Laboratory of Synthetic Natural Products Chemistry

At Kitasato University, many new natural products with beneficial biological activities have been discovered. Their activities vary widely, and they are all expected to be used as drugs and biochemical reagents in the future. However, many of these natural products have weaknesses such as low production volume, unknown stereochemistry, and toxicity, and many new natural organic compounds have been abandoned for future development. Therefore, to solve the problems of these new natural products, we are continuing our research daily, based on total synthesis research, to solve the issues one by one so that they can be used as drugs or biochemical reagents in the future.

Our project involves the total synthesis of natural products with beneficial biological activities (i.e., the chemical synthesis of such compounds from commercially available and inexpensive reagents). The accomplishment of this research will enable the determination of the unknown absolute configuration and the mass supply of even low-productivity natural products.
In addition, by applying the total synthesis pathway, we will promote drug discovery research based on natural organic compounds, aiming to improve their biological activity, reduce toxicity and other side effects, and improve their water solubility. In the case of natural organic compounds that can be obtained in large quantities, we may use them as raw materials. Ultimately, we aim to create new compounds with superior biological activity, which can be used as pharmaceuticals or biochemical reagents in the future. At Kitasato University, many new natural products with beneficial activities have been discovered. Their activities vary widely, and they are all expected to be used as drugs and biochemical reagents in the future. However, many of these natural organic compounds have weaknesses such as low production volume, unknown stereochemistry, and toxicity, and many new natural organic compounds have been abandoned for future development.
Therefore, to solve the problems of these new natural products, we are continuing our research daily, based on total synthesis research, to solve the issues one by one so that they can be used as drugs or biochemical reagents in the future.