Morten P. Meldal facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Morten Meldal
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Meldal in 2023
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Morten Peter Meldal
16 January 1954 Denmark
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| Education | Technical University of Denmark (BS, MS, PhD) |
| Awards | Nobel Prize in Chemistry (2022) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Organic chemistry |
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| Thesis | Reactions of Unsaturated Sugars with Hydrogen Halides (1983) |
| Doctoral advisor | Klaus Bock |
Morten Peter Meldal (born January 16, 1954) is a Danish chemist. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He works as a chemistry professor at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.
Meldal is famous for helping to create the "CuAAC-click reaction." He developed this important chemical tool at the same time as, but separately from, Valery V. Fokin and K. Barry Sharpless. This reaction is a big part of what we call "click chemistry."
Contents
About Morten Meldal
Morten Meldal earned his first degrees and his PhD in chemical engineering. He studied at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU). His PhD work focused on making new kinds of sugars in the lab.
From 1983 to 1988, he worked as a researcher after getting his PhD. He worked at DTU, then at Cambridge University in England, and later at the University of Copenhagen. In 1996, he became a professor at DTU. Since 1998, he has led a research group at the Carlsberg Laboratory.
Developing New Chemistry Tools
Early in his career, Meldal created new ways to make peptides. Peptides are like small proteins. He invented a method called "multiple-column synthesis." This method helps scientists make many different chemicals at once. It is used to build large collections of chemical compounds.
He also first showed how to use a special reaction between two types of molecules: acetylenes and azides. This reaction is very useful. It helps connect peptides and proteins together. It is also used to make new types of polymers and materials. Meldal's team later showed that this reaction works well with most other chemical reactions. This means it can be used without messing up other parts of a molecule.
Modern Research
More recently, Meldal has worked on a new way to "tag" chemicals using light. He also focuses on combining organic chemistry and peptide chemistry. This work often involves using solid supports, which are like tiny beads, to make reactions easier.
He has also found new ways to create special chemical compounds called N-acyl iminium ions. His team makes many different versions of these compounds. Then, they test them to find substances that can affect G protein-coupled receptors. These receptors are important parts of cells that help them communicate.
Awards and Honors
Morten Meldal received the 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He shared this award with Carolyn R. Bertozzi and Karl Barry Sharpless. They won the prize "for the development of click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry."
See also
In Spanish: Morten Peter Meldal para niños
