Jiaqi Liu, Ph.D.

Overview

Jiaqi Liu, Ph.D. is a technical specialist in Sterne Kessler’s Biotechnology & Chemical Practice Group where she assists in preparing and prosecuting U.S. and foreign patent applications. Jiaqi’s technical areas of expertise include organic small molecule synthesis, homogeneous transition metal catalysis, methodology developments, metal complex synthesis, organometallic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, and physical organic chemistry.

Jiaqi received her Ph.D. in chemistry from West Virginia University, where her research project was primarily focused on the development of cobalt-catalyzed aerobic oxidative cyclization reactions of bis-nucleophiles. This work uncovered methods en route to access structurally valuable small molecules such as substituted benzoxazoles and benzimidazoles, which methods are ligand-free, additive-free, and with molecular oxygen as the sole source of oxidant. This study is also the first reported examples of well-defined cobalt-aminophenolate complexes that participate in catalytic aerobic oxidation reactions. During her postdoctoral research at the University of Michigan, Jiaqi conducted mechanistic studies on nickel-catalyzed reductive cross-electrophile coupling reactions of aliphatic aldehydes with aliphatic alkyl halides. The study is expected to understand key factors that determine the chemical selectivity and improve the scope of related reductive cross-electrophile coupling reactions mediated by nickel.

Jiaqi obtained her B.S. in Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Science from China Pharmaceutical University. Her undergraduate research focused on central nervous system (CNS) disorder drug development, including optimizing the synthetic route of the SSRI antidepressant, Vilazodone.

Jiaqi is a first-author in a few peer-reviewed scientific articles and a co-contributor of a book chapter in Modern Organometallic Chemistry IV.

Education

• Ph.D., Chemistry, West Virginia University
• B.S., Pharmaceutical Science and Medicinal Chemistry, China Pharmaceutical University

Languages Spoken

• Chinese (Mandarin)