Creating molecules for good
Professor Marc Adler uses organic chemistry to drive health discoveries
Professor Marc Adler is a chemical explorer, leading his team of researchers to create and transform molecules with the potential to result in new drugs or other discoveries. His major focus is on synthesizing new or existing silicon-containing molecules, and his lab is currently working on refining a reaction called amidation, used in a huge number of pharmaceutical applications. Silicon is a deserving focus because it is both abundant (second behind oxygen in the earth’s crust) and considered a greener chemical due to its safety and disposability. “I want to be thoughtful about how we use our resources and what it means for future generations,” says Adler.
Adler’s research group also welcomes collaborators. TMU biology professor Michael Olson tapped Adler (along with fellow TMU chemistry professor Russell Viirre) to create molecules that would disrupt an enzyme as part of developing a new cancer drug. Engineering professor Dafna Sussman enlisted him to explore the chemical properties of silicon as they relate to her work in maternal fetal MRI technology. “My purpose in all these projects is to use my skill and passion for synthetic organic chemistry to make the world a better place, whether by coming up with greener processes, improving human health, or by helping people in my group be, do, and achieve whatever they want,” says Adler.
But Adler’s work is not all academic. In September 2022, he launched a company called VI SIX (external link) with former student David Raveenthrarajan that uses organic chemistry to speed up the process of making spirits from three years to four months or less. The pair participated in a national program called Lab2Market that helps STEM students start businesses, supported by TMU's Innovation Boost Zone incubator, and have been awarded several grants to look at the foundational science and grow the technology. Already they have partnered with Elora Distilling Company to produce rum and whiskey products, with a handful of other craft distillery collaborations also in the works.