3 Share Nobel in Chemistry for Work on Synthesizing Molecules

Three scientists, Richard F. Heck, a retired professor of Delaware, Ei-ichi Negishi, a chemistry professor at Purdue University, and Akira Suzuki, a professor at Hokkaido University shared this year’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing techniques to synthesize complex carbon molecules that have had an enormous impact on the manufacture of medicines and other products.

They made advances in using the metal palladium as a catalyst to link together carbon molecules into larger, more complicated structures. These methods are very revolutionary. They changed industry. With the help of these techniques, we got a lot of new things including medicines and fungicide. They are used almost continually by every major pharmaceutical company on a daily basis, from drug discovery through manufacturing.

The reactions are not only versatile, but also accomplish bond formations that are very difficult to do using any traditional methods.

In 1977, Dr. Negishi used zinc compounds to ease the mingling of carbon atoms on palladium, and two years later, Dr. Suzuki found that boron compounds worked even better. With the palladium catalyst, the compounds can often be produced at lower temperatures with fewer solvents, reducing cost and waste.

It took all the way until 1990 before people really started to realize how great these things were. And then it has just developed very quickly.

Congratulations to the winners!

On October 6, 2010, when I got home, I listened to this Nobel Prize news. I was very surprised at this news! This is because two Japanese scientists won a prize, and one of them, Akira Suzuki is a professor of Hokkaido University. I know many Japanese won Nobel Prize, but I had not thought that a professor of my university won Nobel Prize.

 The next day, I saw some reporters at Hokubu cafeteria, and many students ware talking about this news. Students of Hokkaido University were so excited by this news.

 Not only students, but also professors were excited. My professor of analytical chemistry talked about the news in class. He said, “The techniques are widely used because scientists didn’t take out a patent for them. But, today, university makes much of wealth of knowledge, so now it is unthinkable not to take out a patent….He also said, “I think the committee may appreciate that the techniques brought us a lot of benefit like new cancer medicine. And this news made students think that Nobel Prize is close didn’t it?” I think so, too.

 According Hokkaido newspaper, Akira Suzuki was not rich. But, he studied hard and hard and succeeded. Hearing that, I felt effort was very important, and making effort might change our situation. Although I am a student of pharmaceutical department, I can’t completely understand these techniques yet…However, studying more, I also might do well like Mr. Suzuki, because I belong to the same university of Nobel Prize winner!

To sum up, the news brought Japanese people, especially students of Hokkaido University hope to be active in scientific field world wide and luckily get honorable prize.