The “Editor Situation”

So OK, I feel a little like Rudy Baum, though without the fat paycheck. Our shiny, new Chemical Bond editor, Greg Cushing, has left us. Rudy reanimated as Acting Editor of C&ENews upon Maureen Rouhi’s sudden departure. So must I for the Bond.

We, and I do mean all of we, are grateful for Greg’s capable and enthusiastic editorship through most of 2014, but he has had to bow out as Editor.

Greg’s take-over as Editor last March was for more reasons than just that he had volunteered. I’d been doing this on and off, mostly on, since 1993. That was too long: for me and for the Section. We needed a new voice in the Editor’s chair. And now we need one again. Are you that voice? What will it take?

The most important qualification is enthusiasm. If you want to do this, it won’t be hard to learn a little html (or you may already know a little html, and that will be enough) and ftp to get the job done. Well organized is a definite plus, and probably a requirement, to get this thing out on time nine times a year. Moderately good writing skills: sure—and not of the JACS ilk, which would put 1,378 readers to sleep nine times a year. We offer generous start-up support in the form of tutorial, guidance, back-up: in short, whatever you need besides money.

If you think you might enjoy wearing the Editor’s visor — and I urge you to think about it before you decide you won’t — contact the Editor. No strings. We’ll talk.

Eric Ressner, Acting Editor 

Your election balloting for 2015 officers coming soon

Want your voice to be heard in this year’s election? Keep an eye out for the electronic ballot heading your way via email this week. Don’t forget to check your spam folder!

Every voter-eligible member with an email address on file will receive a personalized message no later than October 10th, and likely much sooner. The link in your email gives you access to the voting platform and assures that we receive ballots only from eligible voters, and only one from each.

If you have blacklisted surveymonkey.com and you wish to participate in this year’s balloting, please remove the block for a couple of weeks. Then, if you have not received your voter email by October 10, please let us know. Email election@stlacs.org: please provide your full name, email address, and (if not too much trouble), your member number from a recent issue of C&E News.

You will have until October 31 to cast your ballot. Please vote! Even though most positions are uncontested, casting a vote is a great way to tell the members who work so hard on Section business that you care about what they do. You will be able to access these candidate biographies during the voting process as well, so no need to memorize who’s who.

Candidates for elective office:

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Chair-elect (vote for one)

Joseph Ackerman, William Greenleaf Eliot Professor of Chemistry, Professor of Radiology, and Research Professor of Chemistry in Medicine, Washington University

Service to the Section: Saint Louis Award Chair/Coordinator (2000–present); also served the local section in various supporting/facilitating roles (e.g., co-organizer of an ACS local section symposium, Science Based Entrepreneurial Activities and the St. Louis Economic Growth, (2000) and was the Saint Louis Award winner in 1987.

John Mihelcic, Adjunct Instructor, St Louis Community College–Meramec

Service to the Section: none

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Secretary

Natalie LaFranzo, Project Scientist, Cofactor Genomics

Service to the Section: Secretary (2014); Chair, Younger Chemists Committee (2012-present); committee member, Leadership Development Forum (2012-present)

Service to national ACS: Associate, Younger Chemists Committee

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Treasurer

Vic Lewchenko, Senior Software Engineer, MasterCard

Service to the Section: chemistry merit badge clinic presenter (2007-2009, 2011-2014); Treasurer (2011-present)

Other ACS service: president, student chapter, Drexel University

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Councilor (vote for one)

Donna G Friedman, Professor of Chemistry and Department Chair, St Louis Community College–Florissant Valley

Service to the Section: Business Manager, Chemical Bond (1983-85, 1999-2014) Treasurer (1986-87) Awards Committee Chair (1988) College Awards Subcommittee Chair (1989-90) Steering Committee Member (1990-93, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2006) Special Event "Proud to be a Chemist" Co-Chair (1991) National Chemistry Week Acting Coordinator (1991) Chair-Elect (1991) Section Chair (1992) Director (1993) Bylaws Committee Chair (1993-94, 2009-11) National Chemistry Week Coordinator (1994) Councilor (1994-2014) Science Fair Subcommittee Chair (1995) Audit Committee Chair (1996-2014, Investment Trustee (1999-2004) Parliamentarian (2002-2005) Distinguished Service Award Recipient (2003) Undergraduate Research Symposium Chair (2005, 2011)

