World War II, post-war reconstruction and British women chemists

This paper draws on evidence from a range of sources to consider the extent to which World War II served as a turning point in the employment opportunities open to women chemists in Britain. It argues that wartime conditions expanded women's access to some areas of employment, but that these opportunities represented, in many ways, an expansion of existing openings rather than wholly new ones, and not all of them proved permanent. Instead, women chemists benefited more permanently from increased state expenditure on higher education and on research and development after the war. This enabled some women to remain in what had originally been temporary wartime posts and others to secure employment in wholly new positions. Women were most successful in securing positions created by the expansion of state welfare and support for agriculture, but also found new employment opportunities as a result of the heavy investment in weapons development that accelerated with the advent of the Cold War. In higher education, an initial expansion of openings was not sustained, and the proportion of women in university chemistry departments actually fell during the second half of the 1950s. Industry presents a rather ambiguous picture, with many firms continuing to refuse to employ women chemists, whereas elsewhere they enjoyed enhanced opportunities and better salaries than those offered before the war. This did not mean, however, that women chemists received equal treatment to their male colleagues, and, despite the changes, they remained concentrated in subordinate positions and were expected to concentrate on routine work. Prospects in the 1950s were certainly better than they had been during the 1930s, but they remained strongly gendered.     

Guest Editorial: The Professional Status of European Chemists and Chemical Engineers

Which country pays its chemists and chemical engineers the highest salaries? Where can I find a new job quickest? Which chemical sub‐discipline offers most jobs? Reliable answers for these and other questions have been derived from the first European employment survey for chemists and chemical engineers, which was carried out in 2013. Here we publish the first general evaluation of the results of this survey.     

Solvent-free Reactions of Formylferrocene with Active Methylene Containing Compounds

Since ferrocene was synthesized, derivatives of ferrocene have attracted the attention of chemists, and recently solvent-free organic reaction has been an important new dimension in preparative organic chemistry. [1] Solventless synthesis without the use of supporting reagents which can avoid the risk of high pressure development and volatile toxic solvent employment is very amaizing and eco-friendly.     

Medicinal Chemistry in the Golden Age of Biology: Lessons from Steroid and Peptide Research

Collaboration between biologists and chemists has generated medicines of enormous benefit to society. The dynamics of this synergistic interaction combines two strengths: the rigor of chemistry and the ability of biologists to construct unifying concepts from diverse fields of investigation. The resulting contributions to the practice of medicine have reduced morbidity and mortality while increasing the quality of life. Building on the work of chemists such as Robinson, Prelog, Woodward, and Pauling, medicinal chemists have advanced rational drug discovery, especially of enzyme inhibitors, to a degree unthinkable even twenty years ago. Some of the major contributions of medicinal chemistry to human and animal health stem directly from the creative application of structural and electronic reasoning, from advances in instrumentation, and from spectacular progress in biology. However, medicinal chemists have only begun to scratch the surface of the opportunities made possible by the impact of the “double-helix revolution” of the 1950s.     

Structure and reaction based evaluation of synthetic accessibility

De novo design systems provide powerful methods to suggest a set of novel structures with high estimated binding affinity. One deficiency of these methods is that some of the suggested structures could be synthesized only with great difficulty. We devised a scoring method that rapidly evaluates synthetic accessibility of structures based on structural complexity, similarity to available starting materials and assessment of strategic bonds where a structure can be decomposed to obtain simpler fragments. These individual components were combined to an overall score of synthetic accessibility by an additive scheme. The weights of the scoring function components were calculated by linear regression analysis based on accessibility scores derived from medicinal chemists. The calculated values for synthetic accessibility agree with the values proposed by chemists to an extent that compares well with how chemists agree with each other.     

Cellulose--model films and the fundamental approach

This critical review describes the recent arrival of ultrathin films of cellulose. The methodology of preparation as well as the applications of the films for fundamental research is fully covered. The review places cellulose in a wider scientific context where cellulose research is no longer a field of interest for specialised scientists only. Cellulose and cellulosic materials should interest communities such as biochemists, physical chemists, surface chemists, organic chemists, polymer chemists and also physicists working close the disciplines mentioned. (149 references.).     

Directing group assists in transition metal-catalyzed site-selective C-H bond activation/transformations

In the review paper, we attempt to point out the importance of the directing group in the transition metal-catalyzed C-H bond activation/transformations, especially in the site-selectivity and reactivity. The employment of the directing groups in the type of reaction can enable a chemist to straightforwardly approach the desired molecular skeletons. Thus, understanding the role of the directing groups in the C-H bond activation/transformations would benefit chemists to design better auxiliary groups and develop more efficient and practical synthetic methodologies. We believe that the synthetic strategy based on the utility of the directing group to assist in the transition metal-catalyzed C-H bond activation/transformations will keep playing as a mainstream role in the research field.     

