At the U. of Sherbrooke, Pierre Deslongchamps pioneered advances in the fabrication of complex organic chemicals, a key contribution to many areas of science, as well as to the search for more effective drugs. At the age of 26 he synthesized ryanodol, a very complex molecule, and went on to synthesize many more in a 30-year career. He has won many awards and recognitions, including a Steacie Fellowship, the Canada Gold Medal (NSERC) and the Prix Marie-Victorin.
Deslongchamps received his B.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Montreal in 1959 and after completing his doctoral studies at the U. of New Brunswick (1964), he worked at Harvard as a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratories of Nobel laureate R. B. Woodward, during the effort to synthesize Vitamin B-12. At the age of 26, he decided to start work on synthesizing ryanodol, an extremely complex natural alkaloid far beyond the chemistry of the day. He also synthesized the twistane molecule and accomplished the total synthesis of agarofuran, hinesol and occidentalol, all during a four year period. In 1967 he went to the U. of Sherbrooke, where he played a key role in shaping a first-class chemistry facility at the new university. His total synthesis of the complex molecule ryanodol and the antibiotic erythromycin A are considered milestones in organic chemistry. His discovery of the role of `stereoelectronic effects' in controlling certain organic reactions has become a fundamental concept of the discipline, actually changing the way scientists look at molecules. Deslongchamps has won many awards, including the Canada Gold Medal from the National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) in 1993 and the Prix Marie-Victorin, 1987. He holds nine patents and has published more than 140 scientific papers. He is Fellow, Am. Assoc. Adv. Sci., and Roy. Soc. Can. and Roy. Soc. London. Officer of the Order of Canada.
Sources: Robert M. Cory; Contact (NSERC newsletter), Spring, 1993; Canadian Who's Who, 1993
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