Service to national ACS: Council Committee on Technician Activities (1991-94, 2006-07) Distinguished Service Award Recipient (2010) Council Committee on Constitution and Bylaws (1994-2000, 2008-2014, Chair, 2014), Council Committee on Membership Affairs (2001-08) District V Councilors Caucus Secretary (1997-2002) Career Consultant (2006-11) ACS Fellow (2012). In the Division of Chemical Technicians: Education Committee Chair (1994-96) Bylaw Committee Chair and Parliamentarian (2003-2006) Treasurer (2007-2009)

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Alternate Councilor (vote for one)

Hal Harris, Professor of Chemistry semi-retired, University of Missouri–St Louis

Service to the St Louis Section includes: Chair succession (1993-1995); Director (numerous years); Alternate Councilor (2011–present); Investment Committee Chair (several years–present); in the interest of bringing a better public understanding and appreciation of chemistry through responses to distortions in the media, has for several years headed a committee for that purpose in the section.

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Directors (vote for up to four)

Jeff Cornelius, Professor of Chemistry and Head of Division of Chemistry, Math, and Natural Science, Principia College

Service to the Section: Education Committee Chair (2001-2006); Undergraduate Research Symposium Chair (2000, 2004); Secretary (2007-2009); Chair succession (2010-2012); Director (2013-present).

Bill Doub, US FDA/Division of Pharmaceutical Analysis

Service to the Section: High School Program Committee (1998); Chemical Bond photographer, assistant editor, and business manager (1998); Membership Chair (1998); Investment Committee (1998); Director (1996-1998, 2011-2014); St Louis Award Chair (1981, 1997); Treasurer (1993-1994, 1999-2001); Midwest Award Chair (1981); Alternate Councilor (1992); Awards Committee Chair (1992); Program Committee Chair (1991, 1995); Chair succession (2008-2010).

Steve Kinsley, Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratory Lecturer, Washington University

Service to the Section: Publicity and Public Relations Chair (2002-2005); Chair succession (2006-2008); Director (2009-2012).

Brent Znosko, Associate Professor, Saint Louis University Department of Chemistry

Service to the Section: Advisor, Saint Louis University ACS Student Chapter (2005-present); Organizer/Co-organizer, ACS Midwest Regional Meeting Symposium (2006, 2008, 2012); Chair, Professional Activities Committee (2006-present); Chair, Undergraduate Programming at ACS Midwest/Great Lakes Regional Meeting (2011); Director (2012-present)

Service to national ACS: Presenter, ACS Webinar (2013); Organizer, ACS National Meeting Symposium (2014)

All you need to know about the Saint Louis Award, 2014

The Winner

Hats off to Alexei Demchenko of University of Missouri–St Louis, winner of the 2014 Saint Louis Award.

Alexei Demchenko was born, raised, and educated in Moscow, Russia. He graduated in 1988 from Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology with a Diploma in Chemical Engineering before joining the laboratory of Nikolay Kochetkov at Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry in Moscow. In 1993, he was awarded a PhD in organic chemistry for his work on the development of thiocyanate methodology for glycosylation. After two post-doctoral years under Professor Kochetkov, he joined Geert-Jan Boons’ group at the University of Birmingham (UK) as a BBSRC post-doctoral research fellow. In 1998 he moved with Professor Boons to the Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, University of Georgia (USA), as a research associate. In 2001 he joined the faculty at the University of Missouri–St Louis as an Assistant Professor where he was promoted to Associate Professor in 2007, Professor in 2011, and was appointed a University of Missouri Board of Curators’ Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry in 2014.

Professor Demchenko has received a number of professional recognitions and awards, amongst which is a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation (2005), a New Investigator Award from the ACS Division of Carbohydrate Chemistry (2007), and the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research and Creativity (2013). He has co-authored over 135 scientific articles, reviews, and book chapters; has edited two books; and has a number of pending patent applications. Professor Demchenko has been serving as a Subject Editor on natural products and chemical biology for Elsevier Reference Module in Chemistry, an Associate Editor of the Journal of Carbohydrate Chemistry, and a member of a number of editorial boards. He organized and chaired many international conferences and symposia and was elected to chair the 2015 Gordon Research Conference on carbohydrates.

