Newcastle University

Background

After undergraduate studies at Cardiff University (including a period at GlaxoSmithKline working on bacterial type IIA topoisomerase inhibitors), I undertook a Ph.D. at the University of Bath (CASE in association with AstraZeneca) with Professor Jonathan M. J. Williams, investigating catalytic hydrogen transfer reactions, oxidation chemistry and metal-mediated rearrangements. I then moved to the United States to take up a Postdoctoral Fellowship at MIT in the group of Professor Gregory C. Fu, conducting research into metal-catalysed asymmetric C(sp3)-C(sp3) cross-coupling reactions, before returning to the UK to a position at the University of Oxford. Following a brief hiatus to toil in high/cold places around Latin America I arrived at Newcastle in January 2012.

Previous Positions

Research Associate, University of Oxford, UK

Postdoctoral Fellow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA

Qualifications

Ph.D. University of Bath, UK

B.Sc. Cardiff University, UK 

Undergraduate Teaching

CHY2101 - Organic Chemistry (Heteroaromatic Chemistry)

CHY3101 - Advanced Organic Chemistry

CHY3105 - Advanced Organic Chemistry (Distance Learning)

Postgraduate Teaching

CHY8824 - Methods and Techniques for Drug Chemistry

CHY8811 - Research Project and Dissertation (Module Leader) 

• Wilsily A, Tramutola F, Owston NA, Fu GC. New Directing Groups for Metal-Catalyzed Asymmetric Carbon–Carbon Bond-Forming Processes: Stereoconvergent Alkyl–Alkyl Suzuki Cross-Couplings of Unactivated Electrophiles. Journal of the American Chemical Society 2012, 134(13), 5794–5797.
• Owston NA, Fu GC. Asymmetric Alkyl−Alkyl Cross-Couplings of Unactivated Secondary Alkyl Electrophiles: Stereoconvergent Suzuki Reactions of Racemic Acylated Halohydrins. Journal of the American Chemical Society 2010, 132(54), 11908-11909.
• Brooks G, Dabbs S, Davies DT, Hennessy AJ, Jones GE, Markwell RE, Miles TJ, Owston NA, Pearson ND, Peng TW. The design of efficient and selective routes to pyridyl analogues of 3-oxo-3,4-dihydro-2H-1,4-(benzothiazine or benzoxazine)-6-carbaldehydes. Tetrahedron Letters 2010, 51(38), 5035-5037.
• Owston NA, Nixon TD, Parker AJ, Whittlesey MK, Williams JMJ. Conversion of Primary Alcohols and Aldehydes into Methyl Esters by Ruthenium-Catalysed Hydrogen Transfer Reactions. Synthesis 2009, (9), 1578-1581.
• Owston NA, Parker AJ, Williams JMJ. Oxidation of primary alcohols to methyl esters by hydrogen transfer. Chemical Communications 2008, (5), 624-625.
• Owston NA, Parker AJ, Williams JMJ. Highly Efficient Ruthenium-Catalyzed Oxime to Amide Rearrangement. Organic Letters 2007, 9(18), 3599-3601.
• Owston NA, Parker AJ, Williams JMJ. Iridium-Catalyzed Conversion of Alcohols into Amides via Oximes. Organic Letters 2007, 9(1), 73-75.
• Anand N, Owston NA, Parker AJ, Williams JMJ. Ruthenium-catalysed conversion of oxime ethers into nitriles. Tetrahedron Letters 2007, 48(44), 7761-7763.