Principal Investigator: Soumitra V. Athavale
Assistant Professor, John D. and Edith M. Roberts Term Chair in Organic Chemistry
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
5072A Young Hall
athavale@chem.ucla.edu
Curriculum Vitae
-
Soumitra was born and raised in Pune, India. Following BS-MS studies in Chemistry and Biology at IISER Pune, he travelled to the US for doctoral studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign under the supervision of Prof. Scott E. Denmark. Soumitra's research was focused on elucidating the mechanism of the Soai reaction. This extraordinary transformation displays the unique phenomenon of amplifying asymmetric autocatalysis, can generate enantioenriched products starting from achiral reactants by spontaneous symmetry breaking, and has received widespread attention from diverse chemical fields. Its mechanism had remained elusive for more than two decades. Soumitra’s investigations have produced the first comprehensive mechanistic picture of this iconic reaction and provide a foundation for further explorations in the field of asymmetric autocatalysis and the evolution of homochirality.
In late 2019, Soumitra joined Professor Frances H. Arnold's group at Caltech as a postdoctoral scholar, expanding his expertise into protein engineering and directed evolution. He has been involved in the development of nitrene transferase enzymes, breaking new ground in the nitrogen functionalization of C–H bonds. The enzymes Soumitra has worked on have contributed to the asymmetric C–H amidation of benzylic positions, and the site and enantioselective derivatization of unactivated and unbiased C–H bonds, a reaction unprecedented in both biology and synthetic chemistry. These new enzymes can be considered as the nitrogen counterparts of the venerable P450 heme-monooxygenases. The work opens new opportunities for the biocatalytic manufacturing of nitrogen compounds, will assist fundamental enzymological studies of nitrene transfer reactions, and may inspire the design new pathways for nitrogen metabolism.
Competing as a solo participant, Soumitra was the co-winner of the 2nd Merck Compound Challenge 2020 – a global retrosynthesis competition that saw participation from 132 teams.
-
–Finalist, 2021 Merck Research Award for Underrepresented Chemists of Color.
–2021 ACS Green Chemistry Institute (ACS GCI) Pharmaceutical Roundtable Student Travel Grant.
–Co-winner, 2nd Merck Compound Challenge 2020 – a global retrosynthesis competition that saw participation from 132 teams. Participated and won as a single-member team. The other winner was a ten-member group from MPI, Mulheim, Germany. News highlights by Merck, Merck India, Chemistry UIUC, Bio-Patrika.
–2020 ACS Green Chemistry Institute, Pharmaceutical Roundtable (ACS-GCIPR) Research Grant.
–Coleman Fellowship 2017-2018, Departmental Fellowship 2015-2016, Chemistry Department, UIUC.
–DAAD-WISE 2012 Fellow for summer internship at the University of Gottingen, Germany.
–INSPIRE Fellowship from Department of Science and Technology (DST), India during study at IISER Pune (2008-2013).
–Gold Medal at the Indian National Chemistry Olympiad Training Camp for IChO 2008 at HBCSE, TIFR.
Postdoctoral Scholars
Dr. Rajib Mandal
PhD, Organic Chemistry - IIT Kanpur
MSc - University of Hyderabad
rajib.mandal@chem.ucla.edu
Graduate Students
Aris Rubio
MS, Chemistry - University of California, Los Angeles
BS, Chemistry - University of California, Irvine
avrubio@g.ucla.edu
Dr. Jaicy Vallapurackal
PhD, Chemistry - University of Basel
MSc - University of Basel
jvallapurackal@g.ucla.edu
Justin Bossenbroek
BS, Chemistry - University of Chicago
jrbossen@chem.ucla.edu
Student Researchers:
Charles Skidmore
MS, Chemistry - University of California, Los Angeles
Rami Halabi
MACS Program, UCLA
Matthew Hendrickson
MACS Program, UCLA
Undergraduates:
Ethan Poladian, Sydney Li, Julie Liu, Rohan Thadwal
Join Us!
We are excited to hear from you and to know more about your research goals and vision.
For a PhD in the Athavale group, you have to be admitted to a relevant UCLA graduate program.
All undergraduate research positions are currently filled.
Funded postdoc positions are currently not available – interested candidates with prospects for external fellowships/funding should get in touch with Soumitra by email.
We are happy to support postdoc candidates willing to apply to the Fulbright-Nehru Fellowship.
Candidates interested for visiting scholar positions or internships, including undergraduates and Master’s students from international institutions must have identified a funding source to sponsor their stay.
Kyle Schultz
BS, Biochemistry - University of Minnesota
schultz4312@chem.ucla.edu