Federal Project Grant Award Summary

Loyola University of Chicago received a $484,636 Project Grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859) to conduct mechanism-based design research on iron-mediated carbonyl-olefin metathesis protocols. The award, effective June 1, 2026 through May 31, 2029, supports fundamental research aimed at understanding and optimizing catalytic systems for organic synthesis applications. The research initiative employs synthetic, spectroscopic, kinetic, and computational techniques to systematically investigate ligand effects on catalyst behavior and substrate interactions, with the ultimate objective of advancing carbonyl-olefin metathesis applications in the synthesis of medicinally valuable compounds.

The intellectual products generated through this award include detailed mechanistic insights into catalyst design principles, comprehensive characterization of substrate behavior in metathesis reactions, and the rational development of improved metathesis catalysts with enhanced selectivity and efficiency. This fundamental research contributes to the NIGMS mission of increasing understanding of biological processes and establishing scientific foundations for advances in disease diagnosis and treatment by providing novel synthetic methodologies applicable to pharmaceutical development and medicinal chemistry.