Kyriacos Costa Nicolaou
Encyclopedia
Kyriacos Costa Nicolaou is a Cypriot-American chemist
known for the total synthesis
of natural products
.
, Cyprus
where he grew up and went to school until the age of 18. In 1964, he went to England where he spent two years learning English and preparing to enter University. He studied chemistry at the University of London
. (B.Sc., 1969, Bedford College; Ph.D.
1972, University College London
, with Professors F. Sondheimer and P. J. Garratt). In 1972, he moved to the United States and, after postdoctoral appointments at Columbia University
(1972-1973, Professor T. J. Katz) and Harvard University
(1973-1976, Professor E. J. Corey), he joined the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania
where he became the Rhodes-Thompson Professor of Chemistry. While at Penn, he won the prestigious Sloan Fellowship
.
In 1989, he started at the University of California
, San Diego, where he is Professor of Chemistry, and The Scripps Research Institute
where he is the Darlene Shiley Professor of Chemistry, and Chairman of the Department of Chemistry. In 1996, he was appointed Aline W. and L.S. Skaggs Professor of Chemical Biology in The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, The Scripps Research Institute. Since 2005, he has been directing Chemical Synthesis Laboratory @ ICES-A*STAR, Singapore.
Nicolaou is active in the field of organic chemistry
with research interests natural product synthesis and total synthesis
. He is responsible for the synthesis of many complex molecules found in nature such as Taxol in the Taxol total synthesis
and vancomycin
.
:
Additionally, he authored or co-authored several other books:
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
known for the total synthesis
Total synthesis
In organic chemistry, a total synthesis is, in principle, the complete chemical synthesis of complex organic molecules from simpler pieces, usually without the aid of biological processes. In practice, these simpler pieces are commercially available in bulk and semi-bulk quantities, and are often...
of natural products
Natural product
A natural product is a chemical compound or substance produced by a living organism - found in nature that usually has a pharmacological or biological activity for use in pharmaceutical drug discovery and drug design...
.
Biography
K. C. Nicolaou was born on July 5, 1946, in KaravasKaravas
Karavas is the sister village of Lapithos in theKyrenia District of Cyprus. The village resides in the Turkish Occupied Part of Cyprus It is built on the ruins of Lampousa one of the ten ancient Greek city-kingdoms of Cyprus...
, Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
where he grew up and went to school until the age of 18. In 1964, he went to England where he spent two years learning English and preparing to enter University. He studied chemistry at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
. (B.Sc., 1969, Bedford College; Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
1972, University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
, with Professors F. Sondheimer and P. J. Garratt). In 1972, he moved to the United States and, after postdoctoral appointments at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
(1972-1973, Professor T. J. Katz) and Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
(1973-1976, Professor E. J. Corey), he joined the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
where he became the Rhodes-Thompson Professor of Chemistry. While at Penn, he won the prestigious Sloan Fellowship
Sloan Fellowship
The Sloan Research Fellowships are awarded annually by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation since 1955 to "provide support and recognition to early-career scientists and scholars". This is distinct from the Sloan Fellows in business....
.
In 1989, he started at the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
, San Diego, where he is Professor of Chemistry, and The Scripps Research Institute
The Scripps Research Institute
The Scripps Research Institute is an American medical research facility that focuses on research in the basic biomedical sciences. Headquartered in La Jolla, California, with a sister facility in Jupiter, Florida, the institute is home to 3,000 scientists, technicians, graduate students, and...
where he is the Darlene Shiley Professor of Chemistry, and Chairman of the Department of Chemistry. In 1996, he was appointed Aline W. and L.S. Skaggs Professor of Chemical Biology in The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, The Scripps Research Institute. Since 2005, he has been directing Chemical Synthesis Laboratory @ ICES-A*STAR, Singapore.
Nicolaou is active in the field of organic chemistry
Organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and preparation of carbon-based compounds, hydrocarbons, and their derivatives...
with research interests natural product synthesis and total synthesis
Total synthesis
In organic chemistry, a total synthesis is, in principle, the complete chemical synthesis of complex organic molecules from simpler pieces, usually without the aid of biological processes. In practice, these simpler pieces are commercially available in bulk and semi-bulk quantities, and are often...
. He is responsible for the synthesis of many complex molecules found in nature such as Taxol in the Taxol total synthesis
Nicolaou Taxol total synthesis
The Nicolaou Taxol total synthesis, published by K. C. Nicolaou and his group in 1994 concerns the total synthesis of Taxol. This organic synthesis was included in Nicolaou's book, 'Classics in Total Synthesis'....
and vancomycin
Vancomycin
Vancomycin INN is a glycopeptide antibiotic used in the prophylaxis and treatment of infections caused by Gram-positive bacteria. It has traditionally been reserved as a drug of "last resort", used only after treatment with other antibiotics had failed, although the emergence of...
