissman, University of Lorraine, Nancy (France)
Date: 10 December, 2020
Time: 09:00 - 10:00
Location: Zoom meeting

From Molecules to Materials: Precursor Design for the Inkjet Printing of Conductive Metal

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Dr Caroline Knapp, UCL
Date: 09 December, 2020
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

Abstract:

With the market for inorganic electronics predicted to reach $45 billion by 2024, advances in the manufacture of large scale flexible electronics has resulted in the efficient, environmentally friendly roll to roll process, employing inkjet printing. This leap in technology has come hand-in-hand with the requirement for precursors that will decompose cleanly, at low temperature and high speed. The Knapp group are working to create ‘metal inks’ that can be printed in air, then treated at temperatures below 200 °C, to give conductive metallic features.

Recent work has highlighted that the careful selection of ligands can aid reduction of the metal complexes to leave conductive metals (e.g. Cu, Ag, Al). Facile formulation of these compounds into inks allows for inkjet printing and subsequent low temperature reduction (via thermal sintering) yielding highly conductive features which can be incorporated into electronic devices.

Here we discuss the chemistry of precursor development and report our work on printed metal tracks. Using careful ligand design we can attune the properties of the resultant precursor at the molecular level, making precursor functionality fully adjustable. We describe the synthesis, characterisation and printing of a library of novel compounds; selected to produce various deposits fulfilling the required specification – with particular focus on sintering methods, including thermal and plasma enhanced.

Biography:

Caroline Knapp was appointed Lecturer in 2017, in the Inorganic and Materials section at UCL Chemistry. She gained her MSci (2006) and then PhD (2010) from UCL in the field of precursor design and analysis for aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition. Following this she worked on low valent group 14 chemistry at UC Davis, CA, with Professor Phil P. Power FRS. She returned to the UK, firstly with a post doc. at Imperial College before being awarded a Ramsay Memorial Fellowship in 2015. Aside from teaching her research group now carries out investigations isolating highly air and moisture sensitive precursors for the printing of electronic devices.

Register: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcsdequpjojE9cC9CWQO5JaA8CjB8XmptNp
Host: William Peveler

From Rings to Nanostructures

Group: Complex Chemistry Seminar
Speaker: Prof Richard Winpenny, University of Manchester
Date: 02 December, 2020
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Getting with the times in nanophotonics: from new chiral optical effects to quantum optical applications

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Prof. Ventsislav Valev, University of Bath
Date: 27 November, 2020
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Getting with the times in nanophotonics: from new chiral optical effects to quantum optical applications

This seminar will focus on three absorbing lines of research into nanophotonics, representing three time scales of the physics involved. It will begin with the first experimental observation of a chiroptical effect that was predicted 40 years ago.1,2 Next, it will consider the smallest backjets (‘ nanojets’) ever created and will discuss how they can serve to assemble novel metamaterials.3,4 Finally, drawing inspiration from steampunk science fiction, it will illustrate how a vapour stabilization technique can greatly enhance quantum sensors.5 When light shines on metal nanoparticles (NPs), it is initially (fs timescale) absorbed by the electrons. These electrons give rise to “instantaneous” nonlinear optical processes, such as second harmonic (SH) generation, whereby two photons at the fundamental frequency ω are converted into a single photon at twice that frequency Ω. This SH generation is promising for applications, based on frequency conversion (for laser manufacturing), on nonlinear optical characterization6,7 (e.g. microscopy) and on metasurfaces (for ultrathin telecom components). Our team recently demonstrated that in chiral metal NPs (those that lack mirror symmetry) the intensity of light, scattered at the SH frequency, is proportional to the chirality, see Fig. 1. This effect was predicted 40 years ago, it is extremely sensitive and it enabled the first chiral optical characterization of a single nanoparticle.8

Fig. 1 Different SH scattering intensity depending on the chirality of the nanostructures.

At the ps timescale following illumination, the energy of electrons transfers to the NPlattice. The transfer gives rise to lattice vibrations (phonons) that are promising for applications in photoacoustic imaging and in the three branches of nano metalworking: forming, cutting and joining. We will consider examples of all three, focusing on the formation of nanojets in the electromagnetic hotspots of gold NPs and on joining (welding) gold NPs together in continuous strings. Nano metalworking is an exciting, emerging field that is largely unexplored. At the ns timescale following illumination, the energy transfers from the NP’s lattice to its environment, in the form of heat. Such heating processes find applications in nanorobotics, in cancer treatment, in heat-assisted magnetic recording, in steam/vapor generation and now in quantum sensors. Indeed, numerous quantum technologies are enabled by alkali metal vapors: atomic clocks, ultra-fine frequency lasers, atomic traps, optically pumped magnetometers, etc. The metal atoms are kept in a vacuum, within containers made of metal or glass. Unfortunately, upon colliding with the container walls, the atoms lose their quantum states or condense. Current methods to address these problems are slow, costly and impractical to scale up. We developed a gold NP-based coating, whereby the NPs serve as tiny heating elements on the interior of the container walls, which prevents the atoms from sticking to them. Our technology offers 1,000 times faster control of the atomic vapor pressure and could enable wearable helmets for human magnetoencephalography.

