2023

Bioorganic Chemistry

Name: Bioorganic Chemistry
Code: QUI13561L
3 ECTS
Duration: 15 weeks/78 hours
Scientific Area: Chemistry

Teaching languages: Portuguese
Languages of tutoring support: Portuguese, English
Regime de Frequência: Presencial

Sustainable Development Goals

Learning Goals

The aim of this program is to provide the student with solid foundations in organic chemistry. It is intended to provide a strong foundation in chemical structure elucidation, mechanisms, the reactivity of carbonyl compounds and the importance of organic chemistry in medicinal chemistry.
Specifically, it is intended that the student be competent in:
- the determination of the molecular structures of simple compounds using spectroscopic/ spectrometric methods like NMR and mass spectrometry.
- A good understanding of the reactivity of carbonyl compounds, including an understanding of the important role of carbonyl compounds in biosynthesis.
- an introduction to medicinal chemistry, knowledge on structure-activity relationships.
It is intended that the students will:
- Improve their skills in predicting reaction mechanisms and understanding some key concepts in medicinal chemistry.
- A good understanding of the importance of stereochemistry in stability and reactivity of compounds.

Contents

Carbonyl Compounds. Aldehydes and ketones, Electronic structure. Reactions: Nucleophilic addition reactions, including the aldol and its significance in biosynthesis.
Beta-dicarbonyl and alpha, beta-unsaturated compounds. Acidity, the malonic ester and acetoacetic ester synthesis, the Micheal addition and the Claisen condensation reaction.
Carboxylic acids and their derivatives. Synthesis and interconversion between carboxylic acid derivatives.
Stereochemistry. Fundamental concepts. Chiral compounds and chiral compounds without central chirality.
Relevance of carbonyl compounds in medicinal and pharmaceutical chemistry.
The importance of medicinal chemistry and its role in the pharmaceutical industry.
Spectrocopic methods in organic chemistry. Nuclear Magnetic Ressonance (NMR) 1H e 13C, Infra-Red spectroscopy, UV/VIS spectroscopy, Mass spectrometry.

Teaching Methods

In addition to classroom classes, the student is also motivated to solve various exercises at home throughout the semester. The University's e-learning platform is also used to present tests and to disseminate the teaching material. The students understanding will be deepened by performing various exercises during the problem classes and in the practical classes. The assessment will be based on measuring the acquisition and understanding of knowledge and measuring the development of skills in the various components of the discipline. The evaluation of the theoretical components (with a weight of 75% on the final grade) will be achieved by a final written exam (the final evaluation regime) or through two written tests (continuous evaluation regime). This written assessment is complemented by a continuous assessment which will be achieved by the evaluation of the student´s work from the practical classes and through mini-tests (online) (with a weight of 25% on the final grade).