The Institute of Chemistry was one of Academia Sinica's first institutes established in 1928. During the next two decades, the Institute grew and contributed to research in China despite the difficulties during the Sino-Japanese War. After the Chinese communists had usurped the mainland, Academia Sinica moved to Taiwan in 1949. Since then, it has gradually built up the present site at Nankang, Taipei. The Institute of Chemistry was reactivated in 1957 and has been progressing steadily.
The Institute gained major momentum under the first and the second five-year development plans in 1981 and 1986. Since then we have built a modern five-story laboratory building, Chien Shih-Liang Memorial Hall, and another eight-story research building. The number of research staff has more than doubled and supporting facilities have been upgraded. Currently, the Institute is one of the most active research centers in Taiwan. Directors of the Institute were: Professor Nganshou Wei (1957-72), Dr. Chao-Tung Chen (1973-79), Dr. Wei-Chuwan Lin (1979-85), Dr. Shie-Ming Peng (1985-87), Dr. Ta-shue Chou (1987-96), and Dr. Yu-Tai Tao (1996-present).
Research covers both basic and applied chemistry. Major fields include organic, inorganic, organometallic, physical, theoretical, biophysical, food and carbohydrate, and marine chemistry. The following describes the research in progress.
|
Joined by theoretical chemists and principal investigators from other disciplines in the Institute, analysis of reaction pathways with orbital and density functional calculations has become a major tool recently. The theoretical group also conducts the quantum and molecular mechanics in the conformational analysis of macromo-lecules and inter-molecular binding interactions.
The surface chemistry group has been using spectroscopic characterization, reaction kinetic measurements, and theoretical simulations to investigate the mechanism of heterogeneously catalytic reactions.
The groups using the single crystal X-ray diffraction tool have been systematically working on transition metal molybdates and phosphates, dimetallic phosphido-bridged complexes, nonlinear optical molecules, transition metal clusters, and compounds of special interests to electron-transfer properties.
 |
Research centers around the determination of structures of biological molecules such as oligonucleotides, peptides, proteins, carbohydrates, and their interactions with small molecules. We hope that the biological functions of these molecules can be revealed by structural studies, new and powerful molecules can therefore be designed and synthesized. The results will have an impact on medicine, pharmaceutics, and agriculture.
The current research topics are concentrated on the structure and characterization of nucleic acid duplexes and triplexes, the structure of active site of HIV envelope glycoprotein, the study of the functions and bioorganic mechanisms of nucleic acids using chemical probes. The results are closely relatedto the new drug and agents design.
Research interests focus on cereal, starch, and carbohydrate chemistry. Ongoing topics include: the correlation between the fine structures of amylose and amylopectin, protein, aging, and the eating quality of rice; glass transition temperatures (Tg) and the stability of the traditional Chinese rice food; effects on the cereal characteristics during different processes; the kinetics of starch gelatinization and retrogradation; microstructures of the starch molecules; the relationships among the structure and the amount and the distribution of substituent, the conformation and the rheological property of polysaccharide, and the interactions of complex polysaccharides.
Research centers on chemical dynamics, which includes chemical structures, mechanisms, and changes of the elements in oceans. Special interests are focused on interactions and relationships among the trace metal forms and species, both in water and in sediments, dissolved organic compounds, ecological and biomass parameter, trace metal assimilative capacity, and bioaccumulation processes and elimination of metals in bivalves.
 |
The Institute has 27 permanent research staff, 4 technicians and 5 administrative personnel. This includes 16 research fellows, 4 associate research fellows, 4 assistant research fellows, 2 research assistants, and 1 assistant. Another 3 research fellows hold joint appointments with National Taiwan University or National Tsing Hua University. In addition to our regu-lar staff, there are 11 postdoctoral research fellows and more than 40 assistants financed by project funds from various outside research grants.
Our computer facilities include several departmental workstations, DEC AlphaStation 3000/400, AlphaStation 4/233, SGI Crimson/Elan, Indigo, Indy, IBM 7011-3CT PowerStation, Macintosh and personal computers. Research groups can also access all the computers in the computing center of Academia Sinica, Ministry of Education, the supercomputer in the National Science Council, and the Internet.
 |
The library is located on the first floor of the new chemistry building, and has spacious and comfortable room. There are over 19,000 volumes, including references for research fellows and a complete set of Chemical Abstracts. We also have subscriptions to over 110 international chemistry journals. All our information has been keyed onto the INNOPAC data base and connected to the computer network worldwide. We are also connected to the STN network which can serve CA on line search. In addition, we have laser discs of PDF, OCLC, and Properties of Organic Compounds are available to all researchers.
 |
Some of our recent accomplishments are briefly outlined: Using with heteroaromatic-fused-3-sulfolenes as the precursor of heteroaromatic ortho-quinodimethanes, various multicyclic heterocycles have been prepared; 3-methoxy-1-phenylthiopropyne was developed as a C3 annulation unit for the synthesis of five-membered heterocyclic compounds and heterocycle-fused 3-sulfolenes; highly regio-and stereospecific lactones, furans, pyrrolidines were prepared by use of organopalladium complex as catalyst; establishment of silicon-controlled cyclization and C-C bond formation and cleavage; functional group transformation was effected by various silicon containing counter-attack reagents; new dinucleotide agents against herpes and HIV was synthesized; a new DNA-cleaving agent was designed and prepared; a copperloaded polyphosphazenes was invented as novel detoxicant for "Sarin"; a complete analysis of the through bond orbital interaction between functional groups on a polycyclic structure has been proposed; a rather comprehensive understanding of the self-assembling of organic amphi-philes on various metal surfaces was accomplished; a new approach to organized multilayer film was established.
