D-CHAB News

Julia Reisenbauer  has been honored with the Prix Schläfli Chemistry for her dissertation on "skeletal editing," which she completed at the D-CHAB  of ETH Zurich (Morandi Group). Her work involves the targeted rebuilding of molecules so they can perform specific functions. 

A recent publication in “Matrix Biology”, which resulted from a collaboration between D-​CHAB (Wennemers group) and D-​BIOL (Werner group) within the frame of the SKINTEGRITY.CH project, demonstrates that an innovative chemical sensor offers visualization of collagen remodeling during tissue repair.

Dr. Nathalie M. Grob, currently Postdoctoral Researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has been appointed as Assistant Professor of Peptide-based Drug Discovery. Nathalie M. Grob’s research involves developing efficient methods of discovering new, peptide-based medications. Her teaching and research have a particular focus on pathologies that principally affect women and have been little studied to date. She was awarded an SNSF Starting Grant for her work.

To celebrate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science in February, D-CHAB, in partnership with EducETH and WiNS, invited interested schoolgirls to look behind the scenes of the department on February 14, 2024. Here is a review of an afternoon full of bright, colorful, sustainable, and applied chemistry, from nanocrystals to artificial hearts.

Professor Helma Wennemers has been teaching at D-CHAB for twelve years with unwavering enthusiasm – be it specialized lectures or introductory lectures in organic chemistry. For her performance, the ETH Zurich Student Association (VSETH) has honored her with the Golden Owl 2023. In this interview, she speaks about her experiences and role models and reveals the value of traditional teaching methods.

As natural catalysts, enzymes are highly efficient at speeding up complex chemical reactions. Victor Mougel and his team aim to mimic this ability. They are the first to synthesize a complete series of iron-sulfur cubane redox clusters with all oxidation states, revealing how the clusters’ environment affects redox potential and reactivity. They also proved the clusters' effectiveness in developing efficient CO₂ reduction catalysts. Mougel receives the Ruzicka Prize 2023 on Nov. 23.

The Excellence Scholarship & Opportunity Program (ESOP) of ETH Zurich promotes outstanding students every year. They are among the best and receive support from the donors of ETH Foundation for their Master's studies so that they can fully concentrate on education and research. In the D-​CHAB this year, five students received the scholarship. Get to know Magdalena Lederbauer, Valerie Pascetta, Ramon Hügli, Jasmin Frei und Lisa Sherman.

The Prelog Lecture is organized annually by the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry. On this occasion, the Prelog Medal is awarded for innovative contributions to stereochemistry in its broadest sense. This year, Prof. Melanie Sanford (University of Michigan), is giving the Prelog Lecture on “New Reactions for Carbon-​Fluorine Bond-​Formation" on Nov. 13, 2023, 4 pm. HCI J7 (ETH Hönggerberg). Learn more about Prof. Melanie Sanford and her research. 

Dr. Tomas Fiala, postdoc at the LOC, is one of the 8 researchers who received the prestigious Branco Weiss Fellowship in 2023, awarded by ETH Zurich to outstanding postdocs. His research aims to uncover how protein post-translational modifications direct the immune response in the brain, affecting brain homeostasis and the development of neurodegenerative disorders. The followship allows him to pursue his research for up to five years at an institute of his choice anywhere in the world.

Naresh Kumar, Senior Scientist in the Zenobi Group (LOC), is awarded the 2023 Masao Horiba Award for his contributions to the advancement of nanoscale chemical analysis in novel semiconductor materials using optical nanospectroscopy. Established in 2003, the Masao Horiba Award promotes excellence in analytical and measurement technologies research among scientists and engineers at universities and public research institutes worldwide. Find more details about the awardee in this article.  

The International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) has ended after an exciting event. Talented chemists from 89 countries showcased their skills and became acquainted not only with Switzerland but also with ETH Zurich and the D-CHAB. A review with many pictures.

Helma Wennemers, Professor at the Institute of Organic Chemistry at the D-CHAB, is the moderator of the International Chemistry Olympiad opening ceremony, taking place today. In this short video interview, Professor Wennemers talks about her fascination for collagen, the importance of serendipity, chemistry as a subject for men and women, and she explains why chemistry in particular has the ability to bring people together, no matter what country they come from.

