Nobel laureate in click chemistry impresses at Nanoscience Days in Jyväskylä
In the space of 20 years, Nanoscience Days has become an increasingly multidisciplinary conference and established its place internationally. The event’s keynote speakers have been leading nanoscience researchers, some of whom have later won the Nobel Prize.
In honour of the 20th anniversary of the Nanoscience Days, this year’s keynote speaker was, for the second time, molecular researcher Morten Meldal from Denmark. He shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2022 with Carolyn Bertozzi and Barry Sharpless.
They were honoured for the development of click chemistry and bio-orthogonal chemistry. In click chemistry, the chemical reactions of molecules are fast and produce no by-products.
The system is now widely used to develop medicines, map DNA and create new materials.
“The awarded Nobel Prize is not only my achievement but also the achievement of hundreds or even thousands of other scientists,” says Meldal. “My research is very much dependent on the work of other researchers.”
The construction of molecules is also studied at JYU
Morten Meldal spoke at Nanoscience Days for the first time in 2014. The Nobel laureate is familiar with the Nanoscience Center and its research and operations, as he has been a member of the center’s evaluation committee for several years.
He was delighted to return and also to meet new researchers and students.
The Nanoscience Center is an inspiring example of how to foster research collaboration,” says Meldal in his keynote speech at Nanoscience Days.
The same type of research for which Meldal received the Nobel Prize is also being carried out in the Department of Chemistry at JYU. Professor Petri Pihko from the Department of Chemistry is an expert in organic synthetic chemistry. He leads a research group that develops new organic reactions and applies them to the synthetic production of bioactive materials found in nature.
Pihko says he seeks inspiration from nature’s own ways of making reactions efficient. His team therefore studies many reactions that mimic the way natural enzymes function.
“Chemical reactions are the basis of all life and the chemical industry, as they transform substances into new ones,” Pihko says. “New reactions and synthetic chemistry are needed because humanity needs to find more sustainable ways to produce, for example, medicinal substances and other materials we need.”
Nanoscience Days are an opportunity to develop new ways of thinking
This year’s Nanoscience Days featured many internationally renowned researchers: Harry Andersson (University of Oxford, UK), Molly Stevens (Imperial College London, UK), Sandrine Bourdoulous (CNRS, France), Päivi Törmä (Aalto University), Jukka Pekola (Aalto University), Jens Bosse (Hannover Medical School, Germany) and Johann Peter Reithmaier (University of Kassel, Germany).
A total of 135 researchers and students attended the Nanoscience Days on 8–9 October 2024. The majority of the participants were from Finland.
The Nanoscience Days provide an opportunity for free discussion and the creation of new ways of thinking and cooperation projects.
“Collaborations and joint projects are often created through unofficial and unplanned discussions when people interested in the same things meet,” says Lotta-Riina Sundberg, the scientific director of the Nanoscience Center and one of the main organisers of the Nanoscience Days.
One of the aims of the event is to promote young researchers and PhD students.
“In the Nanoscience Days poster session, everyone can present their own research, which helps young researchers network,” says Sundberg.
Students can listen to interesting lectures
The Nanoscience Days lectures are also open to students. Listening to top researchers increases students’ motivation and makes them more confident about their chosen path.
“There were really interesting lectures in physics, chemistry and biology during the Nanoscience Days,” says Niina Rantakurtakko, who is studying nanoscience. “Even though I did not understand everything, it was nice to realise that I understood more about my field than I thought. Participating in the event also increased my motivation and confidence in my own abilities.”
Nobel laureate Morten Meldal also made an impression on the students, who praised his friendly attitude.
“My favourite memory from Nanoscience Days was his lecture,” says Rantakurkko. “It was incredible to hold the Nobel Prize in your hand.”
Inspiring and practical science education
Morten Meldal is passionate about science education and has created educational animations for children. He believes that a basic understanding of chemistry should be built up for children through visual and physical examples starting from the first year of school. The weekly amount of science lessons should be increased every year until high school.
Meldal playfully explains: “By accumulating knowledge from the very beginning, high school students would have so much knowledge and skills in chemistry by the end of high school that it could almost be equivalent to a master’s degree.”
