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Dr. Manfred T. Reetz
answers a few questions about this month's
new hot paper in the field of Chemistry.
From
•>>January 2003
Field: Chemistry
Article Title:
"Combinatorial and evolution-based methods in the creation of enantioselective catalysts"
Authors: Reetz, MT
Journal: ANGEW CHEM INT ED
Volume: 40
Page: 284-310
Year: 2001
* Max Planck Inst Kohlenforsch, Kaiser Wilhelm Pl 1, D-45470
Mulheim, Germany.
* Max Planck Inst Kohlenforsch, D-45470 Mulheim, Germany.
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 Why
do you think your paper is highly cited?
Researchers are always delighted to receive news of this kind,
although it must be remembered that complete non-citation
can, in principle, also be a sign of high quality, specifically if
someone is completely ahead of his time. I
suspect that the reason why my article is cited so often has to do
with the fact that it is a timely review of new and innovative
approaches to asymmetric catalysis.  It
does not just touch on select aspects, but rather illuminates the
important principles involved and how they are related, while
pointing out deficiencies and problems needing to be solved in the
future.
Does
it describe a new discovery or a new methodology that’s useful to
others?
The
article focuses on two seemingly very different ways to perform en masse parallel synthesis of enantioselective catalysts, namely
combinatorial preparation of modular chiral transition metal
catalysts on the one hand, and directed evolution of
enantioselective enzymes on the other. Both
require the development of high-throughput ee-screening systems,
which is one of our specialties. Both
approaches are useful to those working in the general area of
asymmetric catalysis in synthetic organic chemistry. These
methods are complementary to traditional approaches based on design,
but will never replace them. Ironically, the combinatorial and
evolutionary methods are beginning to unveil fascinating questions
concerning mechanism and structure which may never have been
addressed in traditional research.
What
were some of the circumstances that led you to do this research?
My
group initiated a project on directed evolution of enantioselective
enzymes for use in organic chemistry in the mid 1990s after having
been inspired by Pim Stemmer's first publication on DNA shuffling. Currently
we are expanding the Darwinistic approach to the evolution of hybrid
catalysts in which transition metal centers are implanted in
proteins.
Could
you summarize the significance of your paper in layman’s terms?
Since
efficient and ecologically sound catalysis stands at the heart of
current organic chemistry—which in turn is instrumental in the
preparation of pharmaceutical products, plant-protecting agents and
fragrances, to mention only a few—any new approach is significant.
Only basic research in
academia or industry leads to truly new innovations, paving the way
to possible industrial applications and therefore new and better
products for the customer.
Professor Dr. Manfred T. Reetz
Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung
Mülheim an der Ruhr
Germany
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ESI Special Topics,
January 2003
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/nhp/2003/january-03-ManfredTReetz.html
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