Mike Slade

Dr. Mike Slade

(he/him/his)

Associate Professor/Chemistry

Room 328, Koch Center for Engineering and Science
812-488-2056
ms579@evansville.edu

Specializations

  • Synthetic Organic Chemistry
  • New Reaction Development
  • Total Synthesis

Degrees

  • B.S. – Emory University
  • PhD – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • HHMI Postdoctoral Science Teaching Fellow – Iowa State University

Research Interests

Broadly defined, primary synthetic interests lie in the development of new reaction methodologies for the construction of challenging molecular architectures. Our group seeks to develop new ways of putting molecules together in the anticipation that the new methods can then be applied to the synthesis of specific targets, chosen on the basis of their interesting biological activity or anticipated utility.

More specifically, we have projects targeting:

  • the development of a new method of polymerization based on donor-acceptor cyclopropanes
  • the development of novel interceptive decarboxylative allylation reactions using Fischer carbenes as the dipolar linchpin
  • the development of a dithiane surrogate to solve a challenging stereochemical problem

We are also interested in educational projects studying the development of competence in the “language” of organic chemisty—the arrow-pushing formalism that serves as the basis for understanding reaction mechanisms.

Selected Publications

  • Slade, M.C.; Raker, J.R.; Kobilka, B.; Pohl, N.L.B. “A Research Module for the Organic Chemistry Laboratory: Multistep Synthesis of a Fluorous Dye Molecule”, J. Chem. Educ. 2014, 91, 126.

  • Gerten, A.L.; Slade, M.C.; Pugh, K.M.; Stanley, L.M. “Catalytic, enantioselective 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions of nitrile imines with methyleneindolinones”, Org. Biomol. Chem. 2013, 11, 7834.