Newswise — LA JOLLA, CA – May 9, 2017 – Three chemists from The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI)—Dale Boger, Jin-Quan Yu and Phil Baran—have received awards from the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), a renowned professional organization for chemists based in the United Kingdom, with more than 54,000 members worldwide.
Dale Boger, co-chair of the Department of Chemistry at TSRI, was awarded the 2017 Robert Robinson Award of the RSC’s Organic Division. The award honors his groundbreaking studies in natural product synthesis, which could lead to new therapeutic treatments for challenging clinical needs.
“I am very honored and humbled to receive the RSC Robert Robinson Award, which has such a distinguished list of prior award winners,” Boger said.
Jin-Quan Yu, Frank and Bertha Hupp Professor of Chemistry at TSRI, received the 2017 Pedler Award from the RSC’s Organic Division in recognition of his development of pioneering methods of C-H activation, a technique in chemistry that can lead to new pharmaceuticals and other natural products.
“I hope these new reactions will accelerate the discovery and synthesis of useful molecules, especially medicines,” said Yu, who received his Ph.D. in the U.K. at the University of Cambridge and served as a Royal Society fellow. “It gives me a warm feeling to be recognized by the U.K. scientific community that I was part of for 10 years.”
Phil Baran, the Darlene Shiley Professor of Chemistry at TSRI, received the RSC’s 2017 Merck, Sharp & Dohme Award, which honors contributions to any area of organic chemistry from a researcher under the age of 45. Baran’s work focuses on developing new chemical reactions and methodologies for more efficient and economically viable routes in drug design.
Baran credited his lab members for his success so far. “This award is a recognition of the students and postdoctoral scholars who work tirelessly to invent useful chemistry,” Baran said.
In addition to £2,000 and a medal, all three awards include a lecture tour in the U.K.
About The Scripps Research Institute
The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) is one of the world's largest independent, not-for-profit organizations focusing on research in the biomedical sciences. TSRI is internationally recognized for its contributions to science and health, including its role in laying the foundation for new treatments for cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, hemophilia, and other diseases. An institution that evolved from the Scripps Metabolic Clinic founded by philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps in 1924, the institute now employs more than 2,500 people on its campuses in La Jolla, CA, and Jupiter, FL, where its renowned scientists—including two Nobel laureates and 20 members of the National Academies of Science, Engineering or Medicine—work toward their next discoveries. The institute's graduate program, which awards PhD degrees in biology and chemistry, ranks among the top ten of its kind in the nation. In October 2016, TSRI announced a strategic affiliation with the California Institute for Biomedical Research (Calibr), representing a renewed commitment to the discovery and development of new medicines to address unmet medical needs. For more information, see www.scripps.edu.
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