James P. Morken

James P. Morken is a Professor of Chemistry and holds the Louise and Jim Vanderslice and Family Chair at Boston College. His research focuses on synthetic organic chemistry, emphasizing metal-catalyzed transformations, catalytic asymmetric reactions, and enantioselectivity control. He leads the Morken Research Group, which explores applications in drug development and materials science through interdisciplinary approaches involving organometallic, physical organic, and computational chemistry.

Education: B.S. from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Ph.D. from Boston College.

Research interests include developing new catalytic methods for complex molecule synthesis, such as borrelidin, inostamycin, and discodermolide. His work bridges reaction development and natural product synthesis, emphasizing sustainable and efficient methodologies. Notable achievements include the Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award (2018) and Sloan Foundation Fellowship (2004–2006).

Recent studies highlight advancements in stereoselective organoboron chemistry, including diboration strategies and zinc-mediated transmetalation. His group has pioneered methods for constructing chiral organoboronates and meta benzene isosteres, with applications in drug discovery.

Advising and grants: Morken has mentored numerous graduate and undergraduate students, many of whom have pursued postdoctoral research or industry roles. His lab collaborates with institutions like Pfizer and Cornell University. Ongoing research includes exploring substrate plasticity in boronic esters and advancing computational ligand design.

Labs/Teams: The Morken Research Group actively publishes in top journals like JACS, Nature, and Angewandte Chemie, with recent focus on stereodivergent desymmetrization and oxygen-coordination studies in transmetallation.