RSC Advances Blog

We are delighted to present the 2024 edition of the RSC Advances Emerging Investigators series! Following the success of our 2023 edition, we are excited to continue highlighting the chemistry research being conducted by some of the leading investigators in our community.

This year’s Series Editors were Professor Shirley Nakagaki (Federal University of Paraná, Brazil) and Professor Fabienne Dumoulin (Acıbadem Mehmet Ali Aydınlar Universit, Türkiye). Nine articles were selected to support emerging researchers who are already making strides in their respective fields of research, both nationally and internationally. This series focused on interesting studies showcasing researchers’ efforts to obtain information that could potentially address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). Here we showcase publications that present an advance in chemistry and support societal efforts for sustainable development. Read all about the collection in this accompanying Editorial. 

We would like to take this opportunity to highlight an author from the series, Valerio Fasano . We interviewed Valerio about his work.

Valerio Fasano 

First total synthesis of caerulomycin K: a case study on selective, multiple C–H functionalizations of pyridines

Alessandro Dimasi, Mattia Failla, Arianna Montoli, Andrea Citarella, Paolo Ronchi, Daniele Passarella and Valerio Fasano

RSC Adv., 2024,14, 5542-5546

Dr Valerio Fasano earned his B.Sc. from the University of Catania and M.Sc. from the University of Bologna (Italy). After a research visit to the University of Lund (Sweden), he completed his Ph.D. at the University of Manchester (UK) under Prof. Michael Ingleson. Supported by a Royal Society of Chemistry mobility grant, he joined Prof. Douglas Stephan at the University of Toronto (Canada). He then returned to the UK as a Doctoral Prize Fellow at the University of Bristol with Prof. Varinder Aggarwal. In 2023, he became a Tenure Track Assistant Professor at the University of Milan (Italy), where he was promoted to Associate Professor in 2026.

Could you briefly explain the focus of your article to the non-specialist and why it is of current interest?

We achieved the first total synthesis of caerulomycin K, a natural product isolated from marine-derived bacteria. This pyridine-based alkaloid is of interest due to its antimicrobial potential and relevance in natural product chemistry.

How big an impact could your results potentially have?

Although structurally simple, previous syntheses of similar molecules required numerous steps. Our new three-step route offers a rapid and efficient access to caerulomycin K, enabling the swift preparation of related analogues for biological evaluation.

Could you explain the motivation behind this study?

Our group focuses on the total synthesis of natural products and the functionalization of nitrogen-containing heterocycles. Caerulomycin K was an ideal target as it lies at the intersection of both research areas.

In your opinion, what are the key design considerations for your study?

From the outset, we aimed to synthesize caerulomycin K without relying on pre-functionalized intermediates, instead using selective C–H functionalization of N-heterocycles. Achieving this required testing several strategies before identifying the successful one.

Which part of the work towards this paper proved to be most challenging?

Our initial approach relied on a double functionalization of the pyridine ring, which could have allowed tunable derivatization. Despite promising attempts, this strategy ultimately proved unfeasible.

What aspect of your work are you most excited about at the moment?

Achieving a concise, three-step total synthesis of caerulomycin K is particularly exciting, as it opens the door to rapidly generating diverse analogues for further study.

How has your research evolved from your first article to this particular article?

While we continue to explore N-heterocycle functionalization, our research has expanded to include isotopic labelling and the study of boron-containing heterocycles.

What is the next step? What work is planned?

We are developing new methodologies for heterocycle functionalization, with a particular focus on integrating photocatalysis and automated synthesis technologies.

Why did you want to publish in RSC Advances?

The Royal Society of Chemistry is a long-standing and highly respected institution. RSC Advances offers excellent visibility and scientific credibility, making it an ideal platform for our work.

What are your thoughts on open access publishing?

I strongly support open access, as science should be freely accessible to all. My main concern, however, is the rise of predatory journals, which threaten the quality and integrity of scientific research.

Submit to RSC Advances today! Check out our author guidelines for information on our article types or find out more about the advantages of publishing in a Royal Society of Chemistry journal.

Keep up to date with our latest Popular Advances, Reviews, Collections & more by following us on BlueSky. You can also keep informed by signing up to our E-Alerts.

We are delighted to present the 2024 edition of the RSC Advances Emerging Investigators series! Following the success of our 2023 edition, we are excited to continue highlighting the chemistry research being conducted by some of the leading investigators in our community.

This year’s Series Editors were Professor Shirley Nakagaki (Federal University of Paraná, Brazil) and Professor Fabienne Dumoulin (Acıbadem Mehmet Ali Aydınlar Universit, Türkiye). Nine articles were selected to support emerging researchers who are already making strides in their respective fields of research, both nationally and internationally. This series focused on interesting studies showcasing researchers’ efforts to obtain information that could potentially address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). Here we showcase publications that present an advance in chemistry and support societal efforts for sustainable development. Read all about the collection in this accompanying Editorial. 

