Welcome
to the Ghosh group website at the
University of Tromsø, Norway
Last updated October 8, 2007
Last updated October 8, 2007
Our latest papers1. Conradie, J.; Quarless, D. A., Jr.; Hsu, H.-F.; Harrop, T. C.; Lippard, S. J.; Koch, S. A.; Ghosh, A. "Electronic Structure and FeNO Conformation of Nonheme Iron-Thiolate-NO Complexes: An Experimental and DFT Study" J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007, 129, 10446-10456. DOI: 10.1021/ja0719982
2. Wasbotten, I. H.; Ghosh, A. "Spin-State Energetics and Spin-Crossover Behavior of Pseudotetrahedral Cobalt(III)-Imido Complexes. The Role of the Tripodal Supporting Ligand" Inorg. Chem. 2007, 46, 7890-7898. DOI: 10.1021/ic700543f
The Smallest
Biomolecules: Diatomics and Their Interactions with Heme Proteins;
Ghosh, A., ed. Elsevier,
2008.Advance praise from the back cover:
The coverage is outstanding, including discussions by experts of work on the binding and reactivity of dioxygen, nitric oxide, and carbon monoxide with hemes in synthetic model systems and proteins. I especially applaud the balance achieved by featuring both theoretical and experimental aspects of work in the field. Highly recommended! Harry B. Gray, Arnold O. Beckman Professor of Chemistry and Founding Director of the Beckman Institute, California Institute of Technology
The
scope of heme chemistry in biology is stunningly diverse. Control over
this broad range of chemistry is a formidable task that proteins have
largely solved. The contributions within this book touch on many
of the important features of this control and will be most useful for
students as well as experts.
Michael A. Marletta, Aldo DeBenedictis Professor of Chemistry and
Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of
California, Berkeley
An especially useful and important aspect of the book is its unique multidisciplinary character, emphasizing experimental as well as computational findings, synthetic models as well as biochemical studies, and in-depth discussions of biomedical, microbiological, zoological, and evolutionary perspectives. I urge researchers at all levels, who are interested in the subject of heme-diatomic interactions, to add this excellent book to their personal libraries. John Dawson, Carolina Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina and Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry
Abhik Ghosh
Professor of Inorganic and Materials Chemistry and Principal Scientist, Center for Theoretical and Computational Chemistry (CTCC)
Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway.
Tel. +47 77 64 40 72, Fax: +47 7764476, E-mail: abhik@chem.uit.no
Curriculum vitae
Born 1964 in India
BSc (Hons.) in chemistry, Jadavpur University, India, 1987
PhD in chemistry, University of Minnesota, 1992, with Professor Paul G. Gassman
Postdoctorals with Prof. Lawrence Que, Jr. at the University of Minnesota (1992-1994) and with Prof. David Bocian at the University of Caifornia, Riverside (1995)
Senior Fellow, San Diego Supercomputer Center, University of California San Diego (1997-2004)
Outstanding Younger Researcher of the Norwegian Research Council (2004-2010)
Member of the editorial advisory boards of:
Journal
of Biological Inorganic Chemistry
(1998-2000, 2004-2006); Journal
of Inorganic Biochemistry (2007
onward); Journal of
Porphyrins and Phthalocyanines
(1997 onward)
Publications: 1-25 26-50 51-75 76-100 101-125
Editorial works: Work for second-rate minds?
The
computational part of
our group is part of the Center for
Theoretical and Computational Chemistry (CTCC), a Norwegian Center
of Excellence established in 2007. The CTCC welcomes visiting students
and scholars for stays of a month to several months at the Center. Do
write me if you are interested in a visit as well as for inquiries for
available financial support.Journal thematic issues (and the like) that I have recently edited
1. "Just how good is DFT?", a series of Commentaries by Lou Noodleman, Per Siegbahn, Frank Neese, and myself in JBIC, September, 2006
2. "Heme-diatomic interactions," Parts 1 and 2, JIB, January and April, 2005
3. "High-valent iron in chemistry and biology," a special Issue of the Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry, April, 2006.
Pressemeldinger:
(a) første
doktorgrad i uorganisk kjemi(b) forskning av laveregradsstudenter
Porphyrins and related macrocycles. Much of our experimental research currently centers around corrole chemistry and involves a mix of organic, inorganic, and physical chemistry. The organic aspect of this research focuses on novel pyrrole-aldehyde-based self-assembly processes as well as on the synthesis of fluorinated macrocycles. On the inorganic front, we are studying high-valent transition metal corroles as models of high-valent heme protein intermediates. A broad range of physical measurements (paramagnetic NMR, uv-vis and resonance Raman spectroscopies, photophysical studies, and electrochemistry) are used to build a comprehensive picture of the electronic structures of these novel high-valent species. In addition, new efforts have been initiated to develop novel porphyrin- and corrole-based electronic and nanostructured materials.
