Dr. Lu Shin Wong

Manchester Institute of Biotechnology and Dept. of Chemistry, University of Manchester

Lu Shin Wong graduated with a Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm) from the University of Nottingham in 1997 and practiced as a hospital pharmacist in the UK National Health Service until 2001. He then undertook his PhD studies in organic and analytical chemistry at the University of Southampton under Prof. Mark Bradley from 2001-2005. Subsequently, he joined the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology as a postdoctoral research associate with Prof. Jason Micklefield on the application of chemical biology and surface chemistry to biomolecular-array technologies. In 2008, Lu Shin was awarded a prestigious EPSRC Life Science Interface research fellowship, which enabled him to work with Prof. Chad A. Mirkin at the International Institute for Nanotechnology, Northwestern University (USA). In 2011, he returned to the UK and was appointed to the academic staff at the University of Manchester's Department of Chemistry, and as group leader at the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology.

In recent years there has been increasing interest in the application of enzymes for synthetic chemistry. Such biocatalysts promise more sustainable routes towards the synthesis of small organic molecules and are now well established in the production of fine chemical building blocks (e.g. for pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals). Here, we present two examples from our laboratory working towards these topics.

In the first case, we report our investigations of the silicatein enzymes for the synthetic manipulation of Si-O bonds in a range of organosiloxanes. Here, we outline their general properties and efforts towards understanding their mechanism; and demonstrate Si-O bond hydrolysis and condensation with a range of synthetic organosilanols and silyl ethers. Finally, initial efforts at the enzymatic synthesis of polysiloxane “silicone” polymers are reported.

In the second case, we present our work utilising enzymatic oxidations and quantifying their sustainability. As an example, the synthesis 1,4-benzoxazines is demonstrated in this “one-pot, two-step” procedure, involving in situ quinone imine formation followed by a [2+2] cycloaddition. Subsequent analysis of the various Green Chemistry metrics showed this biocatalytic route was approximately twice as sustainable compared to the conventional purely chemical route.

Research Interests

My research generally spans the biotechnology-materials science interface, and draws from a broad base of expertise in chemistry, molecular biology and materials science. Apart from the two topics above, I also have interests in: bioconjugate chemistry for the immobilisation of proteins on to various materials; the development of diagnostic devices that employ proteins as recognition elements.