References:

1.) Phys Rev. X 9, 011024 (2019); 2.) J. Chem. Phys. 70, 1027 (1979); 3.) Adv. Mater. 24, OP29-OP35 (2012); 4.) Nat. Commun. 5, 4568 (2014); 5.) Nat. Commun. 10, 2328 (2019); 6.) ACS Nano 13, 3896–3909 (2019); 7.) Nano Lett. 19, 165-172 (2019); 8.) Nano Lett. 20, 5792–5798(2020)

Bio

Ventsislav K. Valev is a Professor of Physics and Research Fellow of the Royal Society, in the Department of Physics, at the University of Bath. Prior to Bath, he was a Research Fellow in the Cavendish Laboratory, at the University of Cambridge. He received his PhD in 2006 from Radboud University Nijmegen, in the Netherlands. From 2006 to 2009, he was a Postdoctoral Researcher at KU Leuven, Belgium, and from 2009 to 2012 he was an FWO Research Fellow at the same university. His research group (http://www.valev.org/) builds laser experiments on novel materials, such as plasmonic nanostructures, metamaterials, 2D materials and quantum optical materials. He aims to discover new properties and to test theoretical predictions. The research focus is on the physics of photons, electrons and magnetism confined to tiny volumes of space – nanoparticles or 2D sheets. He seeks out new and useful intersections between classical electromagnetism and quantum mechanics. His research is both fundamental and applied, featuring the recent demonstration of a new physical effect that had been predicted 40 years ago and a joint project with Renishaw PLC, for whom his team is currently developing a prototype.

Target-based anti-infective discovery

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Anna Hirsch, Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS), Saarbrücken (Germany)
Date: 12 November, 2020
Time: 09:00 - 10:00
Location: Zoom meeting

Heterochiral Peptide Assembly: Entry to Wonderland through the Mirror

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof. Silvia Marchesan, Università degli Studi di Trieste
Date: 11 November, 2020
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

Silvia Marchesan is Associate Professor at the University of Trieste, Italy, since 2018 (www.marchesanlab.com @MarchesanLab on Twitter). After the PhD at the University of Edinburgh (2008), she worked as postdoctoral fellow at the University of Helsinki (2008-2010), then jointly between CSIRO/Monash University (2010-2012) in Australia, before returning to Italy. She was selected by Nature as Rising Star in the natural sciences (2018) and by Nature Chemistry amongst those charting the future of chemistry (2019).

Register: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJYvfuGrqDsoHdWAvidP7mprN3t38BuQ0WiZ 

Organiser: William Peveler

Seminar: Plasmonic and Photonic Chemistry

Group: School of Chemistry
Speaker: Prof Emiliano Cortes, University of Munich (LMU), Faculty of Physics, Munich, Germany
Date: 21 October, 2020
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Zoom link will be provided after registration

CANCELLED

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof Eric Mcinnes, University of Manchester
Date: 29 May, 2020
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Wolfson Building, Seminar Room 1 (Yudowitz)

CANCELLED

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Benjamin Cravatt, Scripps Institution, San Diego, CA (USA)
Date: 15 May, 2020
Time: 11:00 - 12:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-19 (Main Lecture Theatre)

CANCELLED

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Dr Kayn Forbes, University of East Anglia, Norwich
Date: 20 April, 2020
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

CANCELLED

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Prof Iouri Gounko, Trinity College, Dublin (Ireland)
Date: 17 April, 2020
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Dynamic Effects and Machine-Learning Transition State Theory

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Daniel Singleton, Texas A & M University, College Station, TX (USA)
Date: 09 March, 2020
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Molecular Devices for the Transmission of Information across Membranes

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Simon Webb, University of Manchester
Date: 26 February, 2020
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Nanoscale molecular devices that can transmit chemical information will be a key component of manufacturing processes that use molecular machines. Such nanoscale devices are common in natural systems, for example, protein channels allow the transit of chemicals through cell membranes and G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) use conformational change to transmit external signals into cells.

α-Aminoisobutyric acid (Aib) foldamers are a compound class with particular promise for ion channel formation and the mimicking of signal transduction by GPCRs. These oligomers, which fold into hydrophobic 3₁₀ helices, embed easily into bilayers and have a conformation that is very sensitive to stimuli at the N-terminus.^1,2 We show that light-switchable Aib foldamers can relay photochemical information over >2 nm within bilayers,³ whileAib foldamers with recognition groups can transmit external binding information deep into bilayers.⁴ We also recently found that the reversible complexation of external signals can switch on/off the ion channel activity of Aib foldamers. Next steps include the development of catalytically active molecular devices.

References

1. Lizio MG, Andrushchenko V, Pike SJ, Peters AD, Whitehead GFS, Vitórica-Yrezábal IJ, Mutter ST, Clayden J, Bour P, Blanch EW, Webb SJ. (2018) Optically Active Vibrational Spectroscopy of α-Aminoisobutyric Acid Foldamers in Organic Solvents and Phospholipid Bilayers. Chem. Eur. J, 24, 9399–9408.
2. Jones JE, Diemer V, Adam C, Raftery J, Ruscoe RE, Sengel JT, Wallace MI, Bader A, Cockroft SL, Clayden J, Webb, SJ (2016) Length-dependent formation of transmembrane pores by 3₁₀ helical Aib foldamers. J. Am. Chem Soc., 138, 688–695.
3. De Poli M, Zawodny W, Quinonero O, Lorch M, Webb SJ, Clayden J. (2016) Conformational photoswitching of a synthetic peptide foldamer bound within a phospholipid bilayer. Science, 352, 575–580.
4. Lister FGA, Le Bailly BAF, Webb SJ, Clayden J. (2017) Ligand-modulated conformational switching in a fully synthetic membrane-bound receptor. Nature Chem., 9, 420–425.