In deepest grief, the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry announces that our friend and colleague, Prof. em. Albert Eschenmoser passed away peacefully, at the age of 97, on July 14, 2023.

Have you ever wondered what lies under your skin? How can you examine thousands of cells? What does a catalyst look like, and can aerosols be made visible? “The Art of Chemistry” exhibition – visitable at ETH’s Hönggerberg campus (HCI / H-floor) and online, curated by Julia Ecker and Oliver Renn (PR D-CHAB) – approaches science in a different way. 13 large pictures provide insights into the D-CHAB’s research and illustrate that chemistry is not only exciting, but beautiful – even truly artistic.

Our new video offers a journey through the department, showcasing the D-CHAB, its members, and chemistry itself. Putting all the exciting things that happen daily at D-CHAB into such a short video was challenging though. Julia Ecker (PR D-CHAB, Director of the video) reveals some insights about the making of this film and presents the final video here. Check it out, share & enjoy!

This year's Eschenmoser Lecture on May 8 will be given by Prof. em. Bernhard Kräutler from the University of Innsbruck (Austria). In his talk he will explore "the Chemistry of Vitamin B12 Biology". Kräutler has devoted his research to the chemistry of tetrapyrroles (vitamin B12 plus derivatives), chlorophyll and fullerenes. He is considered a leading expert on the reaction mechanisms of B12-dependent enzymes in radical and polar reactions. Kräutler has received numerous awards.

Prof. Renato Zenobi is the recipient of the 2023 ACS Division of Analytical Chemistry Award in Spectrochemical Analysis. The award is given to researchers who are advancing the fields of spectrochemical analysis and optical spectrometry. The award is handed over at the Fall ACS (American Chemical Society) Meeting in San Francisco.

Recently, the European Commission launched their transition pathway for the European chemical industry. This document supports the transformation of the industry until 2050, which is a big need since there are huge challenges ahead. How can we drive the transition forward and why is the chemical industry an interesting career path for young people? Find out watching the discussion of Alena Budinská, SSCI fellow and PhD student at ETH (Wennemers Group), and Dr. Martin Brudermüller from BASF.

Women have often had a hard time in the natural sciences, but times are changing. Associations like the Society for Women in Natural Sciences at D-CHAB and D-BIOL are contributing significantly to this change. Their recipe for success is to include all genders, raise awareness, strengthen networks, and have fun doing it. On today's International Day of Women and Girls in Science, Seraphine Zhang and Valentina Gasser talk about personal experiences, upcoming challenges, and big plans for WiNS.

The Vincent du Vigneaud Awards by the American Peptide Society recognize outstanding achievement in peptide research at mid-career. The du Vigneaud Awards are sponsored by Bachem, and are awarded to two deserving recipients at the biennial American Peptide Symposia. Professor Helma Wennemers, from the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, receives the award in 2023, together with Marcey Waters from the University of North Carlina.

Plastics or artificial polymers have become an indispensable part of our everyday lives, and yet they cause big problems today. Athina Anastasaki and her team have discovered how polymer construction can be precisely controlled and how they can be recycled efficiently - findings that are also important for industry. For this, Athina Anastasaki (D-MATL) will receive the Ruzicka Prize 2022 on December 19. Here she provides insights into the exciting field of polymer chemistry. 

Every year, the Excellence Scholarship & Opportunity Program (ESOP) at ETH Zurich supports outstanding students who are among the best in their year. They receive financial support for their Master's studies so that they can concentrate fully on education and research. In 2022, four students in D-CHAB managed to convince the commission: Sally Liu, Vincent Wirth, Anna Weinfurter, and Gian-Luca Lötscher. Get to know them in this article.

The Prelog Lecture is organized annually by the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry. On this occasion, the Prelog Medal is awarded for innovative contributions to stereochemistry in its broadest sense. This year, Prof. Dr. Hiro Suga (University of Tokyo), is giving the Prelog Lecture on “The RaPID system that revolutionizes the discovery of de novo peptides & proteins for therapeutics” on Nov. 21, 2022, 4 pm. HCI J7 (ETH Hönggerberg). Learn more about Prof. Hiro Suga and his research. 

