University of Richmond Department of Chemistry Seminar Program

2024-2025 POWELL CHEMISTRY SEMINAR SERIES SCHEDULE

Date	Presenter, Seminar Title	Host (Room)
Aug 30^th 1:30pm	Organizational & Introductory Meeting with Chem 322/421/422 Students	Simpson (GOTW A001)
Sept 6^th 1:30pm	Professor Adrian Figg Assistant Professor of Chemistry Virginia Tech Title: Acrylic Copolymer Structures from Photoredox-Mediated RAFT Polymerizations Reference: Baker, JG, Zhang, R, Figg, CA “Installing a Single Monomer with Acrylic Polymers Using Photoredox Catalysis” J. of the Am. Chem. Soc. 2024, 146, 106-111.	Simpson (GOTW A001)
Sept 13^th 1:30pm	Professor Ka Un Lao Assistant Professor of Chemistry Virginia Commonwealth University Title: Exploring Next-Generation Quantum Chemistry Calculations: Leveraging a Toolbox with Grassmannians, Fragmentation, and Machine Learning References: (1) Ballesteros, F, Tan, JA, Lao, KU “An accurate and efficient fragmentation approach via the generalized many-body expansion for density matrices” J. Chem. Phys. 2023, 159, 074107; (2) Villot, C, Lao, KU “Ab initio dispersion potentials based on physics-based functional forms with machine learning” J. Chem. Phys. 2024, 160, 184103.	Tan & Donald (GOTW A001)
Sept 20^th 1:30pm	AXE Research Seminar Professor Michael Norris (UR Chemistry) Professor Ted Bunn (UR Physics) Professor Jonathan Dattelbaum (UR Chemistry)	(GOTW A001)
Sept 27^th	No seminar because of the University of Richmond College of Arts & Sciences Faculty & Staff Symposium
Oct 4^th	No seminar just because
Oct 11^th 1:30pm	Professor Heather B. Miller Associate Professor of Biochemistry High Point University Title: From Antihistamine to Anti-infective: Loratadine Combats Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus by Modulating Virulence, Antibiotic Resistance, and Biofilm Genes References: (1) Viering, BL, Balogh, H, Cox, CF, Kirpekar, OK, Akers, AL, Federico, VA, Valenzano, GZ, Stempel, R, Pickett, HL, Lundin, PM, Blackledge, MS, Miller, HB “Loratadine Combats Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus by Modulating Virulence, Antibiotic Resistance, and Biofilm Genes” ACS Infect. Dis., 2024, 10, 232-250; (2) Cutrona, N, Gillard, K, Ulrich, R, Seeman, M, Miller, HB, Blackledge, MS “From Antihistamine to Anti-infective: Loratadine Inhibition of Regulatory PASTA Kinases in Staphylococci Reduces Biofilm Formation and Potentiates β‑Lactam Antibiotics and Vancomycin in Resistant Strains of Staphylococcus aureus” ACS Infect. Dis. 2019, from https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsinfecdis.9b00096.	Pollock (GOTW A001)
Oct 18^th 1:30pm	Chemistry Senior Marcos Hendler Title: The Effect of Bicyclic Chalcogen-Phosphorus Rings on the Bergman Cyclization References: (1) Bergman, RG “Reactive 1,4-dehydroaromatics” Acc. of Chem. Res., 1973, 6(1), 25-31; (2) Kraka, E, Cremer, D “Investigation of the Bergman Cyclization of Enediyne. Relative Stability of o-, m-, and p-Didehydrobenzene” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1994, 116(11), 4929-4936. Chemistry Senior Raechel Parent Title: Optimizing the catalytic efficiency of cerium(IV) in cyclic di-GMP hydrolysis with ligands References: (1) Matsumura, K, Komiyama, M “Enormously Fast RNA Hydrolysis by Lanthanide(III) Ions under Physiological Conditions: Eminent Candidates for Novel Tools of Biotechnology” J. Biochem., 1997, 122, 387-394; (2) Komiyama, M, Takeda, N, Shigekawa, H “Hydrolysis of DNA and RNA by lanthanide ions: mechanistic studies leading to new applications” Chem. Commun., 1999, 1443-1451; Cullis, PM, Snip, E “Stereochemical Course of Cerium(IV)-Catalyzed Hydrolysis of Cyclic Nucleotides” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1999, 121, 6125-6130.	(GOTW C114)
Oct 25^th	No seminar because of the SERMACS meeting