Host: Dr William Peveler

Targeting protein modification to break drug resistance using chemical biology

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Ed Tate, Imperial College and Francis Crick Institute, London
Date: 26 February, 2020
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Host: Dr. David France

Supramolecular Chemistry: a powerful tool to create "colourful" multistimuli responsive macromolecular assemblies

Group: Energy Conversion and Storage Seminar
Speaker: Prof Patrice Woisel, University of Lille (France)
Date: 25 February, 2020
Time: 11:00 - 12:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room A4-41a (Conference Room)

Host: Prof Graeme Cooke

CANCELLED: Who would have thought Group 14 nanomaterials could be so complicated (and useful)?

Group: Energy Conversion and Storage Seminar
Speaker: Prof Jonathan Veinot, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta (Canada)
Date: 17 February, 2020
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

The study of “small semiconductor crystallites” known as “Quantum Dots (QDs)” has grown from Brus’ first reports thirty years ago into an important cross-disciplinary research area. Much of the foundational QD work has focused on the development of toxic CdSe-based; this is primarily because of the ease of preparing these materials. To date, many prototype applications have appeared and Cd-free compound semiconductor QDs are even being used as emitters in commercially available state-of-the-art displays.

Somewhat surprisingly, the development and application of QDs based upon the quintessential semiconductor on which much of our world is reliant upon (i.e.,  silicon) remain in a comparative state of infancy. The reasons for this are complex and often attributed to the strong directional bonding that complicates syntheses, their indirect band gap and surface states that can lead to poor and/or irreproducible optical response, among others.  Despite these limitations, the community has seen impressive advances related to these challenges and many prototype SiQD applications (e.g., solar materials, light-emitting diodes, rechargeable batteries, drug delivery, sensors, among others) have emerged.  This has led to predictions that “nanosilicon” applications could produce up to $2.1 billion US annually.  

This presentation will highlight ongoing studies of the Veinot team that focus on the development of Group 14 nanomaterials. Our discussion will begin with a brief overview of the development of a convenient preparative method that afforded SiQDs of tailored size and move to an overview of methods used to tailor SiQD surface chemistry and end with a discussion of optical response.  We will then shift direction and delve into our investigations of more complex GeQDs. Finally, the presentation will conclude with a brief look at potential applications of Si and Ge QDs as well as the preparation and potential of other Group 14 nanomaterials.

Host: Prof Peter Skabara

Photoinduced Assembly of C–N Bonds

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Dr Daniele Leonori, University of Manchester
Date: 29 January, 2020
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Wolfson Building, Seminar Room 1 (Yudowitz)

Nitrogen-radicals are versatile synthetic intermediates that can be engaged in a broad range of chemical reactions. However, the difficulties associated with their generation have somewhat thwarted their use in synthetic chemistry.
Development of Photoinduced Radical-Transposition Reactions. We have developed a class of easy-to-make oximes and hydroxy-amides that upon photoredox oxidation enable access to iminyl and amidyl radicals. These species have been used in radical transposition reactions for the site-selective functionalization of unactivated sp³-carbons. These strategies have been applied to the deconstruction–functionalization of complex steroids (radical ring-opening) and to the preparation of unnatural aminoacids (1,5-HAT).
Development of Photoinduced Aromatic C–H Amination Reactions. Aminated aromatics are a widespread motif in high-value products. In general, these structures are assembled by Pd or Cu-catalysed cross-couplings between aryl halides/organoboron and amines. We have developed an umpolung approach where electrophilic amidyl and aminium radicals are generated by photoredox reduction of electron poor N-aryloxy-amides and protonated N-chloro-amines. These radical species undergo highly selective addition to a broad range of electron rich aromatics thus enabling direct C–H amination.

Host: Dr Alistair Boyer

Catalytic conversion of renewable feedstocks into small and macro-molecules

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Jennifer Garden, University of Edinburgh
Date: 22 January, 2020
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

TBA

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof Andy Cooper, University of Liverpool
Date: 15 January, 2020
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Host: Prof Dave Adams

“Research to Realization” – From molecular-level interaction to real-time monitoring systems

Group: Heterogeneous Catalysis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Roy Vellaisamy, University of Glasgow
Date: 10 January, 2020
Time: 11:00 - 12:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Growing industrialization and urbanization has put human beings and other living organisms at risk against new threats due to the contamination of food, water and air. These Contaminants endanger all the living organisms in this world, especially for human beings genetic disorders and unknown diseases become common nowadays. The WHO statistics show that more than 422 million people worldwide are suffering from contamination related illness. The growing prevalence of such disorders has been linked to exposure to chemicals in plastic, food and water. Although regulatory steps have been taken to minimize risk, cases of overexposure (2011 Taiwan food crisis, Flint and Hong Kong lead contamination, etc.) still occur. Detection of these chemicals is done in testing labs using expensive and time consuming mass spectrometer systems that require specially trained users. In the regard, we demonstrate a real-time monitoring system for a rapid pre-screening test that could curtail cases of contamination. Over the years, we have developed an electronic sensor platform based on molecular level interaction between the target and analyte to detect these toxins. The advantage of our sensor platform is that it can be used for on-site detection; it is easy to operate and provides results on real-time basis. In addition, we have extended our sensor platform system for healthcare applications such as detection of cancer biomarkers and monitor pulse waveform in real-time. Following latest advancements of our electronic device platform from materials chemistry to device engineering will be discussed, 

