Nobel Prize in Chemistry: to Carolyn Bertozzi, Morten Meldal and Sharpless
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2022 it went to the US Carolyn R. Bertozziawarded together with Morten Meldal and K. Barry Sharpless. The latter is the fifth to win twice.
Nobel: Bertozzi, Meldal, Sharpless awarded for ‘snap chemistry’
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2022 went to a trio of scientists, Carolyn R. Bertozzi, Morten Meldal And K. Barry Sharpless. The three (two Americans and one Danish) were awarded for their discoveries in the ‘snap chemistry‘and the development of the biorthogonal chemistry. It was just right Sharplessalready awarded in 2001 and now the fifth scientist in the world to be awarded twice, to open, with his research, the path of ‘snap chemistry‘(or click).
2022 Nobel Prize Chemistry to Bertozzi, Meldal and Sharpless: rewarded simplification of difficult processes
The 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry it was awarded to Carolyn R. Bertozzi, Morten Meldal and K. Barry Sharpless “for the development of click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry”. This 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry is about simplifying difficult processes. Barry Sharpless and Morten Meldal they laid the foundation for a functional form of chemistry called “click chemistry” in which molecular blocks come together quickly and efficiently. Carolyn Bertozzi took click chemistry to a new dimension and started using it in living organisms. Chemists have long been driven by the desire to build ever more complicated molecules. In pharmaceutical research, this has often involved the artificial recreation of natural molecules with medicinal properties. This has led to many admirable molecular constructions, but they generally take time and are very expensive to produce.
“This year’s Chemistry Award is about not overcomplicating things, but about working with what is easy and simple”, said Johan Aqvist, chairman of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry. “Functional molecules can also be built by following a simple path.” Barry Sharpless received his second Nobel Prize in Chemistry. In 2000, he coined the concept of click chemistry, which is a simple and reliable form of chemistry in which reactions occur quickly and unwanted by-products are avoided.
Soon after, Morten Meldal and Barry Sharpless, independently of each other, presented what today is the flagship of snap chemistry: the azide-alkyne cycloaddition catalyzed by copper. This is an elegant and efficient chemical reaction which is now widely used. Among many other uses, it is used in the development of pharmaceutical products, to map DNA and create materials more suitable for the purpose. Carolyn Bertozzi, also a member of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei like other Nobel laureates this year, has taken click chemistry to a new level. To map important, but elusive biomolecules to the surface of cells – the glycans -, he has developed snap reactions that function within living organisms. Its bioorthogonal reactions occur without interrupting the normal chemistry of the cell. These reactions are now used globally to explore cells and trace biological processes. Using bioorthogonal reactions, the researchers improved the targeting of anticancer drugs, which are now being tested in clinical trials. Click chemistry and bioorthogonal reactions have brought chemistry into the era of functionalism. This is bringing the greatest benefit to humanity.
#Chemical #Nobel #Prize #Bertozzi #Meldal #Sharpless #builders #molecules