Professor Demchenko’s research interests are in the area of synthetic carbohydrate chemistry and include: novel glycosylation methods; stereocontrol of the glycosidic bond formation; chemoselectivity and orthogonality of modern glycosyl donors; strategies for expeditious assembly of complex oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates; transition metal complexes in synthetic carbohydrate chemistry; synthetic vaccines and glycotherapeutics; and solid-phase and surface-assisted automated synthesis. His research program is currently funded by grants from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Pfizer, and Mizutani Foundation for Glycoscience.

The Saint Louis Award, sponsored by the Monsanto Company and administered by the Saint Louis Section–ACS, is presented to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the profession of chemistry and demonstrated potential to further the advancement of the chemical profession. The award consists of a $1,500 honorarium and a plaque. See below for details on the award symposium and banquet (the latter requires reservations).

The awardee is selected by a review committee constituted by the Saint Louis Section–ACS.

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The Symposium

Frontiers in Modern Glycosciences

in honor of Dr Alexei Demchenko
2014 Saint Louis Award winner

The Saint Louis Award Symposium on Saturday, October 18th, will be hosted at University of Missouri–St Louis, in Room 451 Benton Hall (campus map). You may park on West Drive or in the West Garage, which is just down West Drive from Benton Hall. Enter Benton Hall on the west side and go to the fourth floor.

1:00 pm Poster viewing and refreshments

1:30 pm Jim O’Brien, University of Missouri–St Louis
Chair, Saint Louis Section–American Chemical Society
Welcome and general introduction

1:35 pm Chris Spilling, University of Missouri–St Louis
Symposium chair and discussion leader
Introduction and Salute to Dr Alexei Demchenko

1:40 pm Steve Kolodziej, Pfizer, Inc
Development of capsular polysaccharide conjugate vaccines

2:10 pm Todd Lowary, University of Alberta
Recent studies on the synthesis of glycans from mycobacteria and campylobacters

2:45 pm George O’Doherty, Northeastern University
Use of de novo asymmetric synthesis in carbohydrate and natural product medicinal chemistry

3:20 pm Poster viewing and refreshments

3:50 pm Cristina De Meo, Southern Illinois University–Edwardsville
Labeling and elimination in sialic acid chemistry

4:20 pm Keith Stine, University of Missouri–St Louis
Nanoporous gold: applications in glycan recognition and synthesis

4:50 pm Geert-Jan Boons, University of Georgia
Functional glycomics through chemical synthesis

5:25 pm Chris Spilling
Concluding remarks

6:30 pm Saint Louis Award Banquet, Glen Echo Country Club, 3401 Lucas and Hunt Rd, Normandy, MO
Advance reservations required (below)

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The Banquet

Saturday, October 18th, directly after the Award Symposium, at Glen Echo Country Club, 3401 Lucas & Hunt Road, Saint Louis, MO 63121. You can find driving directions and a map of the venue here.

6:30 pm cocktails (open bar), 7:00 pm banquet, 8:00 pm program

Please send reservations, including check, by October 14th to:

Lawrence Barton, Professor Emeritus
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
315 Benton Hall (MC 27)
University of Missouri–St Louis
Saint Louis, MO 63121
email lbarton@umsl.edu
phone 314.516.5334; cell 314-698-9748; fax 314.516.5342

Make checks payable to Saint Louis Section–ACS, and provide the following information:

Name(s) _______________________________________________________
Number attending _____ × $60.00 each = amount remitted $____________
Special dietary limitations, if any ___________________________________

Nominate for awards

Nominations are open for two awards that recognize excellence outside the mainstream of PhD-level industrial/academic/institutional chemistry: the Chemical Science & Technology award for non-terminal degree holders and the High School Chemistry Teacher of the Year award for ... well ... high school chemistry teachers. Read about ’em below, think about people you know who might be deserving, and then act.

The Chemical Science & Technology Award

The Saint Louis Chemical Science & Technology Award is presented to a chemist in the St Louis area who has demonstrated a high degree of professionalism and scientific contribution. Criteria used to judge the award include technical proficiency, presentations, coaching/teamwork, and additional professional activities.

The award will consist of a plaque, a $500 honorarium, and dinner for the awardee and a guest at the annual Recognition Night.

To be eligible, the nominee should have an Associate, Bachelor’s, or Master’s Degree in chemistry or a chemistry-related curriculum. The nominee need not be a St Louis Section–ACS member to be eligible. Letters of nomination must be received by December 19, 2014. The nominating letter should address the criteria above. A current work address, phone number and email address must be provided for each nominee.

