An introduction to the 10th Anniversary collection of RACI and AAS Award papers

This tenth anniversary collection of RACI and Academy of Science Award papers starts with a contribution by Carol Hua (The University of Melbourne), the 2023 Alan Sargeson Lecture awardee of the RACI Inorganic Division. Together with co-workers Hui Min Tay and Shannon Thoonen, she reports on chiral 1-D coordination polymers containing bent 1,1′-binaphthyl ligands with dipyridyl or dicarboxylate substituents and coordinated with Ni^II, Cu^II or Ag^I. Both linear and helical 1-D chains were identified.¹

Mary J. Garson (The University of Queensland) received a RACI Distinguished Fellowship. Together with co-workers L. C. Foster, G. K. Pierens and James J. De Voss, she describes the elucidation of new norditerpenes with a dendrillate scaffold isolated from the Australian nudibranch Goniobranchus coi. Interestingly, new rearranged spongian diterpenes contained perhydroazulene and dioxabicyclo[3.3.0]octane moieties were isolated and characterised.²

Michael Kassiou (The University of Sydney) is the 2023 H. G. Smith Memorial Awardee. Together with co-workers C. Dana, G. A. Cumbers, B. Allen, A. P. Montgomery and J. J. Danon, he reports on the use of the adamantanoid motif in medicinal chemistry. Replacemenet of phenyl by adamantyl groups increases lipophilicity and facilitates a precise positioning of substituents. The increased lipophilicity improves the blood–brain barrier permeability and hence the central nervous system activity of adamantanoid drugs.³

Christian G. Hartinger (University of Auckland) is the recipient of the 2023 Burrows Award of the RACI Inorganic Division. Together with co-workers S. Kumar, M. Riisom, D. M. F. Jamieson, T., Sohel, S. Bhargava and J. Sun in New Zealand, Australia and China, he reports on the synthesis of N-heterocyclic (N-methylimidazole, N-methylbenzimidazole and pyridine) ligands in so-called piano-stool complexes, i.e. analogues of the plecstatin-1 anticancer drug. The new complexes exhibited potent antiproliferative activity similar to plecstatin-1 in a small panel of cancer cell lines.⁴

Adam Lee (Griffith University, Gold Coast) received a 2023 Welcome Award of the RACI. With co-workers P. Lokhande, P. L. Ghepe and K. Wilson, he contributes a paper on the aerobic oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural to 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid, which is of interest as a potential replacement of terephthalic acid in plastics manufacture. The reaction is catalysed by Ru on calcined MgO. Yields up to 68% at 94% conversion were obtained at 160°C and 1.5 MPa of O₂.⁵

D. Brynn Hibbert (University of New South Wales) received the 2023 Leighton Award of the RACI. He contributes a review on Bayesian approaches to applying an Australian electronic nose to identify an unknown odour out of a set of known odours. To do so, multivariate supervised learning is accomplished by applying Bayes’ theorem to data from metal-oxide semiconductor sensors responding to target odours. An odour from an unknown source can then be assigned probabilities of belonging to each of the training sets.⁶

Theo A. Ellingsen (University of Tasmania) is the recipient of the 2023 Masson Memorial Award of the RACI. In a Primer Review with Stuart C. Thickett and Rebecca O. Fuller, he reviews the techniques and challenges in the quantification of radical concentrations in organic radical polymers, which have become interesting targets for application in diverse fields such as energy storage, drug delivery, catalysis and spintronics. The paper reviews the use of electron paramagnetic resonance and magnetic susceptibility measurements, and UV–visible and infrared absorption spectroscopy for the purpose of quantification.⁷

Christoph Nitsche (Australian National University) was awarded the 2023 Rennie Memorial Medal of the RACI. His contribution on the synthesis and stability of peptidic bicyclic complexes of antimony is co-authored by S. Ullrich, P. Ghosh, M. Shang, S. Siryer, S. Kumaresan, B. Panda, L. J. Davies, U. Somathilake and A. P. Patel. The work follows previous reports on analogous bismuth and arsenic complexes. Such compounds are of interest as drugs because the conformational constraints imposed by ring structures enhance pharmaceutical activity. Since bismuth is much less toxic than antimony and arsenic, and since antimony is easily replaced by bismuth in the complexes, further research on the peptide–bismuth bicycles is warranted.⁸

J. Justin Gooding (University of New South Wales) is the 2024 Craig Medalist of the Australian Academy of Science. In a paper with E. M. Dief and R. D. Tilley, he reports on the applications of a variety of self-assembled monolayer systems, especially in the field of sensing. Of particular importance are mixed layers with aryldiazonium salts and the use of dialkynes to shield silicon from oxidation. Alkanethiol surface chemistry is already used in notable commercial sensing technologies with the surface plasmon resonance instrument. Additional technological applications are under development, and further commercialisations are to be expected.⁹