Dr. Xiaodong Michael Shi, assistant professor in the West Virginia University C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, has received a National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award worth $550,000.

His research, entitled “CAREER: Developing 1,2,3-triazole skeletons as novel chiral building blocks in asymmetric catalysis,” could be instrumental in advancing drug design, fine chemical production, and new material synthesis.

The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program offers the NSF’s most prestigious awards in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, education and the integration of education and research.

Over the next five years, Shi will examine the 1,2,3-trizole chemical as a new building block in the formation of transition metal complexes and synthesis of multi-functional chemicals. These compounds will become catalysts in important chemical transformations applicable to biomedical and material investigations that could revolutionize health care, biosensor, and energy industries.

1,2,3-triazoles are a class of compounds with 5-membered ring with three nitrogen next to each other. Although first reported 100 years ago, these chemicals were difficult to manipulate and received little attention until the beginning of the 21st Century. In 2001, a catalyzed synthesis of 1,2,3-triazoles named “click-chemistry” was reported, and numerous applications were developed in chemical and biological materials research. However, click chemistry continued to limit 1,2,3-triazoles as a simple linker.

The chemical function remained undeveloped until Shi and his research group discovered a new approach for synthesis of NH-triazoles. In this method, the investigation of the 1,2,3-triazole compound as a building block became feasible. His strategy has been identified as a complimentary approach in producing functional 1,2,3-triazoles that click chemistry could not achieve, and opened the possibility to significantly extend the use of these important chemicals in a variety of research areas.

As part of the CAREER grant funding, Shi will also develop an educational plan that incorporates international study-abroad experiences in China to train science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate students in nanotechnologies, material synthesis and medicinal chemistry. Participants will be chosen by the WVNano SURE Program to study during the summer beginning in 2010.

“Our proposed development of NH-triazole compounds as building blocks in transition metal catalysis will provide solid training for students working in medical chemistry, material science, and biology,” Shi said. “The education plan focused on STEM disciplines will benefit scientific fields in both academic research and industry production, and the role of international collaborations is crucial in maintaining a competitive position in an increasingly global economy.”

In addition to study-abroad opportunities, Shi will offer a new course, called “Molecular Recognition in Nanotechnologies,” open to all undergraduate and graduate science students to improve STEM education. He hopes to increase the participation of underrepresented groups by preparing them for the work force with skills that contribute to and shape a science and engineering-based economy.

Shi earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemistry from Nankai University, China in 1994 and 1997. He received a doctoral degree from the University of Maryland in 2002 and was a postdoctoral research associate at the University of California at Berkeley. Prior to joining WVU in 2005, Shi worked as a platform research scientist for General Electric Advanced Material.

Over the last three years, Shi has received significant support from the WVNano Initiative and he is a faculty participant in the Initiative. His research on the development of cascade reaction and triazole functionalization has been published in 13 respected science journals, including the Journal of the American Chemical Society, Angewandte Chemie, Chemical Communications, and Organic Letters.

In spring 2009, Shi received an Outstanding Faculty Award from WVU’s Department of Chemistry. He was also awarded an Outstanding Research Assistant Award from the University of Maryland.

Visit http://community.wvu.edu/~xs007/ to learn more about Shi, his work and his student research group.

For more information, contact Michael Shi at (304) 293-3435 ext. 6438 or Xiaodong.Shi@mail.wvu.edu.

-WVU-

lp/9/8/09

CONTACT: Rebecca Herod, Eberly College of Arts and Sciences
304-293-7405, ext. 5251, Rebecca.Herod@mail.wvu.edu