Vanderwal Lab
Principal Investigator: Christopher D Vanderwal
Institution: University of California, Irvine (Irvine, CA)
Primary Subfield: Molecular & Cell Bio
Recruitment Status: Inquire for rotation/fellowship opportunities
Research Focus
Project Summary Polycyclic terpenoid natural products are endowed with a broad range of medicinally relevant biological activities. Taxol and artemisinin are two premier examples of life-saving terpenoids; the former is used clinically to treat several different cancers, while the latter is a critical antimalarial agent used worldwide. Chemical synthesis approaches to natural products provide opportunities to make compounds that might be scarcely available from nature, to generate analogues that are only available by total synthesis, and to make probe molecules for increased understanding of the underlying biology. A balance of innovative strategy and new chemical methodology promises efficient syntheses that can serve to answer important biological questions that often can only be probed with small molecules. As part of our laboratory’s long-term goal to enhance efficiency in the synthesis of complex natural products to facilitate important studies in biology, the objective of the proposed research program is to develop concise and creative synthesis designs and empowering methodological advances to permit access to many bioactive diterpenoid natural products. The rationale for th…
Active NIH Awards
- 5R35GM145252-05: Chemical Synthesis of Bioactive Diterpenoids (2026)
- 1R01AI192615-01A1: Optimization of the Pyrroloiminoquinone Scaffold for Malaria and Babesiosis Treatment (2026)
- 1R01AI198692-01: Therapeutic potential and mechanism of action of leelamine-derived isonitriles for malaria and babesiosis (2026)
- 5R35GM145252-04: Chemical Synthesis of Bioactive Diterpenoids (2025)
- 5R35GM145252-03: Chemical Synthesis of Bioactive Diterpenoids (2024)
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