Novel transition metal complexes and new bonding concepts. Molecules with unusual electronic structures inspire a sizable fraction of our theoretical research. Thus, we often find ourselves pursuing electronic-structural "rarities", without much thought of their practical importance. It's an approach that risks being dismissed as "butterfly-collecting", especially in today's increasingly utilitarian climate. However, almost by definition, pursuing rarities results in a direct expansion of our fundamental ideas on chemical structure and bonding. For example, our many isolated DFT calculations on unusual NO complexes are leading to an increasingly comprehensive overview of transition metal-NO bonding as well as to new insights into biological heme-diatomic interactions. Similarly, recent calculations on novel imido complexes have led to unexpected insights into the very special bonding in low-coordinate complexes.
Ab initio calcultions and calibration of DFT. Compared with DFT, traditional ab initio methods are generally rather impractical for real-life problems involving transition metals. Yet there's one area where high-level ab initio methods such as CASPT2 and CCSD(T) have an edge over DFT and that's the question of energetics of the low-lying spin states of transition metal complexes. Our recent calibrations of different DFT functionals against experiment and correlated ab initio calculations are raising a tantalizing possibility, viz. that the Handy-Cohen OPTX-based functionals (e.g. OLYP and OPBE) may be among the best for transition metal spin state energetics. Indeed, in a number of cases (e.g. DOI: 10.1021/ct600337j), we have shown that OLYP performs distinctly better than classic pure functionals such as PW91 or BP86 as well as hybrid functionals such as B3LYP.
Electron
spectroscopy and surface science. We are currently rekindling
our long-dormant interests in various electron spectroscopies and other
surface science techniques. Among methods of interest are X-ray
photoelectron (XPS), Auger (AES), electron energy loss (EELS) and bremsstrahlung isochromat
spectroscopies (BIS). Our key result so far in this area is an
XPS study of low-barrier hydrogen bonds in porphycenes (publisher's
link). In
the long term, our goal is to exploit the various electron
spectroscopies and related techniques to derive insights into molecular
structure and bonding, especially for transition metal systems.
Current
group members: Dr. Emmanuel Gonzalez (postdoc), Dr. Ingar
Wasbotten (postdoc); Espen Tangen,
Thomas Kolle, Abraham Alemayehu, (PhD students); Nkeng
Moses and Can Capar (Master's students).
Two JIB special issues I recently edited
Here's a list of resources – books, documents, websites, etc. – that I highly recommend. These contain a wealth of practical advice that should serve you well through graduate school and beyond.
Building a successful career in scientific research. A guide for PhD students and postdocs, by Phil Dee, Cambridge University Press, 2006. I couldn't recommend this book strongly enough; I wish I had this book, when I was in grad school.
Advice to a young scientist, by Peter Medawar, 1981 (paperback). Perhaps not up to the minute, but a classic nonetheless.
The elements of style, by William Strunk and E. B. White, Longman, 2000. If communicating in English is important to your work, you'll ignore this slim, inexpensive book at your peril. Get strunked!
Communicating science. A practical guide, by Pierre Laszlo, Springer-Verlag, 2006. A more sophisticated volume, a favorite of mine.
Ethical guidelines for publishing chemistry research. Important stuff!
Women in science. Women continue to be underrepresented in the physical sciences, an issue that I have studied to some extent and am concerned about. On that note, here are two of my favorite books that I found useful and inspiring.
It's a jungle up there. More tales from the treetops, by Margaret Lowman, Edward Burgess, and James Burgess. Chronicles of a mom-scientist and her two sons as they explore forest canopies worldwide.
Every Other Thursday: Stories and Strategies from Successful Women Scientists, by Ellen Daniell. Men too should gain a lot from this book
A
year in
the world2006 was my sabbatical year, which I split between stays at the University of Auckland (hosted by Prof. Penny Brothers) and visiting different laboratories in California. I also took this opportunity to build collaborative ties with other places in the Asia-Pacific, including India.
Auckland was easy to fall in love with: mild weather, fabulous food, beaches and gorgeous nature within easy reach - you can't ask for much more. Besides NZ cuisine, Auckland has superb Asian food: Care for sea cukes with abalone sauce? You'd find some in Auckland.
NZ
bills itself as
the seabird capital of the world so I was able to indulge my other
great passion, when time (and money!) permitted: pelagic
birding. That, by the way, is a close-up of a
white-capped albatross. During August 2006, I got to go around on a lecture tour of North Island. This was sheer delight, getting to know, as I did, many of NZ's superb inorganic chemists and nanoscientists. In general, however, spring (fall up here in the northern hemisphere) was a blur of 90-hour weeks spent bashing out papers.
I ended my sabbatical with IC07, a superb inorganic conference in Hobart, Tasmania, plus a couple of days at Cradle Mountain National Park. Needless to say, this being my first time in Australia, I was fairly blown away by the wildlife.
