The Division of Organic Chemistry in a nutshell
Since the establishment of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Crete, the Organic Chemistry Division has proven itself to be a dynamic team whose members have pursued a broad range of exciting research interests at the cutting edge of many key fields.
Organic chemistry is a very important science. Myriad other disciplines, from material sciences and nanotechnology to pharmaceutics, rely heavily on organic chemistry. It is central to their progress, for without knowledge of things like the transformations possible for a molecule, reaction mechanisms, and biological chemistry they would all stall. Perhaps paramount, a thorough comprehension of organic chemistry is a pre-requisite to understanding "life". We need organic chemistry to help us deconvolute the biochemistry of plants and all living organisms, the behavior of macromolecules (such as proteins and DNA), as well as, the workings of planets and matter.
The Organic Chemistry Division at the University of Crete covers the extraordinary breadth and depth of organic chemistry well through their diverse research interests. There are projects focusing on the isolation and/or synthesis of bioactive natural products running alongside research aimed at developing new methodologies to use in synthesis generally. The power of nature's catalysts, enzymes, for conducting asymmetric transformations is probed by others, as is the use of silicon-based zeolites to catalyse difficult synthetic transformations. There is significant expertise in photochemistry within the division. Photochemistry is being successfully applied in both reactions aimed at functionalizing various organic substrates and in reaction cascades directed at the synthesis of bioactive natural products. New materials, such as novel buckminsterfullerene adducts and metallo-polymer ligands, are also being investigated. Furthermore, the groups that make up the division all boast impressive international collaborations, giving an added dimension to their research.
From this brief summary, we hope you can see that the Organic Chemistry Division at the University of Crete is an exciting place to be whether the purpose is study, research, or a visit.
ESOC 2011
We are happy to announce we will be organizing the 17th European Symposium on Organic Chemistry (ESOC 2011). It will be held at Hersonissos, in Crete, Greece, 10th to 15th of July, 2011.