Transition Metals in the Synthesis and Functionalization of Indoles [New Synthesis Methods (72)]

The use of transition-metal complexes as reagents for the synthesis of complex organic compounds has been under development for at least several decades, and many extraordinary organic transformations of profound potential have been realized. However, adoption of this chemistry by the practicing synthetic organic chemist has been inordinately slow, and only now are transition-metal reagents beginning to achieve their rightful place in the arsenal of organic synthesis. Several factors contributed to the initial reluctance of synthetic organic chemists to use organometallic reagents. Lacking education and experience in the ways of elements having d electrons, synthetic chemists viewed organometallic processes as something mysterious and unpredictable, and not to be discussed in polite society. Organometallic chemists did not help matters by advertising their latest advances as useful synthetic methodology, but restricting their studies to very simple organic systems lacking any serious functionality (e.g., the “methyl, ethyl, butyl, futile” syndrome). Happily, things have changed. Organometallic chemists have turned their attention to more complex systems, and more recently trained organic chemists have benefited from exposure to the application of transition metals. This combination has set the stage for major advances in the use of transition metals in the synthesis of complex organic compounds. This review deals with one aspect of this area, the use of transition metals in the synthesis of indoles.     

第一个人工合成元素锝：化学家与物理学家合作的结晶

1871年，门捷列夫依据元素周期律和元素周期表预见了“类锰”（即锝元素）的存在；至20世纪，随着科学家对原子核变化的研究进展、回旋加速器的发明以及人工放射性元素的发现，化学家和物理学家一起用回旋加速器加速的氚核轰击钼靶得到了锝元素。锝成为了第一个人工合成的元素，是化学家与物理学家合作的结晶。它的发现不仅显示了先进的科学方法和科学仪器的重要作用，也证明了学科间合作的重要性。     

Contexts and Limits of Lavoisier's Analytical Plant Chemistry: Plant Materials and their Classification

Abstract

This paper concerns eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century chemists' ontologies of materials, along with their modes of classification. The focus is on plant substances, their place in the "chemical revolution" in the last third of the eighteenth century, and the ways in which chemists individuated, identified, and ordered plant substances in the five decades before and after that event. The main goal of the paper is to describe the problems that the "new chemists" confronted in their attempts to assimilate plant materials into their analytical taxonomic programme. Historical analysis shows that there were both external and internal obstacles to that assimilation, and these can be illuminated by studying the programme's broader historical context.     

On the interplay between theory and experiment in molecular structure problems: Some case studies

Some brief, general comments on the concept of molecular structure will be given. Some important points connected to the use of models in the interpretation of molecular structures will also be mentioned. The main theme in one part of the presentation will be the cooperative efforts made by experimentalists (mainly spectroscopists) and theoreticians (computational chemists) in order to measure, predict, and analyze the perturbations on the cyclopropane ring by different substituents. The aim is to demonstrate that ab initio calculations of a certain quality can constitute an important support for experimental studies in that they are able to discriminate between different models that otherwise are equally probable. The second part of the presentation will be concerned with a class of molecules that gives both experimental structural chemists and computational chemists a great challenge, namely, the metallocenes. A discussion of some of the grave discrepancies between theory and experiment regarding their geometry will be given.     

Teaching of Analytical Chemistry in the University

Summary The status of analytical chemistry within the universities, particularly of the U.K. is discussed. It is argued that there are too few analytical chemists in University positions, particularly in view of the social and economic importance of analytical chemistry. The best way to improve matters is by high quality research in open competition with other chemists.Presented at Euroanalysis III conference, Dublin, August 20–25, 1978     

Sugar amino acids and related molecules: Some recent developments

To meet the growing demands for the development of new molecular entities for discovering new drugs and materials, organic chemists have started working on many new concepts that can help to assimilate knowledge-based structural diversities more efficiently than ever before. Emulating the basic principles followed by Nature to build its vast repertoire of biomolecules, organic chemists are developing many novel multifunctional building blocks and using them to create ‘nature-like’ and yet unnatural organic molecules. Sugar amino acids constitute an important class of such polyfunctional scaffolds where the carboxyl, amino and hydroxyl termini provide an excellent opportunity to organic chemists to create structural diversities akin to Nature’s molecular arsenal. In recent years, sugar amino acids have been used extensively in the area of peptidomimetic studies. Advances made in the area of combinatorial chemistry can provide the necessary technological support for rapid compilations of sugar amino acidbased libraries exploiting the diversities of their carbohydrate frameworks and well-developed solid-phase peptide synthesis methods. This perspective article chronicles some of the recent applications of various sugar amino acids, furan amino acids, pyrrole amino acids etc. and many other related building blocks in wide-ranging peptidomimetic studies     

Bucky ferrocene and ruthenocene: serendipity and discoveries

An idea of making a ferrocene/fullerene hybrid, “bucky ferrocene”, has intrigued chemists for some time, but the compounds remained to be hypothetical. The synthesis of such hybrid molecules as Fe(C₆₀Me₅)Cp, Ru(C₆₀Me₅)Cp and Fe(C₇₀Me₃)Cp as well as their functionalized derivatives from [60] and [70]fullerenes has been achieved in recent years. With their esthetically pleasing structures and the dual character of metallocene and graphite, these molecules may stimulate the interest of both chemists and non-chemists.     