The Swiss Academy of Sciences awards the Prix Schläfli Prizes every year for the best dissertation in chemistry, biology, physics and geosciences. Due to the Corona pandemic, no award ceremony has yet taken place for the 2020 and 2021 prize winners. Since two of the last three laureates in chemistry are from ETH Zurich, SCNAT together with ETH Zurich organized a mini-symposium for the laureates of 2020, 2021 and 2022.

Scientists in the group of Bill Morandi (LOC) have found a facile method that allows a commonly used building block to be directly converted into other types of important compounds. This expands the possibilities of chemical synthesis and facilitates the search for new pharmaceutically active ingredients.

In many chemical laboratories, routine chemical syntheses are performed on a daily basis, which takes up a lot of time. ETH spin-​off Synple Chem wants to simplify this with a device that is almost as easy to use as a capsule coffee machine.

Nobel laureate Vladimir Prelog investigated the characteristics of organic molecules, e.g. spirobifluorenes. Now two of his old samples may serve as a reference for new spirofluorene research, but will this work? Prof. Jay Siegel & Dr. Tomas Fiala (LOC) will find out in this video.

Together with 36 students, the team of the 6th semester OC IV course – taught by Professor Chen and Dr. Tsybizova – recently traveled to Basel to attend the lecture of Nobel Laureate Professor Roald Hoffman, whose work is a central component of the course. The trip was a unique opportunity for the students to get to know him. It was supported by the Camile and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, the organizers of the Roald Hoffmann’s Dreyfus Lectureship. Learn more in this student report.

The Swiss National Science Foundation has awarded Advanced Grants to make up for the loss of European support. Researchers at ETH Zurich got 6 of the 24 grants. One of them went to Helma Wennemers (LOC). Her group develops special molecules to visualize the cross-​linking of collagen fibres using imaging techniques. They hope to better understand the cross-​linking processes and to provide new molecular tools for the diagnosis and therapy of the corresponding diseases.

Among the newly elected members of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina is Erick Carreira, Professor of Organic Chemistry at the LOC. The Leopoldina is the oldest continuously existing academy of sciences in the world. Its mission is to provide science-based advice to policymakers and the public and to represent German science in international bodies in which mainly national academies are active.

The Department of Mathematics, the Kangaroo Switzerland Association, ETH Zurich and the local department of 500 Women Scientists Zurich want to inspire girls for science and honor their achievements with the event "Kangaroo goes Science". The event takes place today, on June 9, 2022. D-CHAB is also present with a lab tour (Zenobi Group) and provided videos about some of our labs. 

Sometimes we must create something artificial to understand nature. Kathrin Lang, new professor of Chemical Biology at the LOC, develops special tools to do so, opening molecular doors that not only allow insights into existing complex biological systems, but also show what is possible beyond them.

The Chemistry Travel Award of SCNAT Chemistry and Swiss Chemical Society honors excellent doctoral students and supports their participation in an international conference. This year, 11 talented PhDs from D-CHAB are among the winners. 

The Swiss Chemical Society is launching an event series starting on May 13, 2022. The events – which take place once or twice a year at swiss universities – enable students and PhDs to get an insight into process chemistry. They offer a good chance to learn more about the challenges in process chemistry, the differences between laboratory work and chemical production, and to get in touch with process chemists from industry in order to expand its own network. 

Bill Morandi (LOC) is appointed as Full Professor of Synthetic Organic Chemistry. His work focuses on developing new concepts in catalysis for transforming feedstocks into polymers and other building blocks for applications in medicine & materials science. Karl-​Heinz Altmann (IPW), Full Professor of Pharmaceutical Biology since 2013, will retire at the end of July 2022. His research has been devoted to the synthesis of biologically active natural products and to medicinal chemistry.

The natural sciences have historically always been a man's field. In some respects, this is still the case – at least at the executive level. But what can we learn from the past and what is the recipe for success for today's female scientists? Listen to our talks: #1 with Enriqueta Vallejo-Yagüe (founder Wall of Scientists) and #2 with the professors Helma Wennemers (D-CHAB), Gabriele Werner-Felmayer (Medical University Innsbruck) and Ulrike Tappeiner (President, University Bolzano). 

Science is a team effort, also at the D-CHAB at ETH Zurich. Since 2009, there have been anually more than 1800 collaborations with partners from around 48 countries, as illustrated by the new interactive map on the D-CHAB website. But what do collaborations mean for research and research success? A look at what holds the research world together.

