معرفی
Dr. Mark McLaughlin is a faculty member in the Department of Chemistry at Lancaster University, where he leads the McLaughlin Research Group. Previously, he spent three years as a lecturer in medicinal chemistry at Manchester Metropolitan University before relocating his research group to Lancaster in 2021. His professional website can be found at https://mclaughlinresearchgroup.com.
Dr. McLaughlin's research program focuses on pioneering sustainable catalytic methodologies using alkaline earth metals for organic transformations, transition metal catalysis to produce high-value organo-metalloids, and employing super acids to activate inherently unreactive molecules. His group is also engaged in structure-based design and synthesis of small molecules to validate new therapeutic targets in oncology, neurodegeneration, and rare diseases. This multidisciplinary work bridges synthetic organic chemistry with medicinal applications.
His recent publications demonstrate expertise in platinum-catalyzed hydrosilylation, electrochemical characterization of heterocyclic compounds, and calcium-catalyzed Strecker-type reactions, reflecting his dual focus on fundamental catalytic mechanisms and practical applications in drug discovery.
- Genentech Internship at San Francisco
- Syngenta Postgraduate Scholarship Finalist (2012)
- RSC Delegate at J-NOST in Bhopal, India (2013)
Dr. McLaughlin currently supervises 2 postgraduate research students and serves as Principal Investigator on multiple research projects, including the Sydney Andrew Scholarship project investigating organosilicon reagents in organic synthesis. He also leads several Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) projects with industry partners including ICT Reverse Limited (focusing on bioleaching processing of noble metals from electronic waste) and Kerax Ltd.
His research group maintains active collaborations with industry partners to develop sustainable solutions, particularly in electronic waste recycling using biotechnology and biohydrometallurgical processes for urban mining. The group's work on adapting bioleaching techniques from traditional mining to electronic waste recycling represents an innovative approach to environmental sustainability in resource recovery.