1. Point of Care (PoC) diagnostic tools for onsite testing of contaminants in food and water
2. Wearable devices for real-time monitoring of human motions using piezoresistive sensors and thermoelectric devices. 
3. Understanding materials chemistry for the application in neuromorphic devices.

Host: Prof Justin Hargreaves

Organic Materials; Linking Structure and Properties

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Martijn Zwijnenburg, University College London
Date: 13 December, 2019
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

In my talk I’ll discuss work in two areas where computational chemistry can provide unrivalled insight into the structure-property relationships that underlie the use of organic materials for optoelectronic applications. First, I’ll discuss how we can understand the optoelectronic properties of gels and thin films obtained by self-assembly of molecules such as perylene and naphthalene bisimides by predicting the intermolecular structure of the aggregates that underlie these materials. Second, I’ll demonstrate how large-scale calculations on tens to hundred of thousands molecules allow us to understand the fundamental limits to the optoelectronic properties of organic molecules and the link between (intra)molecular structure and molecular properties. The latter allows one to pick the best synthetic strategy for controlling these properties, as well as, even if these calculations are by necessity on single molecules, estimate the properties of the molecular solids.

Host: Dr William Peveler

Manipulating the Monolayer: Dynamic Covalent Nanoparticle Building Blocks

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Euan R. Kay, University of St. Andrews
Date: 27 November, 2019
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

From Weakness Comes Strength – ADORable zeolites and hemilabile MOFs

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof Russell Morris, University of St. Andrews
Date: 20 November, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Fluorescent Nucleoside Analogues with New Properties for Biophysics

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Byron W. Purse, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA (USA)
Date: 20 November, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Wolfson Building, Seminar Room 1 (Yudowitz)

Adventures in Single-Molecule Spectroscopy: How To Make Movies of Chemical Reactions

Group: Complex Chemistry Seminar
Speaker: Prof Randall Goldsmith, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (USA)
Date: 04 November, 2019
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Location: Joseph Black Building A3-29 (Cronin Group Meeting Room)

Chemoselective Transformations by Designing Organoradicals

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Dr Kounosuke Oisaki, University of Tokyo (Japan)
Date: 04 November, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Boyd Orr Building, Lecture Theatre D (Room 513)

Real-time, Bioorthogonal Imaging of Intracellular Drug Concentrations

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Alison Hulme, University of Edinburgh
Date: 30 October, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Wolfson Building, Seminar Room 1 (Yudowitz)

A large proportion of the compounds which enter clinical trials never make it to patients. So there is an urgent need to enhance our understanding of the interplay between small molecules, either from nature or designed in the laboratory, and the intricate network of cellular machinery for which they are intended. Integrating advanced imaging techniques into the early stages of drug-discovery campaigns may help to improve pre-clinical modelling studies and reduce the high attrition rates of clinical drug candidates. Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy is a new imaging technique which can be used to detect specific chemical bonds within either the small molecule, or the cell, to give high contrast, label-free imaging and to provide intracellular quantification of small molecules. In this lecture, recent advances from our group will be discussed including: the design of synthetic Raman-active labels which exploit spectroscopically bioorthogonal functional groups; the use of both dual-colour SRS and multi-modal imaging to probe intracellular drug distribution and drug resistance mechanisms; and analysis of the quantitative data which SRS imaging provides to allow the kinetics of bioorthogonal reactions to be studied in the intracellular environment itself.

Host: Dr Andrew Jamieson

Homogeneous Catalysis for Organic Synthesis and Polymer Synthesis

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Kyoko Nozaki, University of Tokyo (Japan)
Date: 18 October, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Aspects of Chirality in 4f-Based Coordination Clusters

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof Annie Powell, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (Germany)
Date: 14 October, 2019
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Host: Prof Mark Murrie

Ab initio-assisted analysis of paramagnetic NMR: Theory and applications

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Elizaveta Suturina, University of Bath
Date: 04 October, 2019
Time: 11:00 - 12:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Optical Biosensors − Gratings and Waveguides

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Dr Ruchi Gupta, University of Birmingham
Date: 23 September, 2019
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B3-27 (Parkin Room)

Host: Dr Affar Karimullah

Peering into the Lipid World

Group: Complex Chemistry Seminar
Speaker: Prof Neal K. Devaraj, UC San Diego (USA)
Date: 18 September, 2019
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

GPA Biosynthesis or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Negative Results

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Max Cryle, Monash University, Melbourne (Australia)
Date: 05 September, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Host: Dr Andrew Jamieson

Data-driven exploration of new superconductors under high pressure

Group: Energy Conversion and Storage Seminar
Speaker: Prof Yoshihiko Takano, National Institute for Materials Science and University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba City (Japan)
Date: 03 September, 2019
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Host: Prof Duncan Gregory

