Meaghan O’Malley ’06 (right) majored in chemistry and will pursue an M.D./Ph.D. in the Medical Scientist Training Program at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in Baltimore.
“The Total Synthesis of Pterocellin A”
T. Ross Kelly, professor, Margaret and Thomas Vanderslice Chair, chemistry department
“Meaghan’s project was to achieve the first synthesis of a very scarce organic chemical produced by a marine species found in New Zealand. Pterocellin A exhibits anticancer activity in vitro. The synthesis served to verify that the molecular structure assigned by the New Zealand scientists is correct and has the potential to make available larger quantities of pterocellin A and related compounds for study as possible anticancer agents. The results of the project have been published in Organic Letters, one of the top organic chemistry journals in the world, with Meaghan as first author.”