Dr. Martin Badertscher, a long-time scientific assistant at LOC, passed away on October 15, 2021, only a few months into his well-deserved retirement, after a short but ferocious illness. Martin was a lovely, dedicated, quiet person, and ETH was his world. Martin is survived by his brother and sister who said goodbye to him in a closed ceremony in St.Gallen.

Dr. Renana Gershoni Poranne has put a lot of energy into her course – commonly known as OC4 – and successfully built "bridges": professional ones between quantum chemistry and organic chemistry, and interpersonal ones with her students. The energy always came back to her from the audience, along with beautiful moments. For her commitment, she now received the Golden Owl. A conversation about a special farewell gift, "Kugelbahnen" and the recipe for good teaching

ETH startup Procavea won the Swiss Technology Award 2021 in the category  'Invention'. Their cube-​like protein cage acts as a delivery system to carry drug molecules directly into the cells where they have their effect. It has the potential to make existing drugs more effective and to reduce their side effects. This year, the invention has already been honored with the Spark Award of ETH Zurich. 

On September 18th, the LOC enjoyed a long-sought get together at the LOC Olympics.  A big thank you to the LOC Olympics Committee and everyone who participated!

Dr. Tom Edwardson (LOC) modified a tiny artificial protein structure so it could be used as a vehicle (cage) for RNA molecules and other active substances. He and his colleagues are now planning to create a spin-​off to develop the cages further and get them ready to go to market.

With heartfelt sadness, the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry announces that our friend and colleague Prof. em. Jack Dunitz passed away peacefully on September 12, 2021 at the age of 98 after a short illness.

A team of researchers, led by professor Helma Wennemers (LOC), has developed a molecule that fluoresces where new tissue is forming in the body. Alongside helping to detect tumours, the molecule could play a significant role in research of wound healing disorders. 

Using chemical synthesis, Bright Peak Therapeutics can produce proteins that have never before existed. This holds great potential for cancer immunotherapy. The Basel-​based spin-​off has its beginnings at ETH Zurich: it was foundet by Jeffrey Bode (LOC) and Vijaya R. Pattabiraman. 

Researchers led by Donald Hilvert, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences at ETH Zurich, have recreated a key step in the evolutionary history of viruses in a laboratory experiment. They succeeded in remodeling a natural protein to create capsids capable of storing genetic material.

The European Patent Office (EPO) announced the 15 finalists for the European Inventor Award 2021. The prize recognizes outstanding inventors and their contribution to technology, society, and economy. This year, Wendelin Stark & Robert Grass are nominated in the category "research" for their new method of storing data in DNA (see the video). In parallel, the public can vote for them to win the Popular Prize. The voting is open and will close during the award ceremony on June 17.

Fertilizers, medicines and fuels have one thing in common: they are usually produced using fossil feedstocks and corresponding catalysts (substances that drive chemical reactions). To achieve carbon neutrality, we need new technologies and catalysts for renewable feedstocks. As the first center of its kind in the world, the ETH Zurich-associated NCCR Catalysis aims to revolutionize the production of chemicals and materials by creating, via interdisciplinary collaboration, innovative solutions.

The current Science City program is all about preventing illnesses, curing and staying healthy with the medicine of tomorrow. Also at D-CHAB, there is a lot of research in this regard, as Renato Zenobi, Stefanie Krämer and Barbara Frei Haller will show at Science City. In this article, they provide insights into their work and take a look at the near future of medicine.

Chlorine and bromine in their molecular form are notoriously toxic and corrosive chemicals. Researchers, led by Prof. Bill Morandi at ETH Zurich, and the University of Mainz developed a new method to replace molecular chlorine and bromine in chemical synthesis with less toxic molecules. In order to use these alternative compounds, they developed a special shuttle system. The technology helps to make chemical processes safer and more sustainable and to remediate contaminated soils.

New members at the D-CHAB: Professor Kathrin Lang, currently Associate Professor at the Technical University of Munich, is appointed as Full Professor of Chemical Biology. Her research, for which she recently received an ERC Consolidator Grant, is in the interdisciplinary area of chemical biology. Dr. Patrick Steinegger, currently Group Leader at the PSI, is appointed as Tenure Track Assistant Professor of Radiochemistry. He investigates the chemical properties of the transactinides.

