Member of Yale faculty since 2008.
Research Interests
Research
Emergence is the phenomenon by which novel properties arise from interactions of simpler fragments which lack that property at a given level of hierarchical complexity. In chemical systems such as polyfunctional natural products, emergent properties are difficult if not impossible to predict, even when very detailed information about the interacting fragments is available. Efforts to analyze natural products without considering their emergent phenomena typically fail as an approach to identifying the most interesting functional features of these molecules. Therefore, our laboratory is working to formalize a study of emergence in bioactive natural products, with the ultimate goal of connecting the modular, evolved chemical reactivity within a natural product with cellular phenotype. Studies of this nature enrich our understanding of structure, bonding and reactivity in complex settings, motivate advances in synthetic strategy and methodology, and provide a blueprint for the creation of novel molecules with desired, complex properties, with implications for human health.
