The Twisting World of Chirality: A Molecular Perspective
A public talk by Dr. Yunjie Xu (PhD) in the Spinks Lecture Series
Date: Thursday, March 20
Time: 7 pm
Location: St. Thomas More College Auditorium, 1437 College Dr., Saskatoon
Free and open to the public | Wine and cheese event to follow
About this event
The Twisting World of Chirality: A Molecular Perspective
A talk for the general public by Dr. Yunjie Xu (PhD), professor, Faculty of Science – Chemistry, University of Alberta
In 1848, French chemist Louis Pasteur made a groundbreaking discovery when he separated crystals of tartaric acid into two distinct mirror-image forms, marking the birth of molecular chirality. Since then, researchers have embraced the challenge of distinguishing left- and right-handed molecules, as their unique chiral non-covalent interactions can lead to vastly different biological and pharmaceutical effects. How can we tell them apart? In this talk, I will discuss how modern spectroscopic techniques, combined with ongoing theoretical modelling efforts, enable us to probe chirality recognition, transfer, and amplification at the molecular level—advancing our fundamental understanding of chirality and exploring its broad applications, from drug development to materials design.
The J.W.T. Spinks Lecture Series is an annual series of lectures hosted by the University of Saskatchewan Department of Chemistry.
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