Organocatalysis Using N-Heterocyclic Carbenes

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Michel Gravel, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK (Canada)
Date: 02 September, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

N-Heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) are well known for their ability to catalytically generate nucleophilic acyl anion equivalents from aldehydes. This catalytic manifold is best exemplified by the benzoin and Stetter reactions generating α-hydroxyketones and 1,4-dicarbonyl products, respectively. However, some of the most synthetically useful substrate combinations are not currently amenable to reactions in high chemo- or enantioselectivity. For instance, the use of two distinct aldehydes in the cross-benzoin reaction or of simple unsaturated ketones in the intermolecular Stetter reaction do not generally provide products in high yield and/or enantiomeric ratio. We have recently made some headway in addressing both of these challenges through the use of triazolium, oxazolium,and bis(dialkylamino)cyclopropenium salts.Our progress in improving the scope as well as the chemo- and stereoselectivity of these classical reactions will be presented.

Host: Dr Andrew Sutherland

Microfluidics for novel diagnostics and therapies

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Prof Zulfiqar Ali, Teesside University, Middlesbrough
Date: 19 August, 2019
Time: 11:00 - 12:00
Location: Rankine Building, 108 LT

Host: Dr Affar Karimullah

Impact of Cysteinate Protonation on the Electronic Structure and Reactivity of Biological Nickel Sites

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Prof Jason Shearer, Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas (USA)
Date: 17 June, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

CANCELLED: Interfacing Nanochemistry with Biology: From Bioorthogonal Nanozymes to Antimicrobials

Group: Energy Conversion and Storage Seminar
Speaker: Prof Vincent Rotello, University of Massachusetts, Amherst (USA)
Date: 04 June, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room A4-41a (Conference Room)

Complementarity: complex systems from simple components

Group: Energy Conversion and Storage Seminar
Speaker: Dr Dan Preston, University of Canterbury, Christchurch (New Zealand)
Date: 31 May, 2019
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Location: Main Building, Room 466

Following function: from photoswitching to chiroptics of organic conjugated materials

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Prof Matthew J. Fuchter, Imperial College, London
Date: 12 April, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

This talk will give an overview of two aspects of our group’s research, both of which are linked by a desire to pursue novel function in organic materials. The first part will focus on our discovery of the arylazopyrazole photoswitches, which offer quantitative photoswitching and high thermal stability of the Z isomer (half-lives of up to ∼1000 days). It will summarise our studies to elucidate the origin of the long thermal half-lives and excellent addressability of the arylazopyrazoles, and our initial studies to apply these compounds as photopharmacological agents. The second part of the talk will focus on our interests in chiral organic materials and their use in organic electronic devices. Examples will be presented where the molecular chirality of the system can be used to generate OLEDs that emit circularly polarized (chiral) light, OFETs that can detect circularly polarized (chiral) light and the use of chiral composition to tune the bulk characteristics of organic materials.

Host: Prof Malcolm Kadodwala

Repurposing aromaticity for organic electronics: making, breaking and stacking pi-circuits

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof J. D. Tovar, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD (USA)
Date: 10 April, 2019
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Location: Main Building, Room 466

Host: Prof Dave Adams

Dynamic behaviours of metal-organic frameworks and their guests

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Tim Easun, University of Cardiff
Date: 27 March, 2019
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Location: Main Building, Room 466

Host: Prof Dave Adams

Connecting genes to chemistry to empower small molecule discovery

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Bradley Moore, Scripps Institution, San Diego, CA (USA)
Date: 22 March, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Nature as a chemist continues to teach and inform us about the wonders of complex organic synthesis in a cell. Recent advances in genomics and metabolomics have ushered in a new era in natural products research linking genes to molecules. Synthetic biology programs now offer streamlined approaches to the discovery, production, and design of gene-encoded small molecules. This presentation will highlight recent progress in the genomics-guided discovery and production of natural product small molecules, from the oncology agent salinosporamide to the neurotoxin domoic acid.

Host: Dr David France

RSC Natural Product Chemistry Award

Teflon Coated Compounds and Small Molecules for Nanowires

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof Linda H. Doerrer, Boston University (USA)
Date: 19 March, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Deciphering Transition Metal Signaling with Activity-Based Sensing and Proteomics

Group: Joseph Black Research Lecture
Speaker: Prof Christopher J. Chang, University of California, Berkeley (USA)
Date: 18 March, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-19 (Main Lecture Theatre)

Metals are essential for all forms of life, and the traditional view of this biological inorganic chemistry is that mobile fluxes of redox-innocent metals like sodium, potassium, and calcium are privileged as dynamic signals while redox-active transition metals like copper and iron must be buried and protected as static metabolic cofactors to prevent oxidative stress. We are advancing a new paradigm of transition metal signaling, using copper and iron as primary examples to show a broader metabolism/signaling continuum that can influence neural circuitry and regulate fundamental behaviors. This presentation will focus on our latest efforts to decipher new roles for metals in living systems, enabled by chemical technologies such as activity-based sensing and proteomics.

