EDUCATION
Ph.D. Organic Chemistry, University of Hamburg, Germany, December 1995

Dissertation Title: “Synthesis, Enantioseparation and Investigation of the Conformational Stability of Axially Chiral Biphenyls” Advisor: Professor Wilfried A. König
Diploma Chemistry, University of Hamburg, Germany, February 1993
B.S. Chemistry, University of Hamburg, Germany, September 1990

APPOINTMENTS

Director, Medicinal Chemistry Shared Resources, Georgetown University, Washington DC
September 2017 - present
Full Professor, Georgetown University, Chemistry Department, Washington, DC
August 2011 - present
Associate Professor, Georgetown University, Chemistry Department, Washington, DC
August 2006 - 2011
Assistant Professor, Georgetown University, Chemistry Department, Washington, DC
August 2000 - July 2006
Senior Scientist, Chemical Development, R&D, SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals,
King of Prussia, PA
December 1997 - July 2000
Alexander von Humboldt Feodor Lynen Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Illinois,
Chemistry Department, Urbana-Champaign, IL. Advisor: Professor William H. Pirkle
February 1996 – October 1997
Visiting Scholar at the University of Aix-Marseille III, Marseille, France
July - August 1994, March - April 1995
Visiting Scholar at the University of Reading, Reading, UK
April - June 1991

HONORS AND AWARDS

National Academy of Inventors Fellow, 2023

Faculty & Staff Career Champion Award, 2021

Crystal Award for Outstanding Contributions to Drug Development and Commercialization, 2021

NSF Creativity Extension Award (reserved for less than 0.2% of the most creative NSF investigators), 2020

Georgetown University Patent Awards, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2024, 2025

Georgetown Career Research Achievement Award, 2016

Distinguished Georgetown University Investigator, 2016
President’s Award for Distinguished Scholars-Teachers, 2015
Georgetown University Patent Awards, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019
National Academy of Inventors Fellow, 2014
NSF CAREER Award, 2004-2009
TLTSI Award, Teaching, Learning, and Technology Summer Institute, 2003
Junior Faculty Research Fellowship, Georgetown University, 2003
Gold Impact Award, SmithKline Beecham, Pharmaceuticals, 2000
Silver Impact Award, SmithKline Beecham, Pharmaceuticals, 1998
Feodor Lynen Fellowship, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, 1996-1997
Ph.D. Fellowship, German Chemical Industry, 1993-1995
Erasmus Fellowship, European Union, 1991

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Synthetic Methodology

Enantioselective (Organo)catalysis
Chemo-, Regio- and Stereodivergent Processes
Catalyst Design (Wolf Bisoxazolidines and others)
Organofluorines & C-F Bond Functionalization
Green Chemistry​

Chiral Compound Recognition and Chemosensing
Stereoselective UV, Fluorescence and CD Sensing Technology
High-Throughput Asymmetric Reaction Screening
NMR Spectroscopy with Chiral Solvating Agents
Chemometric Multicompound Mixture Analysis​

Dynamic Stereochemistry of Chiral Compounds
Racemization, Diastereomerization and Atropisomerization Processes
Chirality Amplification Processes
Asymmetric Transformations of the 1st and 2nd Kind​

Cross-Coupling Reactions
Carbon-carbon and Carbon-heteroatom Bond Formation of Alkyl and Aryl Halides with
Alkynes, Boronic Acids, Siloxanes, Stannanes, Cuprates, Grignard Reagents,
Organoaluminum and Organozinc Compounds
Applications of Palladium Phosphinous Acid and Chlorophosphine Complexes
Cross-electrophile Coupling

Medicinal Chemistry
Sensing of Biomarkers
Peptide Bioconjugation

SAR Analysis & Drug Labeling to Evaluate Target Selectivity

Drug Discovery & Development (Several Cancers, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s Disease Treatments etc.)
Chiral Chromatography, Dynamic Chromatography
DGC, DHPLC, DSFC, Stopped Flow Methods

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CURRENT COLLABORATIONS
Industrial

Chris Welch, Welch Innovation LLC, Cranbury, NJ
Chirality Projects
Ed Sherer, Merck, Rahway, NJ
High-Throughput Chirality Sensing

Academic

Andrea Mazzanti, University of Bologna, Italy
Dynamic NMR Spectroscopy, Dynamic Stereochemistry
Eric Anslyn, University of Texas, TX
Optical Sensing Method Development
Pavel Anzenbacher, Bowling Green State University, OH
Optical Sensing Method Development
Lyle Isaacs, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
Supramolecular Chemistry
Aykut Uren and Jeff Toretsky, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Cancer Drug Developments
Esther Braselmann, GU Chemistry, DC & Aaron van Dyke, Fairfield University, CT
RNA Biosensing with Riboglow-FLIM Probes
Tinatin Brelidze, Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, GUMC, DC
Drug Development

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TEACHING
Graduate Courses

Synthesis (Chem 5060)
Stereochemistry (Chem 5061)
Ph.D, Career Planning Workshop
Undergraduate Courses
Organic Chemistry Lecture I (Chem 2100)
Organic Chemistry Lecture II (Chem 2200)

Organic Chemistry Laboratory I (Chem 2105)
Organic Chemistry Laboratory II (Chem 2205)
Organic Chemistry Lecture II for Majors (Chem 2400)
Synthetic Methods (Chem 3605)

 

ENTREPENEURSHIP AND PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

American Chemical Society
Alexander von Humboldt Association
National Academy of Inventors
Georgetown University Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors
Editorial Board Member of Chirality and Chiral Chemistry
Cofounder of Enantiosense LLC (commercialization of Wolf group coumarin probe)
Cofounder of ChiraSense LLC (commercialization of chirality sensing technology)
Drug developments licensed to KeifeRx LLC and Dubilex Therapeutics
Consulting as expert witness (patent litigation cases): Albuterol, Oxaliplatin, Pregabalin,
Oxycodone, Tapentadol, Lurasidone, Linagliptin, Ovide, Lupkynis

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