Nov 1^st 1:30pm	Dr. David Gooden Research Scientist Duke University Title: 25 Years Underground. Selected Chemical Adventures From My Time At Duke Selected References: (1) Carlson, DL, Kowalewski, M, Bodoor, K, Lietzan, AD, Hughes, PF, Gooden, D, Loiselle, DR, Alcorta, D, Dingman, Z, Mueller, EA, Irnov, I, Modla, S, Chaya, T, Caplan, J, Embers, M, Miller, JC, Jacobs-Wagner, C, Redinbo, MR, Spector, N, Haystead, TAJ “Targeting Borrelia burgdorferi HtpG with a berserker molecule, a strategy for anti-microbial development” Cell Chemical Biology, 2024, 31, 465-476; (2) Zhao, J, Cochrane, CS, Najeeb, J, Gooden, D, Sciandra, C, Fan, P, Lemaitre, N, Newns, K, Nicholas, RA, Guan, Z, Thaden, JT, Fowler Jr, JD, Spasojevic, I, Sebbane, F, Toone, EJ, Duncan, C, Gammans, R, Zhou, P “Preclinical safety and efficacy characterization of an LpxC inhibitor against Gram-negative pathogens” Science Translational Medicine, 2023, 15, eadf5668.	Pollock (GOTW A001)
Nov 8^th	No seminar because of Physical chemistry candidate seminar earlier in the week
Nov 15^th	No seminar because of Physical chemistry candidate seminar earlier in the week
Nov 22^nd	No seminar because of Physical chemistry candidate seminar earlier in the week
Nov 29^th	No seminar because of the THANKSGIVING break
Dec 6^th 1:30pm	Professor Phil Castellano — CANCELLED! Professor of Chemistry NC State University Title: Steric and Electronic Influence of Excited State Decay in Cu(I) MLCT Chromophores Reference: Castellano, FN, Rosko, MC “Steric and Electronic Influence of Excited-State Decay in Cu(I) MLCT Chromophores” Acc. Chem. Res., 2024, (in press) https: //doi.org/10.1021/acs.accounts.4c00476.	Dattelbaum (GOTW A001)
Jan 17^th, 2025 1:30pm	Professor Alexandra Strom Assistant Professor of Chemistry Smith College Title: Iron-Catalyzed Reactions of Ketones: From Amination to Cycloaromatization References: Song, F, Park, SH, Wu, C, Strom, AE “Iron-Catalyzed Oxidative α-Amination of Ketones with Primary and Secondary Sulfonamides” J. Org. Chem, 2023, 88, 3353-3358; Parrales, GM, Hollin, NC, Song, F, Lyu, Y, Martin, AMO, Strom, A “Mechanism of Iron-Catalyzed Oxidative α-Amination of Ketones with Sulfonamides” J. Org. Chem, 2024, 89, 12462-12466.	Johnson (GOTW A001)
Jan 24^th 1:30pm	Responsible Conduct of Research	Parish and Pollock (GOTW A001)
Jan 31^st 1:30pm	No seminar.	(GOTW C114)
Feb 7^th 1:30pm	Professor Evan Hepler-Smith Assistant Professor of History Duke University Title: The history of chemical information: Helping history and chemistry help each other References: Hepler-Smith, E. Systematic Flexibility and the History of the IUPAC Nomenclature of Organic Chemistry. Chemistry International 2015, 37 (2), 10–14. https://doi.org/10.1515/ci-2015-0232. Hepler-Smith, E.; McEwen, L. A Century of Nomenclature for Chemists and Machines. Chemistry International 2019, 41 (3), 46–49. https://doi.org/10.1515/ci-2019-0315. Hepler-Smith, E. “Just as the Structural Formula Does”: Names, Diagrams, and the Structure of Organic Chemistry at the 1892 Geneva Nomenclature Congress. Ambix 2015, 62 (1), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1179/1745823414Y.0000000006. Hepler-Smith, E. Paper Chemistry: François Dagognet and the Chemical Graph. Ambix 2018, 65 (1), 76–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/00026980.2017.1418232. Hepler-Smith, E. Molecular Bureaucracy: Toxicological Information and Environmental Protection. Enviro Hist 2019, 24 (3), 534–560. https://doi.org/10.1093/envhis/emy134. Hepler-Smith, E. “A Way of Thinking Backwards”: Computing and Method in Synthetic Organic Chemistry. Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences 2018, 48 (3), 300–337. https://doi.org/10.1525/hsns.2018.48.3.300	Seeman (GOTW A001)