Connecting the philosophy of chemistry,green chemistry,and moral philosophy

This paper aims to connect philosophy of chemistry, green chemistry, and moral philosophy. We first characterize chemistry by underlining how chemists: (1) co-define chemical bodies, operations, and transformations; (2) always refer to active and context-sensitive bodies to explain the reactions under study; and (3) develop strategies that require and intertwine with a molecular whole, its parts, and the surroundings at the same time within an explanation. We will then point out how green chemists are transforming their current activities in order to act upon the world without jeopardizing life. This part will allow us to highlight that green chemistry follows the three aforementioned characteristics while including the world as a partner, as well as biodegradability and sustainability concerns, into chemical practices. In the third part of this paper, we will show how moral philosophy can help green chemists: (1) identify the consequentialist assumptions that ground their reasoning; and (2) widen the scope of their ethical considerations by integrating the notion of care and that of vulnerability into their arguments. In the fourth part of the paper, we will emphasize how, in return, this investigation could help philosophers querying consequentialism as soon as the consequences of chemical activities over the world are taken into account. Furthermore, we will point out how the philosophy of chemistry provides philosophers with new arguments concerning the key debate about the ‘intrinsic value’ of life, ecosystems and the Earth, in environmental ethics. To conclude, we will highlight how mesology, that is to say the study of ‘milieux’, and the concept of ‘ecumeme’ proposed by the philosopher and geographer Augustin Berque, could become important both for green chemists and moral philosophers in order to investigate our relationships with the Earth.     

13C-NMR-Studien von geschützten Aminosäuren

The¹³C-NMR spectra of a series of protected amino acids, as frequently used by peptide chemists, are discussed. The signals of the synthetic products are assigned on the basis of known chemical shift rules, spectral comparison and off-resonance spectroscopy. The value of pulse Fourier transform¹³C-NMR spectroscopy for chemists engaged in peptide synthesis is clearly demonstrated.     

Foundation and development of the Perm school of analytical chemists

The steps in the development of analytical chemistry and the organization of the school of analytical chemists in the city of Perm are considered. The role of G.G. Kobyak, the first head of the Division of Analytical Chemistry, in the organization of scientific research at the division, the selection of division staff, and the subsequent continuity of the formation of the division and the school of analytical chemists at Perm State University is outlined.     

Factors Determining the Selection of Organic Reactions by Medicinal Chemists and the Use of These Reactions in Arrays (Small Focused Libraries)

Synthetic organic reactions are a fundamental enabler of small‐molecule drug discovery, and the vast majority of medicinal chemists are initially trained—either at universities or within industry—as synthetic organic chemists. The sheer breadth of synthetic methodology available to the medicinal chemist represents an almost endless source of innovation. But what reactions do medicinal chemists use in drug discovery? And what criteria do they use in selecting synthetic methodology? Why are arrays (small focused libraries) so powerful in the lead‐optimization process? In this Minireview, we suggest some answers to these questions and also describe how we have tried to expand the number of robust reactions available to the medicinal chemist.     

Recent trends in the synthesis of 1,2,3-thiadiazoles

Abstract

1,2,3-Thiadiazoles, structurally active pharmacophores have attracted significant attention of synthetic chemists, medicinal and pharmaceutical researchers because of their versatile biological activities against various diseases such as herbicidal, insecticidal, antiviral, antitumor, antimicrobial, anticancer, plants activator and anti-amoebic activities. A literature survey of the last decade presented in this review article summarizes the major synthetic approaches, methodologies and strategies adopted for the synthesis of 1,2,3-thiadiazole scaffolds which will be help for medicinal chemists and pharmacists in future synthesis and development of novel therapeutic agents.     

An Update on Synthesis of Coumarin Sulfonamides as Enzyme Inhibitors and Anticancer Agents

Coumarin is an important six-membered aromatic heterocyclic pharmacophore, widely distributed in natural products and synthetic molecules. The versatile and unique features of coumarin nucleus, in combination with privileged sulfonamide moiety, have enhanced the broad spectrum of biological activities. The research and development of coumarin, sulfonamide-based pharmacology, and medicinal chemistry have become active topics, and attracted the attention of medicinal chemists, pharmacists, and synthetic chemists. Coumarin sulfonamide compounds and analogs as clinical drugs have been used to cure various diseases with high therapeutic potency, which have shown their enormous development value. The diversified and wide array of biological activities such as anticancer, antibacterial, anti-fungal, antioxidant and anti-viral, etc. were displayed by diversified coumarin sulfonamides. The present systematic and comprehensive review in the current developments of synthesis and the medicinal chemistry of coumarin sulfonamide-based scaffolds give a whole range of therapeutics, especially in the field of oncology and carbonic anhydrase inhibitors. In the present review, various synthetic approaches, strategies, and methodologies involving effect of catalysts, the change of substrates, and the employment of various synthetic reaction conditions to obtain high yields is cited.