David Leitch

David Leitch is an Associate Professor of Chemistry at the University of Victoria (UVic). His research focuses on organic synthesis, catalysis, high-throughput experimentation (HTX), and process chemistry, with an emphasis on mapping chemical reaction space to develop predictive models and practical applications in drug discovery. He holds credentials including a BSc and PhD from the University of British Columbia, postdoctoral fellowships at McGill University and Caltech, and industry experience as an Investigator/Scientific Leader at GlaxoSmithKline.

Education:

• BSc, University of British Columbia
• PhD, University of British Columbia
• PDF, McGill University
• NSERC PDF, California Institute of Technology

Research Interests: The Leitch lab combines HTX, flow chemistry, and data analytics to explore reaction mechanisms, catalyst design, and new chemical matter. Key themes include universal precatalysts, quantitative reactivity models, and strong bond activation. Recent work highlights include stable Ni(0) precatalysts for HTX and chiral Pd(0) precatalysts for asymmetric allylic alkylation.

Publications: Dr. Leitch’s research spans 60+ peer-reviewed articles, emphasizing palladium and nickel catalysis, oxidative addition mechanisms, and HTX applications. Notable 2023-2025 work includes breakthroughs in precatalyst design and reaction modeling.

Grants & Collaborations: Active collaborations with industrial partners like GSK and academic institutions. Research leverages HTX tools to bridge academic and industrial challenges in catalysis and synthesis.

Labs/Teams: The Leitch lab at UVic functions as 'chemical cartographers,' using advanced methodologies to chart unexplored chemical spaces. The group emphasizes interdisciplinary approaches, including computational chemistry and materials science.