The 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Carolyn R. Bertozzi of Stanford University, Morten Meldal of the University of Copenhagen, and K. Barry Sharpless of Scripps Research for their independent contributions to click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry.
Sharpless and Meldal established the foundation for click chemistry, a method in which molecular building blocks snap together quickly and efficiently. The Royal Academy honored Bertozzi—an early CIRM grantee—for extending click chemistry into living systems and creating bioorthogonal chemistry.
A press release from The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences described her work this way:
“To map important but elusive biomolecules on cell surfaces—glycans—Bertozzi developed click reactions that work inside living organisms. Her bioorthogonal reactions occur without disrupting normal cellular chemistry.
“Scientists worldwide use these reactions to study cells and track biological processes. The approach improves targeting of cancer drugs currently in clinical trials.”
The Academy noted that click chemistry and bioorthogonal reactions have ushered chemistry into a new era of functionalism, bringing significant benefits to humanity.
A Hand in Early Stem Cell Research
As a 2007 SEED Grant recipient, Bertozzi helped jump‑start human embryonic stem cell research in California. With that support, her UC Berkeley lab studied how cell‑surface sugars influence the transformation of hESCs into cell types useful for treating disease.
“This work deepens our understanding of how stem cells interact with their environment and how they mature,” Bertozzi said.
A Prolific Mentor
A prolific mentor, Bertozzi guided more than 250 undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows, including CIRM Bridges alumnus Ian Blong, whose work in her lab was profiled in The Stem Cellar.
She founded and leads the Sarafan ChEM‑H Chemistry‑Biology Interface Predoctoral Training Program, which prepares graduate students to bridge chemistry, biology, and medical research.
Bertozzi launched a program that prepares recent college graduates from diverse and historically underrepresented backgrounds for PhD programs. In 2022, the American Association for the Advancement of Science honored her with a Lifetime Mentor Award for expanding diversity in science.
Read an in-depth profile of Bertozzi and her work on the Stanford Magazine website. Read more about all three scientists and their work here. Read the Stanford news release here.
