Mary P. Watson, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at the
University of Delaware, has been selected as the 2023 recipient of the
American Chemical Society (ACS) Catalysis Lectureship for the
Advancement of Catalytic Science, a prestigious honor that recognizes
her research accomplishments in developing new methods to construct
organic molecules.
Since 2017, when Watson’s research group published a groundbreaking
discovery with a chemical tool known as deaminative cross-coupling
reactions, interest in those reactions has surged worldwide,
particularly among chemists working with pharmaceuticals. Before that
discovery, deaminative reactions were rare and limited in use.
In announcing the award in a March 8 editorial, the journal ACS Catalysis
called Watson’s work “innovative and impactful” and noted that her
research group “has made major contributions” to these types of
reactions. “Not only are [Watson’s] methods innovative, they are highly
versatile,” the editorial said.
Joel Rosenthal, professor and chair of UD’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry,
called Watson “a fantastic contributor” to the department and the
University, “in addition to the reputation she has established within
the international chemistry community.”
An organic chemist, Watson and her team work with catalysts —
substances that enable a reaction to occur but are not changed by it —
to produce reactions that can create complex molecules. Cross-coupling
reactions are those in which two fragments are joined to form new bonds,
often between carbon atoms. In the deaminative type of cross-coupling
reactions, chemists use amines, substances that contain nitrogen atoms.
The tools and processes that scientists develop through catalysis
enable the creation of sophisticated materials, including
pharmaceuticals and plastics.
The field of catalysis is broad, Watson said, “But it all comes down
to getting a reaction to happen and then controlling it. We need more
options so we can choose ones that meet our needs.”
Those needs, she said, could involve cost: “Why use something that
costs $1,000 if you can use something that costs 50 cents?” Other
chemists might be more concerned about speed in certain processes and
need to find ways to make a reaction happen more quickly. Catalytic
scientists can develop new reactions to try to meet those needs.
Watson’s 2017 article, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS),
described the new strategy her research team developed for forming
carbon-carbon bonds. The journal’s editor at the time called it “an
important advance” because it showed how alkyl amines, previously
considered to be inert, could be activated for cross-coupling reactions.
“We thought at first it was a niche application — innovative, but we
weren’t sure who was going to use it,” Watson said. “But pharmaceutical
researchers were very interested. It’s been exciting to get this
attention.”
The importance of the discovery is highlighted by the fact that since
2017 over 15 groups worldwide have published papers about deaminative
reactions of the type Watson established, while there has also been an
increase in the development of other types of these reactions.
Her group has continued and expanded its work in this area and has
recently worked with researchers at Merck and Co. Their newest findings were published Feb. 28, 2023, in JACS.
During the research discussed in that paper, Watson said, “We don’t
make pharmaceuticals, but we show that [the process] could be used for
that purpose.”