Host: Prof Richard Hartley

RSC Jeremy Knowles Award Lecture

CANCELLED: Tailoring the Photophysics of First-row Transition Metal-based Chromophores for Light Capture and Conversion: Challenges and Opportunities

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Prof James K. McCusker, Michigan State University, East Lansing MI (USA)
Date: 06 March, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

The conversion of light to chemical energy is one of the most fundamental processes on Earth. It is the basis of photosynthesis, in which light absorption results in the separation of charge that ultimately creates the chemical potential needed to drive ATP synthesis; an advantageous by-product of this process is, of course, O₂ production. Ironically, photosynthesis is also the source of the biomass from which the fossil fuels that constitute the basis of society’s energy infrastructure are derived. The overwhelming majority of climate scientists are in agreement that it is the burning of these fossil fuels – in effect the re-release of what was sequestered carbon into the atmosphere – that is driving global climate change. Options for shifting away from fossil fuels as our primary energy source generally revolve around renewables such as wind, solar, biomass, nuclear, geothermal, and hydro: of these, the only renewable energy source that is limitless and carbon-free (at least in principle) is solar. The energy flux hitting the Earth is 120,000 TW: integrated over a 24-hour period, this translates to humankind’s total energy budget for an entire year. Despite the progress that has been made in the implementation of solar energy (due primarily to reductions in the cost of silicon), the intermittent nature of solar energy, the balance of systems costs that continue to represent a significant economic obstacle, combined with the fact that electricity constitutes only ~30% of the global energy footprint all underscore the need for continued research in solar energy conversion science.

Fundamental research on solar energy conversion – which will ultimately lead to the next generation of solar energy technologies – has sought to replicate Nature’s solution through the creation of artificial constructs that mimic various aspect of photosynthesis. When considering large-scale (i.e., global) implementation of any solar energy conversion scheme, material availability becomes a critically important consideration in the light-capture part of the problem, particularly when one considers the projected two- to three-fold increase in energy demand over the next 30–40 years. Unfortunately, virtually all of the molecule-based approaches for solar energy conversion that have been proven successful rely on some of the least abundant elements on earth.

An obvious alternative is to employ chromophores based on earth-abundant materials: for transition metal-based approaches, this means moving away from the second- and third-row transition series elements (e.g., ruthenium) and develop photoredox-active chromophores based on first-row, widely available metals like iron and copper. As our group first demonstrated in 2000, the central problem with this approach is that the charge-transfer excited states that lie at the heart of photo-induced electron transfer chemistry exhibit sub-picosecond lifetimes (as compared to the microsecond lifetimes of their 2^nd- and 3^rd-row congeners). Our research program therefore focuses on understanding the factors that determine the dynamics associated with the excited states of first-row transition metal-based chromophores, with the ultimate goal of circumventing and/or redefining their intrinsic photophysical properties in order to make feasible their use as light-harvesting components in solar energy conversion schemes. This seminar will describe the key experimental results establishing this paradigm, as well as survey several approaches that we are pursuing in an effort to broaden the utility of this class of chromophores for a wide range of solar energy and chemical transformations.

Host: Prof Mark Murrie

ScotCHEM Lecture

Clay supported metal catalysts for sustainable chemicals production

Group: Heterogeneous Catalysis Seminar
Speaker: Dr Indri Badria Adilina, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jakarta (Indonesia)
Date: 28 February, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room A4-41a (Conference Room)

Host: Prof David Lennon

Visible Light Photoredox Catalysis as a tool for functionalization and preparation of complex organic molecules

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Dr Géraldine Masson, Institut de Chime des Substances Naturelles, Gif-sur-Yvette (France)
Date: 27 February, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Host: Dr Joëlle Prunet

Multiphoton and upconversion in f-element containing systems

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Louise Natrajan, University of Manchester
Date: 22 February, 2019
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Materials that undergo multiphoton excitation, including two photon absorption and upconversion, are finding increasing use in many applications including 3D fluorescence microscopy, data storage, optical power limiting biological imaging and optical sensors. In organic and transition metal based systems, large two photon cross sections can arise from centrosymmetric charge transfer in push-pull electron donor-acceptor (D-A) diads, in D-p-A type assemblies, and variants where the Laporte selection rule differs from one photon excitation. In the case of the f-elements (lanthanides and actinides), both two photon absorption and upconversion processes are feasible in molecular systems. While lanthanide ions have been sensitised via two-photon excitation of organic chromophores, and investigations in the solid state are well documented, direct two- photon excitation of lanthanides and actinides in solution is unprecedented.

Here, we will describe our recent work in this area with a view to harnessing and exploiting the multiphoton optical properties of metal-based compounds. We will present the multiphoton emission properties of a family of d⁶ transition metal-lanthanide hybrid complexes bearing one or two polar terpyridyl-stilbene derived chromophores that have been optimised for multiphoton applications, discuss how lanthanide doped upconverting nanoparticles can be tailored to sense enzyme turnover and present the first examples of actinide two photon absorption in solution. Our results indicate that these systems are suitable candidate molecules for multi-photon applications and these will be discussed further.

