Synthesis and Mechanism Professor Martin Banwell

We are developing new methods and strategies for the efficient synthesis of biologically-active natural products, particularly ones derived from Australian flora and fauna. We target compounds with interesting modes of action and molecular architectures.

The power of organic synthesis lies in its capacity to construct useful quantities of biologically-active molecules. This can be critical for two reasons: the natural supply of the relevant compound is often severely limited and it is not always possible to unambiguously determine the structure of the naturally-derived materials, especially complex ones, with the limited quantities available. Furthermore, chemical synthesis often allows for the construction of otherwise inaccessible analogues which may display superior biological properties to those of the natural product.

Current research activities

Using micro-organisms to produce starting materials for chemical synthesis

The chemical manipulation of aromatic compounds with certain micro-organisms leads to metabolites that can serve as exceptionally useful starting materials for the preparation of a diverse range of natural products. Such metabolites are often inaccessible by more conventional means. Among the half dozen or so natural products now being sought using this microbiological approach is the alkaloid galanthamine, a compound used clinically in the symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.

New synthetic strategies and methods

In collaboration with the University of Queensland we are developing methods for synthesising a structurally complex marine natural product that exerts important ecological effects on the Great Barrier Reef , including control of the feeding cycle of certain sponges. Significantly, we have recently identified a structurally much simpler and, therefore, readily accessible analogue of the natural product which displays essentially all of the same useful ecological properties.

Annual Research Report   (PDF format)

Group members

Academic Staff:
Professor Martin Banwell (Leader)   |   Dr Michael Backes   |   Dr Muriel Bonnet   |   Dr Delphine Dauge   |   Dr Jonathan S Foot   |   Dr Steffan Gross   |   Dr Mario Knoke   |   Dr Andreas Kreipl   |   Dr Daniel Offermann

Technical and General Staff
Dr Xing Hua Ma  

PhD Students:
Kerrie Austin   |   Daniel Beck   |   Christine Dietinger   |   Luisa Fearnside   |   Martin Friend   |   Michael J Harvey   |   Matthew Jones   |   Jasmine C Jury   |   Jacki Kitching   |   Okanya J Kokas   |   David Lupton   |   Maria Matveenko   |   Pauline C Stanislawski   |   Andrew T Phillis   |   Rebecca Taylor

Honours Students:
Alexander Bissember   |   David Pinkerton

Visiting Fellows:

Key publications

1. Austin, K. A. B., Banwell, M. G., Loong, D. T. J., Rae, A. D. and Willis, A. C. - A Chemoenzymatic Total Synthesis of the Undecenolide (-) Cladospolide B via a Mid-Stage Ring-Closing Metathesis and a Late-Stage Photo-Rearrangement of the E-Isomer. Org. Biomol. Chem., 3: pp. 1081-1088 (2005).
2. Freeman, C., Liu, L., Banwell, M. G., Brown, K. J., Bezos, A., Ferro, V. and Parish, C. R. - Use of Sulfated Linked Cyclitols as Heparan Sulfate Mimetics to Probe the Heparin/Heparan Sulfate Binding Specificity of Proteins. J. Biol. Chem., 280: pp. 8842-8849 (2005).
3. Banwell, M. G., Edwards, A. J., Lupton, D. W. and Whited, G. - Whole-Cell Biotransformation of m-Ethyltoluene into 1S,6R-5-Ethyl-1,6-dihydroxycyclohexa-2,4-diene-1-carboxylic Acid as an Approach to the C-Ring of the Binary Indole-Indoline Alkaloid Vinblastine. Aust. J. Chem., 58: pp. 14-17 (2005).
4. Banwell, M. G. and Lupton, D. W. - Exploiting the Palladium[0]-Catalysed Ullmann Cross-Coupling Reaction in Natural Products Chemistry: Application to a Total Synthesis of the Alkaloid (±)-Aspidospermidine. Org. Biomol. Chem., 3: pp. 213-215 (2005).
5. Banwell, M. G., Hungerford, N. L. and Jolliffe, K. A. - Synthesis of the Sialic Acid (^R) KDN and Certain Epimers from (-)-3-Dehydroshikimic Acid or (-)-Quinic Acid. Org. Lett., 6: pp. 2737-2740 (2004).

>>More publications

Martin Banwell, Professor at RSC, a graduate of the Victoria University of Wellington, NZ, has held academic appointments at the Universities of Auckland and Melbourne. He is a Fellow of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, the Royal Society of New Zealand and the Australian Academy of Science as well as a recipient of the Birch Medal and the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK) Synthetic Organic Chemistry Award.

private web page: Martin Banwell group photos curriculum vitae

Professor M G Banwell Research School of Chemistry, Building 35 Australian National University Canberra ACT 0200 AUSTRALIA Ph: +61 2 6125 3767 Fx: +61 2 6125 8114 E-mail: mgb@rsc.anu.edu.au