Ravi Kumar Pujala

Rational design and investigation of nonlinear optical response properties of pyrrolopyrrole aza-BODIPY-based novel push–pull chromophores

Ravi Kumar Pujala is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physics at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India. He was at Laboratoire de Physique des Solides (LPS) at the University of Paris-Saclay as a Visiting Professor during 2023. Before joining IISER Tirupati, he worked as DST INSPIRE Faculty at School of Physics, University of Hyderabad, India (2017-2018). He received his Masters in Physics (2008) and Ph.D. in 2014 from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, on Dispersion Stability, Microstructure and Phase Transition of Anisotropic Nanodiscs. Subsequently, his post-doctoral stints were at (i) IESL/FORTH, Crete, Greece with Prof. George Petekidis’ Group he worked on shear-induced crystallization of colloidal hard sphere glasses and (ii) at Utrecht University, Netherlands, with Prof. Alfons van Blaaderen he investigated 3D model active particle systems. His research work involves both basic and applied outcomes of Soft Matter, in that his research group (i) studies the physics of soft matter of both passive and active systems and (ii) fabricates new mesostructured materials by self-assembly. His long-term goal is to develop new functional soft materials with reconfigurable structures at the nano and meso-scales. Ravi’s research accomplishments are well recognized through several awards including Springer Thesis International Award (2014), DST INSPIRE Faculty Award (2016) by Government of India, Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions Seal of Excellence for “A High-Quality Project Proposal” by European Commission (2017), Visiting Professor/Researcher at University of Paris-Saclay supported by CNRS, France (2020 and 2023), and two Core Research Grants (CRG) of the SERB, India. He also serves as the Associate Guest Editor and Review Editor of the journal Frontiers in Soft Matter. He was also featured as a Soft Matter Emerging Investigator by Soft Matter, RSC.

Valerio Fasano 

First total synthesis of caerulomycin K: a case study on selective, multiple C–H functionalizations of pyridines

Dr Valerio Fasano earned his B.Sc. from the University of Catania and M.Sc. from the University of Bologna (Italy). After a research visit to the University of Lund (Sweden), he completed his Ph.D. at the University of Manchester (UK) under Prof. Michael Ingleson. Supported by a Royal Society of Chemistry mobility grant, he joined Prof. Douglas Stephan at the University of Toronto (Canada). He then returned to the UK as a Doctoral Prize Fellow at the University of Bristol with Prof. Varinder Aggarwal. In 2023, he became a Tenure Track Assistant Professor at the University of Milan (Italy), where he was promoted to Associate Professor in 2026.

Titel Jurca

Thermogravimetric analysis of commercial tungsten molecular precursors for vapor phase deposition processes

Titel received his BSc in 2008 from the University of Ottawa, where he worked with Deryn Fogg on metathesis catalysts. In the interim, he spent a summer in the lab of Doug Stephan at the University of Windsor working on FLP chemistry. He returned to the University of Ottawa to pursue a PhD in main group chemistry with Darrin Richeson. He followed this with a Marie Curie postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Bristol with Ian Manners on main group polymers and a second postdoctoral fellowship at Northwestern University with Tobin Marks on ALD precursors. In 2017 he began his independent career at UCF where his group works on molecular inorganic, materials, and catalysis chemistry.

Ramprasad Misra and Pralok K. Samanta

Rational design and investigation of nonlinear optical response properties of pyrrolopyrrole aza-BODIPY-based novel push–pull chromophores

Ramprasad Misra did his doctoral studies (2007-2012) in the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkata, India, where he worked on signatures of intramolecular charge transfer in several novel organic molecules. Thereafter, he took up different postdoctoral roles in the University of Pittsburgh (USA), IACS and Weizmann Institute of Science (Israel) before joining the current position as Research Associate in the Experimental Biophysics Group, Institute of Biology, Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany in August 2020. His broad areas of interest are in Biophysical Chemistry, Physical Organic Chemistry and Molecular Spectroscopy.

Pralok K. Samanta received his PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, India in 2014. He was a postdoctoral fellow at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, and at University College Dublin. Currently, Dr. Samanta is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at BITS-Pilani, Hyderabad campus. He was an Assistant Professor at GITAM (Hyderabad campus) from 2020 to 2023. His research focusses mainly on the understanding of electronic, magnetic, transport and photophysical properties of organic and organic-inorganic hybrid molecules and materials via combination of quantum mechanical approaches and molecular dynamics simulations.

Looking forward: Emerging Investigator Series 2025!

We are pleased to announce that Shirley and Fabienne will continue as the Series Editors for the 2025 Emerging Investigator series. We can’t wait to see what the next early career investigators have been working on in Chemistry!

Authors can self-nominate for participation in the Emerging Investigators Series. Articles can be submitted to the series at any time and will be accepted and published throughout the year. If you would like to be involved in our upcoming series, please look at our webpage for more information or submit now!

For any questions do not hesitate to contact us at advances-rsc@rsc.org

Submit to RSC Advances today! Check out our author guidelines for information on our article types or find out more about the advantages of publishing in a Royal Society of Chemistry journal.

Keep up to date with our latest Popular Advances, Reviews, Collections & more by following us on BlueSky. You can also keep informed by signing up to our E-Alerts.

Thank you so much to the Series Editors, Associate Editors and to all our reviewers at RSC Advances for their ongoing support and contribution, helping us to bring together such a fantastic collection of articles.