Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

This proposal is for critical equipment needed in a synthetic organic chemistry laboratory. Sulfur is present in a vast array of biologically and pharmacologically important molecules, including antibiotics, anti-tumor, anti-ulcerative, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, anti-asthma, anti-viral, anti-psychotic, cardiotonic, anti-allergic and anti-migraine agents, as well as treatments for enlargement of the prostate gland and male erectile dysfunction. Despite the presence of sulfur in all of these noteworthy clinical compounds, methods for installation of sulfur into molecules are far less developed than techniques for installing oxygen or nitrogen. The goal of our research is to develop general, broad scope methods for the construction of sulfur-containing molecules. In order to carry out this work we require two pieces of equipment: a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC/MS) and a high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC). The long term success of this research would heavily impact the worlds of medicinal chemistry and drug discovery, leading to new, cheaper and more effective medicines.