Host: Prof Dave Adams

Probing Ultrafast Chemical Dynamics Inspired by the Rhythms of Fireflies

Group: Joseph Black Research Lecture
Speaker: Prof Gregory D. Scholes, Princeton University, Princeton NJ (USA)
Date: 12 February, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Coherence phenomena arise from interference, or the addition, of wave-like amplitudes in phase. While coherence has been shown to yield transformative new ways for improving function, advances have been limited to pristine matter, as quantum coherence is considered fragile. Here I will discuss how vibrational and vibronic wavepackets entrain ensembles of molecules, like the synchronized flashing of fireflies. I will discuss how this can be used to probe mechanisms of ultrafast dynamics and how in-step vibrational motion might be employed to control function on ultrafast timescales. I will give examples that include light-harvesting in photosynthesis,energy flow in organometallic molecules that is ‘wired’ by Fermi resonance, and ultrafast electron transfer in molecular systems.

Host: Prof Klaas Wynne

ScotCHEM Lecture

Sustainable Catalysts for Sustainable Chemistry

Group: Heterogeneous Catalysis Seminar
Speaker: Dr David J. Willock, University of Cardiff
Date: 07 February, 2019
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Wolfson Building, Seminar Room 1 (Yudowitz)

Sustainable or Green Chemistry is often thought of as the use of sustainable feedstocks such as biomass in chemical processes to produce materials and fuels with maximum atom economy. This ensures that the products we need are made with minimal environmental impact and that waste is avoided. Catalysis plays an important role by removing the need for stoichiometric reagents which may lead to undesired side products. It is also important to think about the catalyst materials themselves as these also have to be dealt with at the end of life of the catalyst. An important reaction in the processing of biomass is hydrogenation usually in the liquid phase. The current best performing heterogeneous catalyst for these processes is Ru/C and as Ru is a costly element with low abundance a more sustainable alternative is desirable. 

In this talk we will discuss the use of Cu based catalysts as replacement catalysts for the hydrogenation of ketones using the conversion of levulinic acid to γ-valerolactone as an example reaction with applications in chemicals and fuels. In this work we have brought together catalyst synthesis, testing, characterisation and simulation to study the mechanism of the reaction and to understand how the structure of the catalyst influences its performance.

Host: Prof David Lennon

From small rings to large: Synthesis of natural and unnatural products

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Ed Anderson, University of Oxford
Date: 23 January, 2019
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Host: Prof Stephen Clark

Crystalline Molecular Electronic Materials Based on Supramolecular Structures: Interplay between Molecular Motion and Electronic Systems

Group: Complex Chemistry Seminar
Speaker: Prof Takayoshi Nakamura, University of Hokkaido (Japan)
Date: 19 December, 2018
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Host: Prof Lee Cronin

Air, fire, earth and water used to make formaldehyde in a renewable fashion: the active surface of FeMo catalysts

Group: Heterogeneous Catalysis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Mike Bowker, University of Cardiff
Date: 29 November, 2018
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Formaldehyde is a widely used commodity chemical, essential to modern living (from furniture making to embalmment!). It is made from methanol using a very specific type of catalyst – Fe₂(MoO₄)₃. I will describe how this catalyst works and show that the important active surface is all Mo. Further, I will address the possibility that this can be made in a sustainable manner from renewable energy sources.

Host: Prof Justin Hargreaves

RSC Glasgow and West of Scotland Lecture

Flexible OLEDs for Display and Sensor Applications

Group: Energy Conversion and Storage Seminar
Speaker: Dr Jeremy Burroughes FRS, Cambridge Display Technology
Date: 28 November, 2018
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

One of the challenges for efficient and low voltage OLEDs is the need to use a low work function cathode material which leads to increased encapsulation requirements.  For mainstream applications such as TVs and lighting, the additional cost is acceptable.

For more price sensitive applications, such as displays for white goods and smart cards or sensor applications a method is required to mitigate this issue.  This talk will explain how this can be achieved using an air-processable electron injection layer capped with just aluminium.  This OLED technology can then be used to make a lower cost OLED displays suitable for a variety of applications, which will be discussed in this presentation.  

I will also finish off by giving some information on our other printed electronic activities.

Host: Prof Pete Skabara

ScotCHEM Industrial Lecture

Kinetic and mechanistic understanding of oxidative addition and reductive elimination of Pt(II) and Pt(IV) complexes

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Prof Jennifer A. Love, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC (Canada)
Date: 23 November, 2018
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

The catalytic functionalization of unreactive small molecules such as methane via C–H activation and C–E (E = C, N, O, or other heteroatom) is a long-standing goal in organometallic chemistry. To achieve this goal, we must develop better understanding of the fundamental steps of the catalytic cycle. Towards this end, we have been studying oxidative addition and reductive elimination of Pt complexes, which have demonstrated ability to functionalize small molecules, including methane. We have established, for the first time, intermolecular oxidative addition of simple aryl iodides. We have also established that reductive elimination is facilitated by the generation of unsaturated metal species from which oxidative addition and reductive elimination reactions may occur. We report the preparation of 4-membered P,N metallacycles of Pt(II) and Pt(IV) exhibiting hemilabile character, resulting in facile oxidative addition of C–X bonds and reductive elimination of alkanes. It was found that large, electron rich phosphines were required to allow for chelate formation, and the intimate mechanism of reductive elimination and ligand effects on the barrier to reductive coupling of C–C bonds from Pt(IV) were investigated. The challenges and ligand design strategies associated with the preparation of these strained metallacycles will be discussed along with the comparative reactivity toward oxidative addition and reductive elimination of these species with less-strained P,N metallacycles.

