Ei-ichi Negishi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ei-ichi Negishi
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| 根岸英一 | |
Negishi in 2010
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| Born | July 14, 1935 |
| Died | June 6, 2021 (aged 85) Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
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| Nationality | Japanese |
| Citizenship | Japan |
| Alma mater | University of Tokyo University of Pennsylvania |
| Known for | Negishi coupling ZACA reaction |
| Spouse(s) | Sumire Suzuki (m. 1959; died 2018) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Sir Edward Frankland Prize Lectureship (2000) Nobel Prize in Chemistry (2010) Person of Cultural Merit (2010) Order of Culture (2010) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Chemistry |
| Institutions | Teijin Purdue University Syracuse University Hokkaido University |
| Thesis | Basic cleavage of arylsulfonamides, the synthesis of some bicyclic compounds derived from piperazine which contain bridgehead nitrogen atoms. (1963) |
| Doctoral advisor | Allan R. Day |
| Doctoral students | James M. Tour |
| Influences | Herbert Charles Brown |
Ei-ichi Negishi (根岸 英一, Negishi Eiichi, July 14, 1935 – June 6, 2021) was a Japanese chemist. He is famous for discovering the Negishi coupling. This is a special way to build new molecules. He spent most of his career at Purdue University in the United States. There, he was a top professor and led a research institute.
In 2010, he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He shared this award with two other scientists, Richard F. Heck and Akira Suzuki. They were honored for finding new ways to connect carbon atoms using a metal called palladium. This discovery helps make many important chemicals.
Contents
Ei-ichi Negishi's Early Life and Education
Ei-ichi Negishi was born in July 1935. His birthplace was Hsinking, which is now Changchun, China. His father worked for a railway company. Because of his father's job, his family moved several times. They lived in Harbin and later in Korea.
After World War II ended, his family moved to Japan in 1945. Ei-ichi was a very good student. He was so smart that he got into a special high school a year early. At 17, he was accepted into the University of Tokyo. He graduated from there in 1958.
After university, Negishi worked at a company called Teijin. He researched how to make plastics. Later, he won a Fulbright Scholarship. This allowed him to study in the United States. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1963.
Ei-ichi Negishi's Career and Discoveries
After getting his Ph.D., Negishi wanted to become a university researcher. In 1966, he joined Purdue University. He worked with Herbert C. Brown, who later also won a Nobel Prize. From 1968 to 1972, Negishi taught at Purdue.
In 1972, he became a professor at Syracuse University. This is where he started his important work on reactions using metals. These reactions help chemists build complex molecules. He returned to Purdue University in 1979 as a full professor.
What is Negishi Coupling?
Ei-ichi Negishi discovered the Negishi coupling. This is a chemical reaction that helps connect carbon atoms. It uses special organic compounds and a palladium or nickel catalyst. A catalyst is something that speeds up a chemical reaction without being used up itself. This reaction is very important for making new medicines and other useful chemicals.
Negishi did not get a patent for his discovery. He wanted everyone to be able to use his research easily. Scientists believe his method is used in about a quarter of all reactions in the pharmaceutical industry. This means it helps create many of the medicines we use today.
Negishi also found other ways to do these reactions. He showed that certain aluminum and zirconium compounds could also be used. He even developed something called the "Negishi reagent." This is a special chemical that helps make rings of atoms in molecules.
By the time he retired in 2019, Negishi had written over 400 scientific papers. He taught his students to be very careful and organized in their lab work. He believed in keeping detailed records of all experiments.
Awards and Honors for Ei-ichi Negishi
Ei-ichi Negishi received many awards and honors for his work.
- 1997 – Chemical Society of Japan Award
- 1998 – American Chemical Society Award for Organometallic Chemistry
- 2000 – Sir Edward Frankland Prize Lectureship
- 2010 – Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- 2010 – Order of Culture (a high honor in Japan)
- 2010 – Person of Cultural Merit (another high honor in Japan)
- 2011 – Fellow, American Academy of Arts & Sciences
- 2014 – Foreign Associate of the National Academy of Sciences
Ei-ichi Negishi's Personal Life
Negishi married Sumire Suzuki in 1959. They met in a choir at university. They had two daughters together. He loved playing the piano and conducting music. He even conducted an orchestra at a science conference in 2015.
Later Life
In March 2018, Negishi and his wife were reported missing. His wife, Sumire, was found deceased. The family later shared that she had been battling Parkinson's disease. Negishi was found confused and in shock. An autopsy later showed that Sumire died from hypothermia.
Ei-ichi Negishi passed away in Indianapolis, Indiana, on June 6, 2021. He was 85 years old.
Images for kids
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Negishi in 2010
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Nobel Prize Laureates 2010 at a press conference.
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From left: Suzuki, Negishi, and Heck (2010).
See also
- List of Japanese Nobel laureates
- List of Nobel laureates affiliated with the University of Tokyo
- List of Nobel laureates affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania
