Alex Solivan
@alexsolivan.bsky.social
UC Berkeley ChemBio PhD Candidate in Schepartz Lab | Northwestern Alum | weirdly big fan of the term “bioorganic chemistry” | peptides, RNA, and the like | 🇵🇷🇭🇰
Reposted by Alex Solivan
A research team has found multiple lineages of archaea that have fully repurposed the TAG stop codon to encode the noncanonical amino acid pyrrolysine. cen.acs.org/biological-c... #chemsky 🧪
These archaea built a distinct genetic code to put pyrrolysine in proteins
That feat has synthetic biologists excited
cen.acs.org
November 26, 2025 at 6:27 PM
A research team has found multiple lineages of archaea that have fully repurposed the TAG stop codon to encode the noncanonical amino acid pyrrolysine. cen.acs.org/biological-c... #chemsky 🧪
Reposted by Alex Solivan
Today, I'm grateful that Alanna Schepartz is visiting Tufts. Alanna's leadership of @cgemcci.bsky.social has led to impressive advances in genetic code expansion, including recently published work pushing encoding beyond alpha-amino acids.
#ChemSky #ChemChat
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#ChemSky #ChemChat
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Site-selective protein editing by backbone extension acyl rearrangements - Nature Chemical Biology
A post-translational backbone extension acyl rearrangement (BEAR) reaction has now been developed that converts a ribosomal protein product into a new product containing a β-peptide, γ-peptide or δ-pe...
www.nature.com
November 20, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Today, I'm grateful that Alanna Schepartz is visiting Tufts. Alanna's leadership of @cgemcci.bsky.social has led to impressive advances in genetic code expansion, including recently published work pushing encoding beyond alpha-amino acids.
#ChemSky #ChemChat
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#ChemSky #ChemChat
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Alex Solivan
You’ve heard of ubiquitination, meet deazaguanylation: Doug Wassarman in our lab discovered phage defense pathways have co-opted Q nucleobase biosynthetic enzymes to catalyze a new form of protein conjugation chemistry @science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
September 25, 2025 at 7:16 PM
You’ve heard of ubiquitination, meet deazaguanylation: Doug Wassarman in our lab discovered phage defense pathways have co-opted Q nucleobase biosynthetic enzymes to catalyze a new form of protein conjugation chemistry @science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Alex Solivan
Well it’s chemistry of course. The reason why organic chemists historically make p-tosylates rather than the simpler benzenesulfonates is that p-tosyl chloride is a cheap byproduct from saccharin synthesis. The ortho isomer is used for saccharin. #chemsky 🧪
Ok folks: what is your favorite fact that you share with people (maybe a bit too) eagerly?
August 20, 2025 at 3:33 AM
Well it’s chemistry of course. The reason why organic chemists historically make p-tosylates rather than the simpler benzenesulfonates is that p-tosyl chloride is a cheap byproduct from saccharin synthesis. The ortho isomer is used for saccharin. #chemsky 🧪
>1700 examples???
New online! Asymmetric biomimetic aldol reaction of glycinate enables highly efficient synthesis of chiral β-hydroxy-α-amino acid derivatives
Asymmetric biomimetic aldol reaction of glycinate enables highly efficient synthesis of chiral β-hydroxy-α-amino acid derivatives
Nature Catalysis, Published online: 10 July 2025; doi:10.1038/s41929-025-01364-zChemical synthesis of chiral β-hydroxy-α-amino acids usually requires multiple steps. Now a biomimetic enantioselective aldol reaction of glycinate and aldehydes catalysed by a chiral pyridoxal has been achieved, providing efficient access to a large number of chiral β-hydroxy-α-amino esters.
bit.ly
July 10, 2025 at 3:30 PM
>1700 examples???
Reposted by Alex Solivan
Finally out in Nature Chem Bio:
SNAP-tag2 for faster and brighter protein labeling
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Thank you Steffi and Veselin.
SNAP-tag2 for faster and brighter protein labeling
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Thank you Steffi and Veselin.
SNAP-tag2 for faster and brighter protein labeling - Nature Chemical Biology
SNAP-tag is a widespread tool for labeling protein for bioimaging. Now, Kühn et al. report SNAP-tag2 with increased labeling kinetics and brightness, which translates into a better performance in live...
www.nature.com
July 3, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Finally out in Nature Chem Bio:
SNAP-tag2 for faster and brighter protein labeling
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Thank you Steffi and Veselin.
SNAP-tag2 for faster and brighter protein labeling
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Thank you Steffi and Veselin.
Reposted by Alex Solivan
How do you turn a carbonyl into sulfur?
In this work, Zining from our lab developed a carbonyl-to-sulfur swap enabled by a rationally designed N′-alkyl-hydrazonamide (NAHA) reagent that promotes double C-C bond activation.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
In this work, Zining from our lab developed a carbonyl-to-sulfur swap enabled by a rationally designed N′-alkyl-hydrazonamide (NAHA) reagent that promotes double C-C bond activation.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
June 12, 2025 at 9:13 PM
How do you turn a carbonyl into sulfur?
