[SCAN] Carbohydrate synthesis for solving biological problems

SCAN

Title: Carbohydrate synthesis for solving biological problems

Speaker: Rita Ventura

Affiliation: Bioorganic Chemistry Lab, ITQB NOVA

Abstract:

Multistep processes for the synthesis of isomerically pure compounds of biological interest are used by the pharmaceutical industry and academia for the formation of new molecules with improved therapeutic, pharmacological and physical properties and the acquisition of natural compounds which cannot be obtained in useful quantities using other resources. Chemical synthesis, enantioselective synthesis and carbohydrate synthesis will be briefly introduced, highlighting their importance for solving problems in a wide range of scientific areas.

Some projects ongoing in our lab, based on carbohydrate synthesis, will be presented, such as:

1. The design and synthesis of new chemical probes for the identification of specific glycosyltransferases from Trypanosoma brucei, as new drug targets for the treatment of African trypanosomiasis;
2. The structure elucidation and the synthesis of (poly)phenol metabolites;
3. The syntheses of 2-O-(indole-3-acetyl)-myo-inositol.