 |
Major research results include the synthesis and investigation of physical properties of polynuclear transition metal complexes containing metal-metal multiple bonds; the synthesis of transition metal phosphates and arsentates, and the investigation of second-order nonlinear optical property as well as structural characterization of these new materials; in the three-component system consisting of phosphine, half sandwich iron halide and alkyl lithium, the alkylation of cyclopentadienyl ring was found to occur via an electron transfer process; many triosmium isocyanide complexes were found to promote C-C coupling and C-H activation reactions, complexes with nitrogen ligation were also isolated; several platinum and ruthenium complexes containing N-oxide were found to exhibit DNA cleavage capability and specific antitumor properties in vitro; aminorhenium complexes were synthesized and found to have great tendencies to form stable carbon dioxide complexes and to induce CO insertion into the rhenium¡Ðnitrogen bond; a series of diphenylphosphide bridged homo- and heteronuclear metal complexes were synthesized and the cooperativity effect between the metals was also investigated; a series of tungsten, rhenium and ruthenium metal carbonyls containing conjugated pyridyl ligands were synthesized and characterized by UV/VIS spectra, cyclic voltammetry, and crystallographic studies.
 |
Surface chemistry is a major research interest. Spectroscopic characterization, reaction kinetics measurement, and theoretical simulations have led to fruitful results, from which the mechanism of heterogeneously catalytic reactions, as effected by the structure on activity and selectivity, is under investigation.
We have developed a simple but stable triplex that contains only five hydrogen-bonded base triads and one nonhydrogen-bonded one. Thus, this system can be used in study of structure/function relations and test of triplex formation of various nucleoside derivatives, those containing metal complexes (Pt, Ni, Ru, etc.) and artificial nuclease (such as hydroxylamine). Since such a test is tedious but unavoidable procedure for antisense/antigene development,the simple system will facilitate the entire field.
In the study of AIDS, the location of fusion peptide of HIV-1 gp41 in micelle was studied. Furthermore, we found the secondary structures of transmembrane glycoprotein of HIV-1 alters during the inter-domain interaction. All results will be used for the design of new drugs or agents to combat the HIV-1 virus.
In starch chemistry, the physicochemical properties of locally grown starches and the fine structures of amyloses and amylopectins have been studied systematically. The studies with DSC and dynamic rheolometry indicated that the granular structures of starch granules, inorganic salts and sugar molecules showed different influencing mechanisms on the gelatinization and retrogradation processes of starch. In cereal chemistry, the relationships between the physicochemical properties and eating quality of rice, the reaction mechanism of extruded rices from various varieties, the physicochemical properties of explosion-puffed rices and job's tears, as well as the improvement in storage stability of traditional Chinese rice products have been investigated. In polysaccharide chemistry, how the extraction factors affect the chemical compositions of red algal and \AS;Ganoderma\AS; polysaccharides were elucidated by response surface methodology and statistical analysis. The structure effects on the physical properties of polysaccharide gels have also been investigated.
Our marine chemistry laboratory joined in several international projects for nutrient analysis, biogeochemi-cal cycle of carbon, particulate biogeochemical processes, mussel watch, and chemical changes in coastal zones.
| Name | Research Speciality |
|---|---|
| Research Fellow and Acting Director | |
| Tao, Y.T. | Organic & Surface Chemistry |
| Research Fellows | |
| Wang, J.S. | Organic Chemistry |
| Chang, S.M. | Food Chemistry |
| Yang, C.C. | Food chemistry |
| Hung, T.C. | Marine & Environmental Chemistry |
| Lii, C.-y. | Food Chemistry |
| Liu, L.K. | Structural Chemistry |
| Chou, T.S. | Organic Chemistry |
| Chien, S.H. | Catalysis & Surface Chemistry |
| Chow, T.J. | Organic Chemistry |
| Lu, K.L. | Inorganic & Organometallic Chemistry |
| Lin, J.T. | Organometallic & Materials Chemistry |
| Luo, F.T. | Organic & Organometallic Chemistry |
| Lii, K.H. | Inorganic Solid State Chemistry |
| Shyu, S.G. | Organometallic and Materials Chemistry |
| Kan, L.S. | Physical Biochemistry, NMR |
| Adjunct Research Fellows | |
| Houng,K.H. | Inorganic & Environmental Chemistry |
| Peng, S.M. | Inorganic Chemistry |
| Hwu, J.R. | Organic & Silicon Chemistry |
| Associate Research Fellow | |
| Lee, S.J. | Organic Chemistry |
| Tso, H.H. | Organic Chemistry |
| Wang, T.F. | Organic & Organometallic Chemistry |
| Chang, D.K. | Biophysical Chemistry |
| Assistant Research Fellow | |
| Lin, H.C. | Organic Materials Chemistry |
| Chao, I. | Computational Chemistry |
| Chen, C.T. | Materials Chemistry |
| Cheng, C.C. | Bioinorganic and Bioorganic Chemistry |
| Research Assistant | |
| Lin, S.C. | Physical Chemistry |
| Wen, Y.S. | Structural Chemistry |
| Chan, S.I. | Biophysical Chemistry |
| Che, C.M | Inorganic Chemistry |
| Chuang, T.J. | Surface Chemistry |
| Liu, H.J. | Organic Chemistry |
| Mou, C.Y. | Physical Chemistry |
| Sha, C.K. | Organic Chemistry |
| Shen, T.Y. | Organic Chemistry |
| Teo, B.K. | Inorganic Chemistry |
| Tsai, M.D. | Bioorganic Chemistry |
| Wang, Y. | Inorganic Chemistry |
| Wong, C.H. | Bioorganic Chemistry |
| Wong, H.N.-C. | Organic Chemistry |
| Yang, N.C. | Organic Chemistry |
| Chou, T.S. | Organic Chemistry |