In this work, Zining from our lab developed a carbonyl-to-sulfur swap enabled by a rationally designed N′-alkyl-hydrazonamide (NAHA) reagent that promotes double C-C bond activation.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
In this work, Zining from our lab developed a carbonyl-to-sulfur swap enabled by a rationally designed N′-alkyl-hydrazonamide (NAHA) reagent that promotes double C-C bond activation.
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Never am I more convinced that I angered an eldritch god in a past life than when I’m trying to pipette a sample in dmso-d6 into a 3mm NMR tube #chemsky
May 28, 2025 at 10:39 PM
Never am I more convinced that I angered an eldritch god in a past life than when I’m trying to pipette a sample in dmso-d6 into a 3mm NMR tube #chemsky
Reposted by Alex Solivan
I was having a hard time describing how a plate of cultured cells didn’t look healthy to a new undergrad in the lab. He looked at them and said, “oh yeah, the vibes are off.” Thank god for Gen Z.
May 14, 2025 at 6:11 PM
I was having a hard time describing how a plate of cultured cells didn’t look healthy to a new undergrad in the lab. He looked at them and said, “oh yeah, the vibes are off.” Thank god for Gen Z.
Reposted by Alex Solivan
Check out our latest preprint describing two structures of ribosomes complexed with the two enantiomers of a β2-hydroxy acid. Our structures show that despite stereochemical differences, both are ultimately well positioned for bond formation within the ribosome!
chemrxiv.org/engage/chemr...
chemrxiv.org/engage/chemr...
Escherichia coli ribosomes support translation of (R) and (S) β2-hydroxyacids in vitro: a structural and biochemical study
The ribosomal incorporation of backbone-modified amino acid analogs into peptides and proteins enables the programmed synthesis of sequence-defined biopolymers with tunable properties. However, the su...
chemrxiv.org
May 9, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Check out our latest preprint describing two structures of ribosomes complexed with the two enantiomers of a β2-hydroxy acid. Our structures show that despite stereochemical differences, both are ultimately well positioned for bond formation within the ribosome!
chemrxiv.org/engage/chemr...
chemrxiv.org/engage/chemr...
Ah we love a classic case of “is this unstable, toxic, and generally annoying reagent *actually* necessary to get this rxn to work or is it just how the first guy did it and no one bothered to change it in the last 30 years??”
:))) #chemsky
:))) #chemsky
May 7, 2025 at 12:51 AM
Ah we love a classic case of “is this unstable, toxic, and generally annoying reagent *actually* necessary to get this rxn to work or is it just how the first guy did it and no one bothered to change it in the last 30 years??”
:))) #chemsky
:))) #chemsky
Reposted by Alex Solivan
If you're interested in a break from the doom-and-gloom, may I recommend our article, online today @nature.com
A solution to the pyrazole alkylation problem, leveraging S-to-NR atom replacement. Skeletal editing has strategic value, outside of late-stage!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A solution to the pyrazole alkylation problem, leveraging S-to-NR atom replacement. Skeletal editing has strategic value, outside of late-stage!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
April 3, 2025 at 4:27 PM
If you're interested in a break from the doom-and-gloom, may I recommend our article, online today @nature.com
A solution to the pyrazole alkylation problem, leveraging S-to-NR atom replacement. Skeletal editing has strategic value, outside of late-stage!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A solution to the pyrazole alkylation problem, leveraging S-to-NR atom replacement. Skeletal editing has strategic value, outside of late-stage!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Alex Solivan
📰 Great "First Reactions" by @aprillukowski.bsky.social featuring C-GEM's recent thioribose work!
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
March 27, 2025 at 5:42 PM
📰 Great "First Reactions" by @aprillukowski.bsky.social featuring C-GEM's recent thioribose work!
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Fluorochemical synthesis directly from PFAS is insane. Beautiful beautiful work from the Gouverneur group #chemsky
(Strategies to bypass HF? Now chemistry to enable a circular fluoride economy? When do the conversations about Nobels tend to begin…)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
(Strategies to bypass HF? Now chemistry to enable a circular fluoride economy? When do the conversations about Nobels tend to begin…)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Phosphate-enabled mechanochemical PFAS destruction for fluoride reuse - Nature
This study highlights a protocol that converts various perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), including fluoroplastics, into valuable fluorochemicals through a solvent-free mechan...
www.nature.com
March 27, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Fluorochemical synthesis directly from PFAS is insane. Beautiful beautiful work from the Gouverneur group #chemsky
(Strategies to bypass HF? Now chemistry to enable a circular fluoride economy? When do the conversations about Nobels tend to begin…)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
(Strategies to bypass HF? Now chemistry to enable a circular fluoride economy? When do the conversations about Nobels tend to begin…)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Stuck waiting for crystals to assign absolute stereochem. Any secret magic conditions for very polar compounds that are somehow also surprisingly greasy?
a man with a mustache is sitting on a swing in a park
ALT: a man with a mustache is sitting on a swing in a park
media.tenor.com
March 19, 2025 at 3:42 PM
Stuck waiting for crystals to assign absolute stereochem. Any secret magic conditions for very polar compounds that are somehow also surprisingly greasy?