To submit a nomination, contact the Chemical Science & Technology Award coordinator:

Adrienne Mazdra
phone 314.513.4035
email amazdra@stlcc.edu

The High School Science Teacher-of-the-Year Award

The St Louis Section–ACS is seeking nominations for the 2014 High School Chemistry Teaching Award. This award is to recognize, encourage, and stimulate outstanding teachers of high school chemistry within the St Louis Section. The award winner will receive a $500 check and a plaque, presented at an awards dinner and program next April.

Please consider nominating a teacher in the Greater St Louis Area who exemplifies excellence in the teaching of high school chemistry. The nomination packet must include the following items:

From the Nominee:

1. the Nominee Information Form
2. your current teaching assignment including course titles and grade levels. What is your involvement in extracurricular activities?
3. on a separate sheet, a statement of not more than 500 words in which you present your teaching philosophy or otherwise describe your commitment to the profession.
4. a curriculum vitae or résumé that includes a list of honors, professional activities, and additional evidence of service to the profession; limited to no more than two pages of activities within the last five years.

From the Nominator:

5. the Nominator Information Form
6. nominator recommendation of not more than 1,000 words. This statement should clearly demonstrate as many of the following attributes as possible:
   · the quality of the nominee’s teaching: unusually effective methods of presentation should be emphasized
   · the nominee’s ability to challenge and inspire students
   · extracurricular work in chemistry or a chemical science by the nominee, including science fairs, science clubs, and activities that stimulate the interest of young people in chemistry and related sciences
   · a willingness to keep up-to-date in the field, as evidenced by the pursuit of a higher degree in chemistry or a chemical science, enrollment in refresher courses and summer institutes, regular attendance at scientific meetings, membership in professional organizations, and other means of self-improvement
   · evidence of leadership or active involvement within the profession
7. at least one, but not more than three, letters of support; one must be from the teacher’s current principal or supervisor. Additional letters of support may be sent by colleagues, members of the American Chemical Society who are familiar with the nominee’s achievements, or former students and parents of former students.

Please submit the nomination packet by December 10, 2013. The nomination packet may be submitted electronically or by snail mail to Kathleen Dwyer, ACS High School Teaching Award Chair:

Kathleen Dwyer
Maplewood Richmond Heights High School
7539 Manchester Road
Maplewood, MO 63143
kathleen.dwyer@mrhschools.net

National Chemistry Week: make plans, plan to pitch in

We are less than a month away from National Chemistry Week and Chem Expo, our ultimate public outreach event for 2014. This year’s theme: The Sweet Side of Chemistry: Candy. You can sweeten up this event by volunteering to participate.

It will be held on Saturday, October 25, at the Saint Louis Science Center (Dinosaur Overlook) from 10 am to 4 pm. Parking will be validated (sweet!). You may volunteer for as little as two hours or the whole day. Bring an activity of your choice or help with other ongoing demonstrations. Join us to share your passion for chemistry with those of all ages. You will be amazed at the difference you can make by doing so. If you need more information or want to be part of this program, contact Greg Wall, NCW Coordinator, at gwall37@msn.com. Hope to see you there.

Greg Wall, NCW Coordinator

In addition to the activities/demonstrations coordinated by Greg (above), Kids and Chemistry coordinator, Sheryl Loux, will have three tables, each of which needs volunteers (no experience is necessary): • Enzymes are Workers, • Starch Scavenger Hunt, and • Crushing Cans. Each table has a leader who provides training for volunteers. Activities are brought and set up by the coordinator for volunteers to share with children.

Please email Sheryl J Loux (sjloux@gmail.com) to volunteer. Volunteers are needed 10 am to 4 pm, for minimum of 2-hour shifts. Parking is free for volunteers, and admission to The Saint Louis Science Center is always free. Food may be purchased at the deli and Pizza Hut in the science center. A bottle of water is recommended as you will do a lot of talking.

Lean O’Brien takes Nalley Award

Leah O’Brien, Southern Illinois University–Edwardsville, has been chosen as the 2014 E Ann Nalley Midwest Award winner for Regional Service. Mike Shaw, also of SIU–E, submitted the winning nomination of a real local section winner. Leah has been very active in the local section, particularly serving in the Chair succession (2002-04) and as Award Night coordinator for the past several years. She also served as General Chair when the St Louis Section hosted the Midwest/Great Lakes Joint Regional Meeting in 2011. Leah will be officially fêted at the Awards Banquet for the 2014 Midwest Regional Meeting in Columbia, MO, November 12-15.

