# Investigating the unification of supramolecular and organometallic catalysis for new reaction development

> **NIH NIH F32** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY · 2020 · $15,345

## Abstract

The development of organometallic catalysts that exhibit good reactivity while 
concurrently offering chemoselectivity between similar functional groups are often at odds with one 
another. These challenges culminate when preparing biologically important molecules or 
modifying existing scaffolds to investigate structure activity relationships as these 
high-value substrates often contain functional groups with cross reactivity. The ability to 
develop catalysts capable of performing precise modifications remains a highly sought after goal in 
academic and industrial research. Demonstration of these protocols represents a major triumph in 
catalyst design and synthesis which leads to the next generation of biologically relevant compounds 
with life-saving properties. This proposal outlines a strategy that combines organometallic 
 catalysis with supramolecular clusters to circumnavigate the inherent issues of cross 
reactivity and achieve chemoselective and ultimately enantioselective transformation on complex 
molecular scaffolds. Supramolecular clusters have a demonstrated ability to endow unique reactivity 
in organic and organometallic transformations through a dynamic microenvironment that 
benefits from numerous non-covalent interactions. Inspired by these successes, the research 
program outlined in this proposal offers two paths which build from promising initial 
results I have gathered. Ultimately, the investigation of enantioselective transformation 
will reveal the non-covalent interactions of a supramolecular cluster and organometallic 
catalysts, yielding a unique view of how dynamic microenvironments influence catalysis. The 
proposed research ultimately seeks to develop methods that will facilitate the preparation 
and modification of structurally complex medicinally relevant molecules in a novel way 
concomitantly expanding scientific knowledge.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10000770
- **Project number:** 5F32GM129933-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY
- **Principal Investigator:** Trandon Allen Bender
- **Activity code:** F32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $15,345
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-09-30 → 2020-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10000770

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10000770, Investigating the unification of supramolecular and organometallic catalysis for new reaction development (5F32GM129933-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10000770. Licensed CC0.

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