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Medicinal Chemistry Lab
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The lab discovers new phenomena in organic chemistry and creates functional organic molecules.
AboutAbout the lab
Integrating the structure and function of organic molecules
The Medicinal Chemistry Lab discovers new phenomena in organic chemistry, tests how general they are, and uses them to create functional organic molecules.
Its goal is to build an integrated form of organic chemistry in which the chemical phenomena the lab has discovered are applied to the creation of biologically active molecules.
The lab is interested not only in synthesizing highly active compounds but also in understanding, at the level of protein structural chemistry, how their activity arises from their structure.
By exploring the new organic chemistry and new functions that novel molecular structures generate, the lab pursues new concepts that are broadly applicable.
Key terms
- Amide bond
- The bond that links amino acids together in peptides and proteins. It normally adopts a planar shape.
- Helix
- A molecular shape folded into a spiral. It is one of the typical regular structures of proteins.
- Aromatic ring
- A structure, like benzene, in which carbon atoms are linked in a ring and are stabilized as a result. Many drugs contain one.
NewsLab news
A project researcher received the Excellent Presentation Award for an oral presentation at the Hepatocyte Research Meeting
A researcher in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences received the Special Merit Award from the Organic Microanalysis Research Forum
A doctoral student received the Student Excellent Presentation Award at the 144th Annual Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society of Japan
The binding structure of the lysophosphatidylserine receptor was elucidated in a collaborative study
ResearchResearch themes
The lab discovers new phenomena in organic chemistry, tests how general they are, and creates functional organic molecules. By combining experimental structural analysis with theoretical calculations, it traces the path from the discovery of a structure to the creation of a function.
*Illustrative imageMolecules with unusual structures
Using X-ray crystallography and variable-temperature NMR, the lab has shown that amides with a bicyclic skeleton adopt a strongly non-planar structure. By using this flexible amide bond in peptides, the lab is creating helical structures that remain stable even in water.
*Illustrative imageDiscovery of new reactions
The lab studies reactions that use highly electrophilic cations, formed when molecules are protonated in strong Brønsted acids. The aim is to increase the types and arrangements of substituents that can be introduced onto aromatic rings, and thereby broaden the methods available for synthesizing aromatic compounds.
*Illustrative imageDesign of biologically active molecules
Based on the structures of phospholipids that function in the body, such as lysophosphatidylserine, the lab designs and synthesizes molecules that interact with membrane proteins. The aim is to provide molecular tools for finding target proteins in living organisms, as well as seed compounds.
*Illustrative imageTheoretical calculations and orbital theory
The lab uses calculations to obtain structural information and reaction-pathway energies that cannot be obtained experimentally, and proposes reaction pathways on that basis. It has developed a method called "reactive hybrid orbitals," which extracts orbitals localized at the reaction center, and is exploring the importance of localized orbitals.
MembersFaculty
The lab's members include faculty, doctoral and master's students, undergraduates, researchers from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, and an administrative staff member.
- Associate ProfessorYuko Otani
VoicesStudent voices
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Solutions of organic substances for NMR analysis” Ryabitskii / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Molecules with unusual structures: “PDB 1abz EBI” Jawahar Swaminathan and MSD staff at the European Bioinformatics Institute / Public domain (cropped)
- Discovery of new reactions: “4-Bis(2-methylstyryl)benzene-3D-spacefill” Jynto (talk) / CC0 (cropped)
- Design of biologically active molecules: “Muscarinic receptor M2 coupled to protein G - 6OIK” Vcilleros / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Theoretical calculations and orbital theory: “Gallic acid ESP” Mplanine / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Synthetic Organic Chemistry Lab): “Rotationsverdampfer” Gmhofmann 12:13, 26. Jun. 2007 (CEST) / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Fundamental Organic Chemistry Lab): “Benzene IBO” Alicesu / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Natural Products Synthetic Chemistry Lab): “Synthesis ( )” Maximilian Paradiz from Amsterdam, Netherlands / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Medicinal Plant Chemistry Lab (Affiliated Medicinal Plant Garden)): “Benjamin Rush Medicinal Plant Garden - IMG 7239” Daderot / Public domain (cropped)
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