Stereoretentive Radical Cross-Coupling
Authors: Jiawei Sun, Jiayan He, Luca Massaro, David Cagan, Jet Tsien, Yu Wang, Flynn Attard, Jillian Smith, Jason Lee, Yu Kawamata, Phil Baran
DOI: 10.26434/chemrxiv-2025-h9snj
Authors: Jiawei Sun, Jiayan He, Luca Massaro, David Cagan, Jet Tsien, Yu Wang, Flynn Attard, Jillian Smith, Jason Lee, Yu Kawamata, Phil Baran
DOI: 10.26434/chemrxiv-2025-h9snj
March 14, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Reposted by Alex Solivan
Share with US students who had their offers of admission withdrawn for PhD programs:
Apply to Canada. Check out Canadian professors, and contact us. Our system works differently here, and we are all still, technically, able to accept students for Fall 2025.
Apply to Canada. Check out Canadian professors, and contact us. Our system works differently here, and we are all still, technically, able to accept students for Fall 2025.
March 13, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Share with US students who had their offers of admission withdrawn for PhD programs:
Apply to Canada. Check out Canadian professors, and contact us. Our system works differently here, and we are all still, technically, able to accept students for Fall 2025.
Apply to Canada. Check out Canadian professors, and contact us. Our system works differently here, and we are all still, technically, able to accept students for Fall 2025.
Reposted by Alex Solivan
After Standing Up for Science most of the day today, my eyes are telling me that it is time to lay down from Science for a bit.
#StandUpForScience
#StandUpForScience
a sloth is yawning while sitting on a towel .
ALT: a sloth is yawning while sitting on a towel .
media.tenor.com
March 8, 2025 at 1:41 AM
After Standing Up for Science most of the day today, my eyes are telling me that it is time to lay down from Science for a bit.
#StandUpForScience
#StandUpForScience
Reposted by Alex Solivan
Thanks to out @ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social community for joining us at Stand Up For Science! @jenniferdoudna.bsky.social spoke about how NIH funding supported her PhD & NSF funding supported her development of #CRISPR genome editing. Federal funding is needed for life-saving science!
March 8, 2025 at 12:03 AM
Thanks to out @ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social community for joining us at Stand Up For Science! @jenniferdoudna.bsky.social spoke about how NIH funding supported her PhD & NSF funding supported her development of #CRISPR genome editing. Federal funding is needed for life-saving science!
Awesome turnout for #standupforscience here in Berkeley! Big fan of the research posters turned into rally signs
March 8, 2025 at 12:52 AM
Awesome turnout for #standupforscience here in Berkeley! Big fan of the research posters turned into rally signs
An email went out yesterday afternoon saying textbooks from the collection of an emeritus professor would be up for grabs starting at 9am today, first come first serve.
Tell me why there was a line outside of the door at 8:55am. This dept is ridiculous 😭 #chemsky
Tell me why there was a line outside of the door at 8:55am. This dept is ridiculous 😭 #chemsky
March 6, 2025 at 6:05 PM
An email went out yesterday afternoon saying textbooks from the collection of an emeritus professor would be up for grabs starting at 9am today, first come first serve.
Tell me why there was a line outside of the door at 8:55am. This dept is ridiculous 😭 #chemsky
Tell me why there was a line outside of the door at 8:55am. This dept is ridiculous 😭 #chemsky
Reposted by Alex Solivan
Proteins carry out exceptionally diverse molecular functions—even though they are all built on an unvarying polyamide backbone. How much more chemical diversity might be unlocked by editing that backbone? cen.acs.org/synthesis/se... #chemsky🧪
A sequence-independent way to edit protein backbones
Unexpected dehydrolactone rearrangement installs a new C-C bond
cen.acs.org
February 26, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Proteins carry out exceptionally diverse molecular functions—even though they are all built on an unvarying polyamide backbone. How much more chemical diversity might be unlocked by editing that backbone? cen.acs.org/synthesis/se... #chemsky🧪
Reposted by Alex Solivan
We start our first post on Bluesky with a firework! Very proud of a brilliant team to publish our work on C(sp3)-atom transfer @science.org. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... It has been a very exciting journey. Thanks @erc.europa.eu
February 20, 2025 at 7:42 PM
We start our first post on Bluesky with a firework! Very proud of a brilliant team to publish our work on C(sp3)-atom transfer @science.org. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... It has been a very exciting journey. Thanks @erc.europa.eu