Karl A. Scheidt, PhD

Professor Chemistry, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences
Professor of Pharmacology, Feinberg School of Medicine
Director, NSF CCI Center for Chemoenzymatic Synthesis

Member, Chemistry of Life Processes Institute

Karl Scheidt is a Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Professor of Pharmacology in the Feinberg School of Medicine. He is also the Director of the NSF CCI Center for Chemoenzymatic Synthesis. His independent research program focuses on developing efficient strategies to create new molecules with translational and clinical potential.

Karl received a BS from the University of Notre Dame, a PhD from Indiana University and was a National Institutes of Health postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University. He is a fellow of both the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and Royal Society of Chemistry, an American Cancer Society Research Scholar, and received multiple awards from the pharmaceutical industry. During his time at Northwestern, he has trained over 80 postdoctoral fellows and graduate students and received both a Distinguished Teaching Award and an Alumnae of Northwestern Teaching professorship, the university’s highest distinction for education. He is also the co-founder of two biotech startup companies focused on translating the promise of small molecules to clinical success in oncology (Third Coast Therapeutics, Seneca Therapeutics).

Publications

Murauski, K. J. R.; Walden, D. M.; Cheong, P. H-Y.; Scheidt, K. A. “A Cooperative Ternary Catalysis System for Asymmetric Lactonizations of α-Ketoesters,” Adv. Synth. Catal. 2017, 359, 3713-3719.

Hovey, M. T.; Cohen, D. T.; Walden, D. M.; Cheong, P. H-Y.; Scheidt, K. A. “A Carbene Catalysis Strategy for the Synthesis of Protoilludane Natural Products,” Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2017, 56, 9864-9867.

Walden, D. M.; Johnston, R. C. Jaworski, A. A.; Hovey, M. T.; Meyer, M. P.; Scheidt, K. A. and Cheong, P. H. “Formation of Aza-ortho-quinone Methides Under Room Temperature Conditions: Cs2CO3 Effect,” J. Org. Chem. 2017, 82, 7183-7189.

Wang, M.; Barsoum, D.; Schwamb, C. B.; Cohen, D. T.; Goess, B. C.; Riedrich, M.; Chan, A.; Maki, B. E.; Mishra, R. K.; Scheidt, K. A. “Catalytic, Enantioselective β-Protonation through a Cooperative Activation Strategy,” J. Org. Chem. 2017, 82, 4689-4702.

Beniah, G.; Chen, X.; Uno, B. E.; Liu, K.; Leitsch, E. K.; Jeon, J.; Heath, W. H.; Scheidt, K. A.; Torkelson, J. M.* “Combined Effects of Carbonate and Soft-Segment Molecular Structures on the Nanophase Separation and Properties of Segmented Polyhydroxyurethane,” Macromolecules 2017, 50, 3193-3203.

Deibler, K. K.; Mishra, R.K.; Clutter, M. R.; Antanasijevic, A. Bergan, R.; Caffrey, M.; Scheidt, K. A. “A Chemical Probe Strategy for Interrogating Inhibitor Selectivity Across the MEK Kinase Family,” ACS Chem. Biol. 2017, 12, 1245-1256.

Betori, R. C.; Miller, E. R.; Scheidt, K. A., “A Biocatalytic Route to Highly Enantioenriched β-Hydroxydioxinones,” Adv. Synth. Cat. 2017, 359, 1131-1137.

Beniah, G.; Uno, B. E.; Lan, T.; Jeon, J.; Heath, W. H.; Scheidt, K. A.; Torkelson, J. M. “Tuning Nanophase Separation Behavior in Segmented Polyhydroxyurethane via Judicious Choice of Soft Segment,” Polymer 2017, 110, 218-227.

Beniah, G. Liu, K.; Heath, W. H.; Miller, M. D.; Scheidt, K. A.; Torkelson, J. M. “Novel Thermoplastic Polyhydroxyurethane Elastomers as Effective Damping Materials over Broad Temperature Ranges,” Eur. Polymer J. 2016, 84, 770-783.

Leitsch, E.; Beniah, G. Liu, K.; Lan, T.; Heath, W.; Scheidt, K. A.; Torkelson, J. “Non-Isocyanate Thermoplastic Polyhydroxyurethane Elastomers via Cyclic Carbonate Aminolysis: Critical Role of Hydroxyl Groups in Controlling Nanophase Separation,” ACS Macro Letters 2016, 5, 424-429.

Select Honors and Awards

Fellow, Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) (2016)
Cornew Innovation Award, Chemistry of Life Processes Institute, Northwestern University (2015)
Northwestern University Graduate School Faculty Award for Diversity (2015)
Dow Chemical Research Professor (2012-2014)
Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Invitation Fellowship (2012)
Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) (2012)
Jeremiah P. Freeman Lecturer, University of Notre Dame (2011)
Alumnae of Northwestern University Teaching Professor (2009-2012)
Organic Syntheses Distinguished Lecturer, University of Toronto (2009)
Irving Klotz Professor of Chemistry (2008-2010)
GlaxoSmithKline Scholar (2008-2009)
Alfred P. Sloan Fellow (2007-2009)
AstraZenaca Award for Excellence in Chemistry (2007)
Novartis Chemistry Lecture Award (2007)
Amgen Young Investigator Award (2006)
Boehringer-Ingelheim New Investigator Award in Organic Chemistry (2005)
Northwestern University Distinguished Teaching Award (2005)
3M Nontenured Faculty Award (2005)
Abbott Laboratories New Faculty Award (2005)
Amgen New Faculty Award (2004)
National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2004-2008)
Northwestern University Searle Fellow (2003)
National Institutes of Health Postdoctoral Fellowship, Harvard University (1999-2001)
Merck Award, University of Notre Dame (1994)