Several new synthetic chemistry protocols from the laboratory of Assistant Professor of Chemistry Max Majireck have been published in video form in the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE). One student and six alumni co-authors contributed to this project over the course of their summer research and as part of their senior projects between 2014 and 2017. They include Giovanny Dominguez 18’, John Bennett ’16, Jonathan Shapiro '17, Tina Choinski '15, Yingbin Mei '16, and Sky Aulita '15. Dominguez appears with Majireck in the video.
Earlier this year, the Majireck lab published a set of new chemical reaction for the production of biologically active molecules known as phenethylamines and phthalans. Such compounds are prevalent among neurologically active pharmaceuticals, natural products, and small-molecule probes (a drug-like compound used to study mechanisms of healthy and/or disease biology). The new video article expands on critical experimental steps required to successfully execute these procedures in the laboratory.
Typically, published chemistry procedures are described entirely in written form, similar to a recipe in a cookbook. However, procedures that are more sophisticated can be difficult to reproduce since certain steps are more challenging to describe using only text. To address these issues, the Majireck lab worked with JoVE’s video production team to create instructional videos to illustrate key steps within their experiments, such as how to work with unstable chemical intermediates and hazardous compounds.
A text manuscript that discusses experimental procedures and data in detail also accompanies the video article. This document also includes examples of failed experiments and “bad data”, something not typically done in conventional print journals. The Majireck lab anticipates that inclusion of this information will help researchers using these procedures to evaluate the quality of their data and more accurately interpret the results.
