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Advancing Innovative Drug Discovery: Humboldt Foundation–Supported Research at the University of Regensburg’s Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy with Guest Researcher Ming-Yu Ngai
The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award Programme is funding a research stay for renowned chemist Ming-Yu Ngai at the University of Regensburg (UR): The Institute of Organic Chemistry at the University of Regensburg is pleased to welcome Professor Ming-Yu Ngai, a distinguished researcher from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, USA. Professor Ngai will conduct research with his colleagues at UR's Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy until June 30, 2026. The Faculty’s Dean of Research, Professor Oliver Reiser, is his host.
"Professor Ngai's research focuses on photocatalysis, making him an excellent addition to our Collaborative Research Center/Transregio 325, which is funded by the German Research Foundation," says Reiser. The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award Programme is funding the visit for three years, covering May and June of 2026, 2027, and 2028.
"Our research ultimately aims to translate advances in catalytic synthesis into biological applications, enabling the discovery and development of new therapeutics and diagnostic tools for diseases such as cancer, neurological disorders, and diabetes," Reiser explains.
A Foundation for New Therapeutics.
The chemists are conducting advanced drug discovery research. This research increasingly relies on the ability to quickly and selectively modify complex molecules. However, many effective molecular transformations are difficult or impossible to achieve using conventional synthetic strategies. "Our colleague Ming Ngai is addressing this challenge by developing new catalytic systems that harness visible light and radical reactivity to enable the processing of organic molecules at the molecular level," explains Reiser.
Guided by the long-term vision of "transforming light into medicine," the Ngai Lab explores how catalytic processes in an excited state can expand the spectrum of chemical reactions and enable new strategies for synthesizing and modifying complex molecules.
Integrating Chemical Innovation with Sustainability.
The Ngai Lab develops catalytic strategies that integrate chemical innovation with sustainability, improving how complex molecules are synthesized for applications in organic synthesis, drug development, and materials science.
While in Germany, visiting researcher Ming-Yu Ngai will collaborate closely with the CRC/TRR 325 at the University of Regensburg ("Assembly Controlled Chemical Photocatalysis") to develop new catalytic platforms utilizing visible light. The project will focus on copper complexes in the excited state as a sustainable alternative to precious metal photocatalysts.
Professor Oliver Reiser, Institute for Organic Chemistry, University of Regensburg, oliver.reiser@ur.de
https://www-oc.chemie.uni-regensburg.de/reiser/index_e.html About Professor Oliver Reiser
https://www.humboldt-foundation.de/en/connect/explore-the-humboldt-network/singl... Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Award Research Programme, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
https://crc325.de/ About the CRC/TRR 325
https://www.uni-regensburg.de/en/research/research-profile/material-worlds-and-s... UR Research: Material Worlds and Sustainability
Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award: Regensburg Chemistry Welcomes Ming-Yu Ngai
Quelle: Ming-Yu Ngai
Copyright: Ming-Yu Ngai
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