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Annalese Maddox ’07 feels right at home in the lab. Her innate curiosity and strong work ethic helped her achieve success with her latest research project on chiral ligands.
Maddox, who graduated May 19 with a B.S. in chemistry and an A.B. with a major in Spanish, studied a series of compounds known as Walphos ligands, which are used as chiral ligands in catalytic systems. A chiral ligand is one that is not super-imposable on its mirror image, such as a left and right glove. In a catalytic system, they attach to a metal and act as a catalyst to decrease the energy needed for the reaction to occur.
Maddox worked with Chip Nataro, assistant professor of chemistry, on the independent study project.
She presented her research at the 233rd National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS) held March 24-29 in Chicago, Ill. The paper is also going to be included in an upcoming issue of the journal Inorganica Chimica Acta.
“Chiral ligands have a certain handedness about them, kind of like left-handed and right-handed gloves. You can tell when you have the wrong glove on a hand because it doesn’t feel right,” Nataro explains. “In a chemical sense, compounds can have a handedness associated with them. Instead of not fitting right, this handedness can drastically affect the chemical properties.
“One of the best known cases is that of thalidomide. One handedness of this drug is useful for easing the symptoms of morning sickness while the other handedness caused birth defects. When this drug was being produced, there was no knowledge of this problem and no way to only prepare the correct handedness. Compounds like Walphos ligands were developed to serve as catalysts in reactions like the preparation of thalidomide. These catalysts help the required reactions to proceed quicker and force the formation of only the desired handedness. Anna investigated the properties of Walphos ligands with the intention of understanding why they work as well as they do.”
Maddox had a strong sense of ownership in her work.
“An independent study gives you a great sense of individual accomplishment. I have synthesized the compounds, characterized them, and wrote a paper to submit for publication,” she says. “It’s essentially my ‘baby,’ especially after I presented the research among graduate students and doctorates at the American Chemical Society National Conference in Atlanta, Ga. last March. It builds on previous research I’ve conducted at Lafayette, but it was a rare project in which I was able to see the work through from start to finish. I feel a great deal of accomplishment.”
The project provided Maddox with unique opportunities. She has a particular interest in the X-ray crystallography of her compounds. X-ray crystallography is the process of using x-rays to determine the structure, more specifically, the spatial arrangement of atoms in a compound.
Nataro and Maddox used an X-ray diffractometer at Villanova University.
“In December, Anna brought down a crystal and saw how the instrument works and how data is collected. She was very excited about watching this process. When Scott Kassel, associate professor of chemistry at Villanova University, told her she was allowed to do all of the work on the next crystal, I could see the excitement in her eyes,” says Nataro.
Maddox, who will attend University of Vermont this fall to pursue a doctorate in inorganic chemistry, was happy to work with Nataro in continuing research.
“I believe he is an amazing mentor in every sense of the word. He has helped guide me from a lab assistant who performs only the assigned tasks to a curious chemist prepared to enter whatever the next level may be. I have matured into an adult who will be able to handle rigorous demands as both an undergraduate and future graduate student,” she says.
She also believes Lafayette is an ideal environment for studying chemistry as an undergraduate.
“I would recommend Lafayette to anyone who is interested in pursuing a degree in chemistry in order to enter industry or to enter graduate school. All the professors are amazing and involved within their fields, and there is a broad range of research interests among the professors,” she says.
In previous work with Nataro, Maddox conducted research and experiments aimed at improving on a chemical compound used in catalysts.
Maddox was a general chemistry lab teaching assistant and a campus tour guide for the admissions office. She also was a member of the executive board for Lafayette’s chapter of Up ‘til Dawn, a fundraiser for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. She was a member of the student chapter of the American Chemical Society, Residence Hall Council, varsity fencing team, Student Athlete Advisory Committee, and Delta Delta Delta sorority.
Independent study projects are among several major programs that have made Lafayette a national leader in undergraduate research. The College sends one of the largest contingents to the National Conference on Undergraduate Research each year; 21 students were accepted to present their research at this year’s conference.