معرفی
Christopher S. P. McErlean is an Associate Professor in the School of Chemistry at the University of Sydney, Australia's oldest university. His research is affiliated with the Sydney Institute of Agriculture and The Centre for Drug Discovery Innovation, aligning with the Faculty of Science Research Strength in "Molecules to Materials." He leads the McErlean Research Group, which operates within the Chemistry Building (F11) on the Camperdown campus, with access to Sydney's outstanding scientific instrumentation.
McErlean earned his B.Sc. (Hons I) from the University of Queensland in 1997 and completed his Ph.D. there in 2002 under Prof. W. Kitching. He conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Nottingham (2002-2004) and later at the University of Exeter/Nottingham (2004-2007), where he also served as a Teaching Fellow in Organic Chemistry (2006-2007). He joined the University of Sydney as a Lecturer in 2007, was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2012, and became Associate Professor in 2016.
Professor McErlean's research focuses on developing novel synthetic methodologies to simplify the synthesis of complex organic molecules. His work centers on three main areas: expanding the scope of the Stetter reaction for carbon-carbon bond construction, exploring "on-water" catalysis for green chemistry applications, and designing novel ligands for asymmetric transformations. His group investigates variants of the Stetter reaction that enable rapid construction of fused-ring systems and explores its ability to install new stereocentres. They also study palladium-catalyzed tetrahydrofuran synthesis for natural product applications and develop ligands that mimic nature's ability to incorporate stereogenic elements into substrates.
Analysis of his recent publications reveals a strong focus on strigolactone chemistry, with multiple papers on biosynthesis, receptor interactions, and synthetic analogs. His work bridges organic synthesis with plant biology, particularly in understanding how plant hormones affect seed germination and interactions with parasitic plants. There's also significant work in radical chemistry, exploring new methods for generating and utilizing radicals in open reaction vessels, contributing to greener synthetic methodologies.
Professor McErlean has received several notable awards including the 2011 Selby Research Award, the 2014 Tasmanian Alkaloids Visiting Lectureship at the University of Tasmania, and the prestigious RACI 2014 Athel Beckwith Lectureship. His research has been supported by multiple Australian Research Council Discovery Projects, including grants for "Strigologues: Inventing activity-specific plant hormones" (2012) and "On-Water Catalysis for Green Chemistry" (2012), as well as the NSW RNA Production and Research Network (2021).
McErlean has mentored numerous students through their academic journeys, including current PhD candidates Robert Rodger, Liam Bromhead, and Alex Norman, and Honours students Martina Yousif, Neanne Alnafta, and Philippe Nashar. His former students include Dr. Katherine Law, Dr. Philip Norcott, Dr. Christopher Phippen, Dr. Carl Recsei, and Dr. Joanne Morris. His research group maintains a strong presence in both synthetic organic chemistry and chemical biology, with active projects in strigolactone chemistry and sustainable synthetic methodologies.