The Excellence Scholarship & Opportunity Program (ESOP) of ETH Zurich promotes outstanding students every year. They are among the best and are awarded up to CHF 48,000 for their Master’s degree program at ETH Zurich, allowing them to concentrate fully on education and research. This year, the D-CHAB has three scholarship holders: Juliane Habiger, Linus Boll and Sarah Berger convinced successfully the jury with their project ideas.

Lignin is one of the most common organic compounds in the world, with an annual production of 20 billion tons. What if this complex substance could be easily converted into sustainable fuel? In 2017, Patrick Hemberger, scientist at the synchrotron of the Paul Scherrer Institute in Villigen, was the first to find an efficient way to investigate this process. For his work on reactive intermediates in heterogeneous catalysis, he is awarded the 2020 Ruzicka-Prize. Here, he introduces himself.

The ETH Board recently informed about the professors, that will leave ETH in the next months. Among them are two professors of the D-CHAB: Professor Donald Hilvert (*1956), Full Professor of Organic Chemistry, who joined ETH as a full professor in 1997, and Professor Antonio Togni (*1956), Full Professor of Organometallics, who was promoted full professor at ETH Zurich in 1999 and has served as Vice-​Rector for Doctoral Studies. Both professors will retire at the end of January 2021.

For 27 years, Wolfram Uhlig and his assistants have delighted their audience with barking "Chemical Dogs", flash fires of burning oil, and meter-high fountains of beer foam. Uhlig combined entertaining experiments with theoretical background in his shows. Thus, his chemistry lectures were a highlight among the students. Now, he retires and chats about exciting years, many “ETH unterwegs” tours through Switzerland, technical faux pas in TV studios, and the value of good science communication.

The Laboratory of Organic Chemistry announces with great sadness that our friend and colleague Prof. François Diederich passed away on September 23, 2020 after a battle with cancer.  He was held in highest esteem across all areas of chemistry, both in academia and in industry.

The next editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS) will be Professor Erick Carreira from the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry at ETH Zurich. Erick Carreira will formally assume the JACS editorship at the beginning of January 2021 from Professor Peter Stang, who has led the journal since 2002. 

The American Chemical Society recently announced the ACS 2021 National Award winners: Helma Wennemers (LOC) receives the Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award for her work in asymmetric catalysis, chemical biology and supramolecular chemistry. Peter Chen (LOC) wins the James Flack Norris Award in Physical Organic Chemistry for his research contribution in the field of reaction mechanisms and reactive intermediates.

Versant Ventures recently launched Bright Peak Therapeutics, a biotech company developing a platform to synthesize and optimize the structure and function of  next-generation engineered cytokines for immuno-oncology indications. The chemical know-how stems from the lab of co-founder Jeffery Bode (LOC) and was exclusively licensed to the company. Bode optimized the technology over several years and is looking forward “to exploring the breadth of the approach with the team at Bright Peak.”

Five technologies were nominated for the Spark Award 2020, including two from the D-CHAB / LOC: Renato Zenobi and Amit Kumar Sachan with their technology in the field of atomic force microscopes and Helma Wennemers and Matthew Aronoff with their technology in the field of tumor imaging. The jury chose Wennemers and Aronoff: Their method makes tumors visible so that surgeons can cut only as much as necessary. Congratulations!

Among this year's 45 finalists for the Reaxys PhD Prize 2020 are three doctoral students from ETH Zurich: Robert Pollice (Chen Group), Peng Yu (Morandi Group) and Tobias Schnitzer (Wennemers Group). The three completed their studies in the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry at D-CHAB. Besides a lifetime membership in the Reaxys Prize Club, the finalists are invited to the virtual Reaxys PhD Prize Symposium 2020 in September/October, where the winners will be announced. Read more about the finalists.

In this years (virtual) series "Meet the Talent@home", the ETH Foundation also presents Dominic Egger. The Excellence Scholar is studying chemistry for a Master's degree at ETH Zurich and is currently on exchange at the University of Minneapolis. In the portrait he talks about his current research project (titanium-based catalysts), about newly discovered aspects of chemistry during corona times and explains what the scholarship means to him. To the video

Gunnar Jeschke is the head of the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences at ETH Zürich. During the emergency operations, the chemistry building had to be shut down and courses were transferred online. In the following video he talks about his experience during the emergency operations. To the video

With heartfelt sadness, the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry announces that our colleague and friend Prof. em. Duilio Arigoni passed away on June 10, 2020 at the age of 91.