.
Total syntheses accomplished
- Endiandric acids A-DEndiandric acid cEndiandric acid C, isolated from the Endiandra introsa tree, is a well characterized chemical compound. People used the E. introsa tree for timber, for its fruit, drugs, spices, perfume oils, and leaves. The Greeks and Romans made wreaths for warriors and victorious athletes with E. intorsa leaves...
(1982) - Amphoteronolide B and Amphotericin BAmphotericin BAmphotericin B is a polyene antifungal drug, often used intravenously for systemic fungal infections...
(1987) - Calicheamicin γ1CalicheamicinThe calicheamicins are a class of enediyne antibiotics derived from the bacterium Micromonospora echinospora, with calicheamicin γ1 being the most notable. It was isolated originally from a rock collected by a Scripps Research Institute chemist while hiking in Waco, Texas. It is extremely toxic to...
(1992) - SirolimusSirolimusSirolimus , also known as rapamycin, is an immunosuppressant drug used to prevent rejection in organ transplantation; it is especially useful in kidney transplants. A macrolide, sirolimus was first discovered as a product of the bacterium Streptomyces hygroscopicus in a soil sample from Easter...
(1993) - TaxolNicolaou Taxol total synthesisThe Nicolaou Taxol total synthesis, published by K. C. Nicolaou and his group in 1994 concerns the total synthesis of Taxol. This organic synthesis was included in Nicolaou's book, 'Classics in Total Synthesis'....
(1994) - Zaragozic acid AZaragozic acidZaragozic acids are a family of natural products produced by fungi. The first characterized zaragozic acids, A, B, and C were isolated from an unidentified sterile fungal culture, S. intermedia, and L. elatius, respectively. just outside of the European city Zaragoza, Spain on the Jalón river...
(1994) - Brevetoxin BBrevetoxinBrevetoxin , or brevetoxins, are a suite of cyclic polyether compounds produced naturally by a species of dinoflagellate known as Karenia brevis...
(1995) - VancomycinVancomycinVancomycin INN is a glycopeptide antibiotic used in the prophylaxis and treatment of infections caused by Gram-positive bacteria. It has traditionally been reserved as a drug of "last resort", used only after treatment with other antibiotics had failed, although the emergence of...
(1998)
Books
He is also the co-author of three popular books on total synthesisTotal synthesis
In organic chemistry, a total synthesis is, in principle, the complete chemical synthesis of complex organic molecules from simpler pieces, usually without the aid of biological processes. In practice, these simpler pieces are commercially available in bulk and semi-bulk quantities, and are often...
:
- Classics in Total Synthesis I, 1996
- Classics in Total Synthesis II, 2003
- Classics in Total Synthesis III, 2011
Additionally, he authored or co-authored several other books:
- Molecules That Changed the World, 2008
- Handbook of Combinatorial Chemistry: Drugs, Catalysts, Materials, 2002
- Selenium in Natural Products Synthesis, 1984
Awards
K. C. Nicolaou has received numerous awards and honors including:- Schering Prize (Germany)
- Aspirin Prize (Spain)
- Max Tishler Prize Lecture (Harvard)
- Yamada Prize (Japan)
- Janssen Prize (Belgium)
- Nagoya Medal (Japan)
- Centenary Medal (Royal SocietyRoyal SocietyThe Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
UK) - Paul Karrer Medal (Switzerland)
- Inhoffen Medal (Germany)
- Nichols Medal (USA)
- Linus Pauling AwardLinus Pauling AwardThe Linus Pauling Award is an award recognizing outstanding achievement in chemistry. It is awarded annually by the Puget Sound, Oregon, and Portland Sections of the American Chemical Society, and is named after the US chemist Linus Pauling , to whom it was first awarded in 1966.Another Linus...
(USA) - 1998 Esselen Award (USA)
- ACS Award for Creative Work in Synthetic Organic Chemistry (USA)
- ACS Guenther Award in Natural Products Chemistry (USA)
- 2003 Nobel Laureate Signature Award in Graduate Education (with Phil S. Baran)
- Tetrahedron Prize Award
- 2011 Benjamin Franklin MedalBenjamin Franklin Medal (Franklin Institute)The Benjamin Franklin Medal is a science and engineering award presented by the Franklin Institute, of Philadelphia, PA, USA.-Laureates:*1998 - Emmanuel Desurvire *1998 - Robert B. Laughlin *1998 - David N. Payne...
in Chemistry (Franklin InstituteFranklin InstituteThe Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States, dating to 1824. The Institute also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.-History:On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughn Merrick and...
USA) - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and SciencesAmerican Academy of Arts and SciencesThe American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
- Member of the National Academy of SciencesUnited States National Academy of SciencesThe National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
- Several honorary degrees