Posted by Reviewed herein are key research accomplishments of Professor Ronald Charles D. Breslow (1931–2017) throughout his more than 60 year research career. These accomplishments span a wide range of topics, most notably physical organic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, and bioorganic chemistry. These topics are reviewed, as are topics of molecular electronics and origin of chirality, which combine to make up the bulk of this review. Also reviewed briefly are Breslow’s contributions to the broader chemistry profession, including his work for the American Chemical Society and his work promoting gender equity.
With his 104 publications in the Cyclodextrin News database he has left his footprint in cyclodextrin chemistry. The review concludes: Overall, the work done by Breslow and co-workers in the area of cyclodextrin chemistry was successful in improving our understanding of key concepts, including hydrophobic binding, lyophilic binding, enzymatic catalysis, and supramolecular chiral catalysis. Ongoing challenges in cyclodextrin chemistry relate to its flexibility, which can provide improved tolerance for a broader range of substrates while simultaneously lowering the binding affinity of the substrates in the cavity. Current work in this area includes work on exploiting the innate flexibility of cyclodextrin to achieve a variety of target objectives.
Vincent Joseph, Mindy Levine, Ronald C.D. Breslow (1931–2017): A career in review, Bioorganic Chemistry,
115, 2021,104868, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioorg.2021.104868.