When dancing or driving a car, people usually certified him a lack of technical talent. But in the laboratory Richard R. Ernst has always been one step ahead of the technology of his time. The Nobel Laureate for chemistry has revolutionized diagnostics in medicine with his groundbreaking research on nuclear magnetic resonance, even though it was a rocky road. Now, he published his autobiography in order to inspire others.

In his dissertation at the LOC, Robert Pollice investigated "what holds the world together" as he says. He focused on the study of the fundamental interactions in perfluoroalkanes (e.g. Teflon) and the London forces therein – first steps towards reducing environmental pollution and health risks caused by these materials. For his work, Robert Pollice has been awarded the Prix Schläfli for chemistry 2020. He received his PhD in the group of Professor Peter Chen.

With the synthesis of photocaged peptides, Jeffrey Bode and his group contribute to a new method that uses light to draw patterns of molecules to guide living cells. The approach allows for a closer look at the development of multicellular organisms – and in the future may even play a part in novel therapies.

Becoming member of the National Academy of Science is one of the greatest honors for scientists. Now Erick M. Carreira, Professor at the LOC, has also received this membership due to his outstanding research achievements in the field of asymmetric synthesis of biologically active, stereochemically complex natural products.

Professors at D-CHAB are busy with therapy research: Roland Riek (LPC), Dario Neri (IPW) and Jeffrey Bode (LOC) are investigating with their teams and cooperation partners possibilities for blocking the viral invasion of the host cell. In addition, Bode supports Martin Fusseneggers (D-BSSE) approach to attack the viral protease. Gisbert Schneider (IPW) focuses on blocking the viral RNA polymerase. Known and new inhibitory substances for that are tested right now.   

An international consortium of researchers shall create a new type of chemical reactor for molecular synthesis that is inspired by living cells. The project is part of the Horizon 2020 Programme and is funded by a FET Open Grant, which supports research on novel ideas for future technologies. Prof. Helma Wennemers and her team are part of the FET Open Grant and join the project as one of the five participating research groups.

Helma Wennemers, Professor at the LOC, has won this year's Netherlands Scholar Award for Supramolecular Chemistry. She got the award for her work on the rational design and development of peptide-based asymmetric catalysts and bioinspired molecular scaffolds for applications in supramolecular and biological chemistry. 

This year Renana Gershoni-​Poranne was awarded a Branco Weiss Fellowship. The ETH chemist will use the research grant to design innovative compounds that can be used in future generations of electronic devices.

This year's Golden Owl award goes to Prof. Renato Zenobi. Every year the students honor lecturers of each department for their excellent teaching abilities. The prize is awarded by VSETH on ETH Day.

Four PhD students of the D-CHAB won Best Oral Presentation Awards 2019 at the fall meeting of the Swiss Chemical Society (SCS). Jerome Kaeslin won the award in in Analytical Sciences, Christopher Gordon in Catalysis Sciences & Engineering, Jordan Meyet in Inorganic Chemistry, and Nicole Hauser in Organic Chemistry.

On November 8, 2019, Prof. Erick Carreira held the 6th Barluenga Lecture entitled "Synthesis as an Enabling Tool" at the University of Oviedo in Spain. He was awarded the Barluenga Medal 2019. 

On October 21 and 22, 2019, Prof. Erick Carreira held the Carl Shipp Marvel Lectures in Organic Chemistry at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign. The annual lectureship hosts internationally recognized senior researchers in the field of organic chemistry.

For a joint research project, Jeffrey Bode and his colleagues at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) in Basel and the University of Bristol received an ERC Synergy Grant. The interdisciplinary team were awarded this highly competitive funding to investigate the molecular mechanisms of viral infection for broad-spectrum anti-viral therapy.

Dr. Jovana Milić, former PhD student in the group of Prof. Diederich, is among the CAS Future Leaders 2019. The CAS Future Leader program aims to expand the professional networks of up-and-coming PhD students and postdoctoral researchers from around the world who are shaping the future of scientific information and innovation.

