The Department of Chemistry is organising a Guest Lecture on the topic “O-Alkynyl-Nitriles: A New Building Block for Construction of Small Organic Molecules of Pharmaceutical Interest“ on February 05, 2026. The lecture will be delivered by Prof. Akhilesh K Verma, FNA, FRSC, Senior Fellow, Institution of Eminence (IoE), Senior Professor (Organic Chemistry), Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi.
Abstract
The simplicity, efficiency, and generality of reactions using alkynes have led to its applications in the synthesis of a wide variety of small organic molecules and natural products. Developing synthetic strategies for the direct synthesis of amino-substituted small molecules in terms of selectivity, operational simplicity, functional group tolerance, and
environmental sustainability is in constant demand as the majority of drugs; drug-like compounds contain hetero atoms at their core. In continuation of our interest in the synthesis of small organic molecules using alkynes and super-base chemistry, we have successfully engineered the synthesis of a variety of biologically important scaffolds using ortho-alkynyl/alkenyl aryl nitriles. In this presentation, I would like to discuss some recent results in this chemistry.