5 ms·
For those who are just first learning about click chemistry, it makes attaching two larger molecules together very, very simple. It can be done under very gentl
by DrAwdeOccarim 4y ago
For those who are just first learning about click chemistry, it makes attaching two larger molecules together very, very simple. It can be done under very gentle conditions (like in water), and has exceptional selectivity. Like it's so selective you really don't need to worry about other things happening on the timescales these reactions occur and can be cleaned up (an hour). There are two types of click chemistry, one that uses copper as a catalyst and one that doesn't. They both opened the world of chemically "stapling" two things together to literally all bench scientists. I cannot overstate how transformative this has been to biological science.
- tgv 4y agoYou mean: LEGO-like chemistry? Wow, I'd never heard of that. Any info on how and what-for it's used in practice?
- j7ake 4y agoFor example, attaching fluorophores to molecules so you can track them in a microscope.
- lepetitpedre 4y agoOf course a Danish person got LEGO into chemistry
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- dmix 4y agoDo you have an example of some molecules that would be joined in an experiment?
- hirenj 4y agoA specific example would describe Bertozzi's work - where sugars with a chemical "handle" are installed on to the cell surface. You can then click something like a fluorophore onto the sugars with handles to figure out where these specific sugars are on a cell surface.
- zasdffaa 4y agoAh, so we're definitely not talking bolting together the little stuff, like pyrrole + benzene ring kind of thing?
- throwawaymaths 4y agoYou can do that (glue together two tiny molecules of arbitrary size) but the connector that you get that joins the two pieces in the resulting molecule is not arbitrary.
- throwawaymaths 4y agoI'm not aware of any major discoveries that have come about from this technique. Can someone correct me? I'd accept: - elucidating a new signal transduction pathway - discovering an uncharacterized enzyme - measuring a biochemical constant of a known molecule (Kd e.g.) - discovering a new drug target that then gets exploited
- jfarlow 4y agoUsing the above chemistry, you can attach DNA oligos to lipids, DNA oligos to proteins, fluorophores to DNA, fluorophores to proteins at particular locations or other complex drugs to DNA, protein or lipids. Once you get DNA oligos in there you can do computation, as X binds X', and Y to Y'. So you can have all sorts of complex synthetic & designed interactions using chemistry that is both seamless and doesn't interfere with normal molecular biolgy. Once you have proteins, you can localize particular chemistries.
- ak_111 4y agoThis sounds mind-blowing and if it is transformative as you state, then why did it take so long to award it the prize, have all the most recent previous winners been more worthy?
- wholinator2 4y agoIt can sometimes take a long time to get a prize awarded. Like I believe Einstein didn't get his prize for years and years after he discovered Relativity and even when they awarded it to him it was only for the photo electric effect, which while important, wasn't perceived as his largest contribution
- btilly 4y agoHe didn't get it for relativity in part because of a well-known philosopher. See https://nautil.us/this-philosopher-helped-ensure-there-was-no-nobel-for-relativity-235898/ https://nautil.us/this-philosopher-helped-ensure-there-was-n... for the story.
- dekhn 4y ago"only" for the photoelectric effect? That was one of the most fundamental scientific discoveries (well, explanation for an unexpected failure of theory to predict experiment) of all time. In particular, the idea of wave packets replacing particle and wave representations was quite helpful.
- ceejayoz 4y agoThat's entirely normal. https://www.nature.com/articles/508186a https://www.nature.com/articles/508186a > Before 1940, Nobels were awarded more than 20 years after the original discovery for only about 11% of physics, 15% of chemistry and 24% of physiology or medicine prizes, respectively. Since 1985, however, such lengthy delays have featured in 60%, 52% and 45% of these awards, respectively.
- throwawaymaths 4y agoIt's very cool but not that transformative. I don't know of any major biological discovery that depended on it. Honestly imo the coolest click chemistry application was as a two-component bonding glue for copper pieces
- coolspot 4y agoCan it simplify DIY drug/explosive production?
- chrisbrandow 4y agoI guess it depends on your definition of DIY. It's not new, so if someone didn't already know about it, then they are probably unlikely to be in a position to take advantage of it, because it is already how a lot of synthesis in this field is done.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]