Host: Dr David France

ScotCHEM Lecture

Cryo-EM structures of respiratory complex I from mouse-heart mitochondria in biochemically defined states

Group: Joseph Black Research Lecture
Speaker: Prof Judy Hirst FRS, MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit, Cambridge
Date: 21 November, 2018
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Kelvin Building, Room 257

Respiratory complex I (NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase) is one of the largest membrane-bound enzymes in the mammalian cell. It powers ATP synthesis in mitochondria by capturing the free energy produced by electron transfer from NADH to ubiquinone and using it to drive protons across the inner membrane. Structures of mammalian complex I, which contains more than forty different subunits, have now been determined by single-particle electron microscopy (cryoEM) in several species. In this talk I will discuss recent data on complex I from mouse-heart mitochondria, a biomedically relevant model system, including the first data from complex I-linked models of mitochondrial disease. In particular, our 3.3-Å resolution structure determined in the ‘active’ state, and comparisons with structures of the ‘deactive’ state and with known bacterial structures, has revealed differences in helical geometry in the membrane domain that occur upon activation or catalysis. Overall, these results demonstrate the capability of cryo-EM analyses to challenge and develop mechanistic models for mammalian complex I.

Host: Prof Richard Hartley

RSC Interdisciplinary Prize Lecture

What X-ray scattering can tell us about protein crystallisation and air pollution

Group: Supramolecular Electronic & Magnetic Systems Seminar
Speaker: Dr Annela Seddon, University of Bristol
Date: 12 November, 2018
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room B4-08 (Physical Lecture Theatre)

Host: Prof Dave Adams

Plasmonic Nanoparticles. Synthesis, Self-Assembly and Applications in Biosensing

Group: Chemical Photonics Seminar
Speaker: Prof Luis M. Liz-Marzán, Center for Cooperative Research in Biomaterials, San Sebastián (Spain)
Date: 23 October, 2018
Time: 16:00 - 17:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Nanoplasmonics can be defined as the science studying the manipulation of light using materials of size much smaller than the radiation wavelength. This technology finds applications in various fields including sensing and diagnostics. An essential component of nanoplasmonics are the nanostructured materials, typically noble metals, which can very efficiently absorb and scatter light because of their ability to support coherent oscillations of free (conduction) electrons. Although the remarkable optical response of “finely divided” metals is well known since more than 150 years ago, the recent development of sophisticated characterization techniques and modeling methods has dramatically reactivated the field. An extremely important pillar on which the development of nanoplasmonics has been based comprises the impressive advancement in fabrication methods, which provide us with an exquisite control over the composition and morphology of nanostructured metals. Colloid chemistry methods in particular have the advantage of simplicity and large scale production, while offering a number of parameters that can be used as a handle to direct not only nanoparticle morphology but also surface properties and subsequent processing.

This talk will be based on a selection of fabrication methods that allow fine tuning of the morphology of nanoplasmonic building blocks, with the ultimate goal of improving their optical properties and their performance in sensing applications. Several examples will be presented in which nanostructured materials comprising gold nanoparticles were used as substrates for ultrasensitive detection of biorelevant molecules.

Host: Prof Klaas Wynne

Joint event with the Society of Spanish Researchers in the UK

Computation and automation to accelerate drug discovery chemistry

Group: Chemical Biology & Precision Synthesis Seminar
Speaker: Dr Lewis Vidler, Eli Lilly, Erl Wood, Windlesham, Surrey
Date: 23 October, 2018
Time: 12:00 - 13:00
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room C3-05 (Carnegie Lecture Theatre)

Across many sectors of modern industry, there is a move towards increased automation to drive efficiency. However, within modern synthetic organic chemistry, heavily automated approaches have struggled to make a significant impact, partly due to the diverse nature of performing different types of reaction. This talk will cover some of the investments Lilly has made in the automated synthesis space and a number of the computational approaches to maximize their utility.

Within the pharmaceutical industry, drug discovery chemistry aims to take biological targets of interest, and deliver molecules capable of engaging those targets safely in humans. We may have a number of starting points from screening exercises and engage in synthetic efforts to probe the structure-activity relationships (SAR). The application of automated synthesis and associated computational tools enables rapid exploration of a scaffold of interest if amenable chemistry is applicable. Details of Lilly’s Automated Synthesis and Purification Labs (ASPL) and development of associated computational tools will be described, including automated retrosynthesis and massive virtual library enumeration.

The talk will conclude with the introduction of a virtual assistant that we have created within Lilly to engage with project scientists. This was inspired by the many mainstream tech companies that have gone down the virtual assistant route (E.g. Siri from Apple) despite having other well established user interfaces. The virtual assistant we have created interacts with users via email and provides alerts to new data, analysis and subsequent application of computational methods, all in an automated manner. Some aspects of this link with the automated synthesis facilities previously mentioned to move to a fully automated drug discovery paradigm.

Host: Dr Andrew Jamieson

ScotCHEM Industrial Lecture

Test Event

Group: Joseph Black Research Lecture
Speaker: A. Speaker, An Affiliation
Date: 31 October, 2016
Time: 09:30 - 10:30
Location: Joseph Black Building, Room A5-04 (Theoretical Lecture Theatre)

A talk by a speaker from a place