ACS PRF Funding Leads to Nobel Prize in Chemistry for Two 2010 Laureates

The 2010 Nobel Prize in chemistry was awarded to three scientists for their work on palladium catalyzed carbon-carbon cross-coupling (bonding) reactions. Dr. Akira Suzuki, a Professor of Chemistry at Hokkaido University in Japan; Dr. Ei-ichi Negishi, originally from Japan but he conducted his Nobel Prize work as a Professor of Chemistry at Purdue University; and Dr. Richard F. Heck, a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Delaware.

The latter two Nobel Laureates each had three ACS PRF research grants that were relevant to the research for which they were honored with the Nobel Prize. The PRF grant numbers, titles and grant amounts for the early research of Drs. Negishi and Heck are:

Dr. Ei-ichi Negishi

  • PRF # 10802-AC1 “Controlled Carbometallation. Its Application to the Selective Synthesis of Trisubstituted Olefins” awarded $45,000 in May 1978.
  • PRF# 13470-AC1 “1,1-Dimetallo Alkenes. Their Structures and Synthetic Applications” awarded $45,000 in February 1982.
  • PRF# 18710-AC1 “Exploration of New Carbon-Carbon Bond Formation Reactions Catalyzed or Promoted by Transition Metals” awarded $35,000 in June 1991.

Dr. Richard F. Heck

  • PRF# 11668-AC1 “Carbon-Carbon Bond Formation with Organocobalt Carbonyl Complexes” awarded $30,000 in May 1979.
  • PRF# 15447-AC1 “Reactions and Rearrangements of Trisubstituted Transition Metal Alkyls” awarded $35,000 in April 1987.
  • PRF# 18995-AC1 “Annulation of Aromatic Halides with Alkynes“ awarded $35,000 in July 1990.

This brings the number of Chemistry Nobel Prize winners to 25 laureates who have had one or more ACS PRF research grants. Twenty of these chemistry laureates received at least one ACS PRF research grant prior to winning the Nobel Prize.