Title:    DEVELOPMENT OF SUSTAINABLE METHODS. SYNTHESIS OF BIOLOGICALLY ACTIVE COMPOUNDS

Time:    2026-05-15 10:00

Lecturer:  Prof. Janine Cossy

ESPCI Paris (Ecole Supérieure de Physique et Chimie Industrielles de la Ville de Paris), Paris (France)

Venue:    Room 202, Lu-Jiaxi Building

Abstract：

The main challenge in the synthesis of interesting biologically active molecules is the design of concise strategies and the use of efficient and chemoselective methods.

We will show that the development of methods using cheap transition metal catalysts such as cobalt, nickel and copper, can solve the synthetic problems encountered during the synthesis of complex bioactive molecules. An alternative to transition metals appears to be thermal reactions that can produce complex molecules from simple starting materials in a very chemo- regio- and stereoselective way.

Bio of the Lecturer：

Janine Cossy did her undergraduate and graduate studies at the University Champagne- Ardenne in Reims (France), working on photochemistry under the supervision of Prof. J.- P.  Pète. After a postdoctoral stay with Prof. B. M. Trost at the  University of Wisconsin (USA),  she  came  back  to  Reims  as  CNRS  Associate  Researcher.  In  1990,  she  was appointed  Professor  of   Organic  Chemistry  at  the   ESPCI   in  Paris.  Janine  Cossy’s research  interests  focus  on  the  synthesis  of  natural  products  and  biologically  active molecules   (mainly   with   antitumoral   and   anti-inflammatory   properties)   and   on   the development    of    synthetic    methods    (enantioselective    reactions,    rearrangements, organometallics,   biocatalysis,   …   )   She   is   also   interested   in   the   vectorisation   of antitumoral compounds toward the tumor in order to decrease their secondary effects.

Her research efforts have resulted in more than 575 publications and 19 patents. Among the awards, she received: the CNRS Silver Medal (France, 1996), the UK Royal Society Rosalyn Franklin International Lecturership awarded to internationally recognized women scientists  (UK,  2005);  the  IUPAC  2019  Distinguished  Women   in  Chemistry  or   Chemical Engineering (2019), the Lavoisier Medal from the French Chemical Society (2024). She  is  a member of Academia Europeae  (2012),   a  member  of  the  French  Academy  of  sciences (2017) a  member of the  National Academy of  Pharmacy (2022) and a  member of the European  Academy of  sciences  (2026) .  In  addition,  she  was  nominated  Chevalier  de l’Ordre  National du  Mérite in  1997 and promoted to Officier in 2018.  In 2013, she was nominated Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur and promoted to Officier in 2023. She was Organic  Letters  Associate   Editor  for   14  years  and  since   2023  she   is  Tetrahedron Associate Editor, and Molecular Chemistry, Associate Editor since 2025.

She is the co-funder of two companies: CDP-Innovation and Acanthe Biotech.