Dr. Renana Poranne was selected as Branco Weiss Fellow 2019. The fellowship will enable her to work on inverse design of new polycyclic aromatic frameworks for use within organic electronics by applying deep generative models.

Prof. Hilvert receives the Ronald Breslow Award 2020 by the American Chemical Society. The award recognizes outstanding contributions to the field of biomimetic chemistry.

Yong Ho Lee is among the finalists for the Reaxys PhD Prize 2019. For his recent publication on metathesis-active ligands he was selected for the final round of 45 contestants. Yong Ho Lee is currently a PhD student in the group of Prof. Bill Morandi.

Four of the professors newly appointed by the ETH Board on May 23, 2019, are members of the D-CHAB.

Researchers at ETH Zurich, including the group of Renato Zenobi, have developed a new 3D printing technique allowing the production of micrometer-sized objects made of several metals, with a spatial resolution of 250 nanometers.

In its latest awarding process for the prestigious ERC Advanced Grants, the European Research Council (ERC) has selected five ambitious projects being conducted by ETH Zurich researchers. Projects of Prof. Carreira (LOC) and Prof. Chen (LOC) are each supported with an ERC Advanced Grant.

Prof. Seebach receives the Arthur C. Cope Award at the ACS Spring 2019 National Meeting in Orlando, Florida. He is awarded for fundamental and practical contributions to chemistry, including theory, innovative concepts, and methods for chemical synthesis, along with preparation and study of novel bioactive structures.

The Eschenmoser Lecture 2019 was held by the former PhD student of Albert Eschenmoser, Prof. Andreas Pfaltz. His excellent talk "Studies in Asymmetric Catalysis: From Corrin Chemistry to Chiral N,N- and P,N-Ligands" amazed the audience as well as his former mentor.

On 16 March 2019, the German Chemical Society (Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker, GDCh) bestowed Prof. Dr. François Diederich with their highest recognition, Honorary Membership.

On March 5, Prof. Bill Morandi will give his inaugural lecture entitled "New catalytic concepts for molecular design". The lecture takes place in the ETH Zurich Audi Max (main building, HG F 30) at 17:15

Researchers of the D-CHAB could demonstrate that platinum nanoparticles can be used to kill liver cancer cells with greater selectivity than existing cancer drugs.

Prof. Bill Morandi and his team established a simple iron-catalyzed reaction that leads to unprotected primary amines. Primary amines are present in many biologically active molecules and are very versatile building blocks in the synthesis of drugs and agrochemicals.

In collaboration with colleagues from ETH Zurich, researchers at the University of Bern have for the first time investigated a substance found in liverwort, which resembles THC. The psychoactive substance, which is consumed as a “legal high”, also exerts analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects, which might be superior to those of THC.

Prof. Chaitan Khosla held the Prelog Lecture 2018. In a very inspiring talk on "Assembly Line Polyketide Synthases: Discovery, Evolution, Mechanisms" he illustrated new tools for understanding and manipulating biosynthetic processes.

The Mukaiyama Award 2018 by the Society of Synthetic Organic Chemistry, Japan, goes to Prof. Bode. The purpose of the award is to recognize and encourage outstanding contributions to the field of synthetic organic chemistry.

On April 2, 2019, the American Chemical Society will honor Prof. Seebach with the Arthur C. Cope Award. This is is one of the most prestigiuos awards, given for outstanding achievements in the field of organic chemistry.

Dr. Xavier Garrabou Pi, ETH Pioneer Fellow in the group of Prof. Hilvert, developed a new generation of artificial enzymes that will help creating more potent and selective pharmaceuticals.

Prof. Bill Morandi started on July 1 as an Associate Professor at the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry. His research focuses on homogeneous catalysis and sustainable chemistry. The D-CHAB wishes Prof. Morandi a warm welcome and a very successful start!

Prof. Zenobi receives the Ioannes Marcus Marci Medal from the Czech-Slovak Spectroscopy Society for his pioneering work in tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.

Prof. Scott. E. Denmark held the Eschenmoser Lecture 2018. In an inspiring talk on the origin of homochirality in biomolecules he presented interesting insight on how nature's molecules could have evolved.

PhD students Roman Sarott and Michael Imhof, both in the group of Prof. Carreira and co-authors of the publication of photoswitchable THC derivatives, were interviewed by Radio SRF 4.