Understudy needed for Science Fair Coordinator, April, 2015

Sheryl Loux, the coordinator for the Science Fair Chemistry Awards, will be out of the country for next year’s Greater St Louis Science Fair at Queeny Park. The fair falls on April 29. A volunteer is needed to coordinate the awards and judging.

Skills needed: good facility with Excel sorting and printing, willing to serve as phone contact; equipment needed will be computer with color printer. All award books, certificates, etc, will already be available. Judge solicitation will already have taken place. Sheryl will help with whatever training you wish. You will be responsible to make any newly needed nametags for judges, printing judges’ thank-you certificates, bringing all needed items to the fair, coordinating judges assignments, ensuring awards are recorded correctly, keeping a copy of the awardees and turning in all awards to organizers for distribution.

Also in the future, anyone wanting to co-chair and eventually to move into becoming the Coordinator for the Science Fair Chemistry Awards would be welcomed.

Please contact Sheryl Loux via email (sjloux@gmail.com) to volunteer or for questions, or call her at 636.237.5149.

ACS Webinar ”Speaking Simply” live viewing

Live viewing of ACS webinar, 5:45–8 pm, October 7, in Lab Sciences Rm 250, Washington University. All disciplines and professions are welcome; you need not be a chemist or scientist to attend! All ages welcome, too! Register by October 5th.

LabSciences is #57, Millbrook Parking Garage is #85 on the Location map. Please download and place the parking pass on your dashboard.

The event features food/drink, an outstanding webinar and the opportunity for networking with other local professionals.

Schedule of Event:
 5:45 pm - Food and Drinks
 6:00 pm - Webinar
 6:30 pm - Live Q&A
 7:00 pm - Activity & Networking

Please RSVP/register by October 5th. We look forward to seeing you there!

Board of Directors

St Louis Section–ACS Board of Directors meets the second Thursday of each month, usually at the Glen Echo Country Club (map and driving directions). Meetings are open to all members, and all are encouraged to attend. Elected officers and chairs of major committees vote on questions put to the Board; others in attendance have voice but no vote.

If you want to attend for dinner, please contact the section Chair at least a week in advance. Usual cost of the dinner is $22 ($11 for post-docs and unemployed members); dessert and beverages optional at your expense. Members wishing to become active in section activities are welcomed for their first dinner as guests of the section.

Date: Oct 9
Social hour: 5:30 pm
Business meeting: 6:30 pm (suspended for dinner when served)
Future meetings: Nov 13, Dec 11 (Continuity Dinner)

Saint Louis University

Seminars are on Fridays at 12 noon in Carlo Auditorium, Tegeler Hall, unless noted otherwise. Refreshments follow. For more information, contact Jim Edwards, jedward5@slu.edu.

Oct 24
John Walker, Saint Louis University Dept of Pharmacology and Physiology
TBA

Oct 31
Silviya Zustiak, Saint Louis University Dept of Biomedical Engineering
TBA

University of Missouri–St Louis

Mondays at 4 pm in 451 Benton Hall, unless otherwise specified. Refreshments 15 minutes prior to seminar time. For more information, contact the Chemistry Department, 314.516.5311.

Oct 6
Nicola L B Pohl, Indiana University
The Mysteries of Bismuth and the Challenges of Carbohydrate Synthesis and Analysis

Oct 13
Michael J Van Stipdonk, Duquesne University
New perspectives on ion structure and behavior from multiple photon photodissociation experiments

Oct 20
Cathleen Crudden, Queen’s University
TBA

Oct 27
Abby Parrill, University of Memphis
TBA

Nov 3
Nicholas Kanaan, Michigan State University
Bad news comes in threes: Pathogenic tau conformations, signaling dysregulation and cell toxicity

Washington University

Seminars are in McMillen 311 at 4 pm unless otherwise noted. For information, contact: Liviu Mirica, mirica@wustl.edu.

Oct 9
Wei Yang, Florida State University
TBA

Oct 30
Lars Konermann, Western Ontario University, Canada
Exploring Protein Dynamics and Ligand Interactions by H/D Exchange Mass Spectrometry