Feb 14^th 1:30pm	Chemistry Senior Andrew Watts Title: Electron-rich aniline as cleavable linkers for peptides References: Watts, AM, Hughes, CJ, Clausen, GA, Yanar, P, Wolff, EJ, Rubio, PR, Stuart, NM, Shugrue, CR “Electron-rich anilines as cleavable linkers for peptides” Bioorg. Chem. 2025, 154, 108084, ISSN 0045-2068, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioorg.2024.108084; Taggart, EL, Wolff, EJ, Yanar, P, Blobe, JP, Shugrue, CR “Development of an oxazole-based cleavable linker for peptides” Bioorg. & Med. Chem. 2024, 102, 117663, ISSN 0968-0896, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bmc.2024.117663.	(GOTW C114)
Feb 21^st 1:30pm	Chemistry Senior Nehal Asif Title: CO2 Reduction to Methanol via Organocatalysts References: (1) van Rague Schleyer P, Jiao H, van Eikema Hommes NJR, Malkin VG, Malkina OL “An Evaluation of the Aromaticity of Inorganic Rings: Refined Evidence from Magnetic Properties, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1997, 119, 12669-12670; (2) Mohler LK, Czarnik AW “alpha-Amino Acid Chelative Complexation by an Arylboronic Acid” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1993, 115, 7037-7038; (3) Maki T, Ishihara K, Yamamoto H “4,5,6,7-Tetrachlorobenzo[d][1,3,2]dioxaborol-2-ol as an Effective Catalyst for the Amide Condensation of Sterically Demanding Carboxylic Acids” Org. Lett., 2006, 8(7), 1431-1434; (4) Thilagar P, Chen J, Lalancette RA, Jakle F “Reversible Formation of a Planar Chiral Ferrocenylboroxine and Its Supramolecular Structure” Organometallics, 2011, 30, 6734-6741. Chemistry Senior Louisa Fiertz Title: Ring-Enlargement of in Situ Generated Cyclopropanones by the Reaction with Sulfonium Ylides: One-Pot Synthesis of Cyclobutanones References: (1) Lange M, Werz DB “Ring-Enlargement of in Situ Generated Cyclopropanones by the Reaction with Sulfonium Ylides: One-Pot Synthesis of Cyclobutanones” Org. Lett., 2024, 26(46), 9871-9876; (2) Poteat CM, Jang Y, Jung M, Johnson JD, Williams RG, Lindsay VNG “Enantioselective Synthesis of Cyclopropanone Equivalents and Application to the Formation of Chiral β-Lactams” Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2020, 59, 18655-18661; (3) Poteat CM, Lindsay VNG “Stereospecific Synthesis of Enantioenriched Alkylidenecyclobutanones via Formal Vinylidene Insertion into Cyclopropanone Equivalents” Org. Lett., 2021, 23, 6482-6487; (4) Chigboh K, Morton D, Nadin A, Stockman RA “Synthesis of Chiral Non-Racemic Substituted Vinyl Aziridines” Tetrahedron Lett., 2008, 49, 4768-4770.	(GOTW C114)
Feb 28^th 1:30pm	Professor Megan Jackson Assistant Professor of Chemistry University of North Carolina Title: Spatially resolved mechanistic studies at electrode–electrolyte and gas–liquid interfaces Reference: Ortiz Chua K, Jackson MN “Step Edge Defects Have Nanoscale Impact on the Electronic Structure in Semiconducting Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Electrocatalysts” J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2025, 147(5) 4643-4653.	Norris (GOTW A001)
Mar 7^th 1:30pm	Professor Steven Metallo Associate Professor of Chemistry Georgetown University	(GOTW A001)
Mar 14^th	SPRING BREAK
Mar 21^st 1:30pm and evening	POWELL LECTURE Professor David MacMillan James S. McDonnell Distinguished Professor of Chemistry Princeton UniversityTitle: Chemistry and catalysis as a passport to the world: From Scotland to the US to the Nobel Prize	(GOTW A001)
Mar 28^th 1:30pm	Chemistry Senior Aden Smigel Chemistry Senior Parisa Mershon	(GOTW C114)
Apr 4^th 1:30pm	Chemistry Senior Sophie Goldberg Chemistry Senior Marianna Vrakas	(GOTW C114)
Apr 11^th 1:30pm	Chemistry Senior Nora Buell Chemistry Senior Lillian Owens Chemistry Senior Mark StrigelTitle: Synthesis of 4-isoxazolines through a one-pot heteroconjugate addition-cyclization-elimination reaction Reference: Sklar DE, Helbling AV, Liu Y, Downey CW “One-Pot Synthesis of 2-Methylfurans from 3-(Trimethylsilyl)propargyl Acetates Promoted by Trimethylsilyl Trifluoromethanesulfonate” Tetrahedron Lett. 2021, 87, 153424	GOTW C114
Apr 18^th	UR School of Arts & Sciences Student Symposium
Apr 25th	Chemistry Department Student Awards