Beethoven 2 grant and joint carbene research
The Polish-German grant, totalling approximately PLN 2 million, was awarded in 2018 by the National Science Centre (NCN) and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) jointly to two teams of chemists – Prof. Grzegorz Mlostoń from the University of Lodz and Prof. Peter R. Schreiner from Giessen University, for the project entitled "3-Alkoxyimidazolylidene (NOHC): A new class of nucleophilic carbenes. Synthesis, structural, reactivity studies and new applications in asymmetric synthesis'.
Prof. dr hab. Grzegorz Mlostoń from the faculty of Chemistry of the University of Lodz
During the studies performed in both laboratories, the potential usage of imidazole-derived compounds and, more broadly, heterocyclic nitrogen compounds, either naturally occurring or artificially produced in a laboratory, was investigated. As a result of the research, a method for the synthesis of representatives of a new generation of so-called 'nucleophilic heterocyclic carbenes', which are abbreviated as NHCs, was successfully developed. Carbenes (a type of transient organic compounds) of this type have been discovered relatively recently and they have intensively been investigated for practical applications both on a laboratory as well as larger industrial scales. Many of them have found applications as catalysts for chemical reactions, e.g. in the production of diverse drugs, agrochemicals, cosmetic agents as well as in the petrochemical industry
– explains Prof. Grzegorz Mlostoń from the Faculty of Chemistry, University of Lodz
A total synthesis of lepidylins
Interestingly, during the work carried out by the scientists from the University of Lodz, it was possible to carry out the so-called total synthesis of a group of natural compounds using substances 'from stock'. More specifically speaking, this meant that the University of Lodz chemists developed a method to synthesise organic compounds, known as lepidylins. They belong to a group of well-known alkaloids found in nature, in some plants cultivated in certain regions of South America and are used by Peruvian Indians in folk medicine. In our case, lepidylins are known as ingredients of many, so-called dietary supplements. Although the project did not assume this, the chemists from Prof. G. Mlostoń's team in Lodz decided to modify the lepidylins obtained in the laboratory by introducing fluorine atoms into the structure of their molecules and this modification was aimed at enhancement of the therapeutic effect of these substances. The presence of fluorine is known to improve the penetration of therapeutic substances (fluoroorganic compounds) into cells and thus, to enhance their biological activity.
In chemistry projects under elaboration, it is often the case that new ideas emerge in the course of ongoing research and so the need to undertake further, initially unplanned experiments arises. Sometimes, even the assumed aim of a project has to be modified as a result of new discoveries made during their implementation
– explains Prof. Grzegorz Mlostoń.
When asked about the practical application of the results obtained in the Polish-German Beethoven 2 project, Prof. G. Mlostoń briefly replies: the implementation of the results obtained in laboratory always requires further investment. Implementation procedures are long and costly. There must be an entity interested enough in exploiting the discovery and willing to finance its implementation and to face the risk of producing it. It is also often the case that the holder of a similar patent pays to take over the new project and simply stop it – so that it does not compete with already existing solutions.
Prof. Peter R. Schreiner from Justus Liebig University in Giessen
Prof. Grzegorz Mlostoń: Nothing can replace direct contacts between researchers
In the project chaired by Prof. G. Mlostoń and Prof. P.R.Schreiner, which altogether lasted four years, theoretical and spectroscopic research was taken on by scientists from Germany. On the other hand, carbenes and their precursors were primarily synthesised, and an extensive studied on their biological activity of the latter (i.e. various imidazolium salts) was carried out in collaboration with the teams of Prof. Agnieszka Olejniczak from the Institute for Medical Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Lodz and Prof. Anna Janecka from the Medicinal University of Lodz.
It was an international project, but in practice it was also interdisciplinary
– emphasises Prof. Grzegorz Mlostoń.
The long-standing project and its implementation were possible thanks to the cooperation between the University of Lodz and its German partner, the Justus Liebig University in Giessen, which has lasted since 1978. For almost half a century, German-Polish research in many disciplines, joint publications, exchanges of scientists, jointly organised conferences and scholarships have been an invaluable asset for the scientific development of both sides of this cooperation.
In the development of science, especially in the case of experimental sciences, nothing can replace the exchange of experiences and direct contacts between researchers, which often turn into professional and personal friendship
– concludes Prof. G. Mlostoń, who is one of the pioneers of multilateral cooperation between scientists from the University of Lodz and the Justus Liebig University in Giessen.
Source: Prof. dr hab. Grzegorz Mlostoń, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Lodz
Text: Honorata Ogieniewska and Marcin Kowalczyk, Communications and PR Centre, University of Lodz
Photos: archives of the scientists and the Communications and PR Centre, University of Lodz
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