![Niek Buurma](https://profiles-cardiff.imgix.net/attachments/1469?w=200&h=200&auto=format&crop=faces&fit=crop&q=90")
Dr Niek Buurma
Uwch Ddarlithydd mewn Cemeg Organig Gorfforol
- Ar gael fel goruchwyliwr ôl-raddedig
Trosolwyg
Links
Research Group: Biological and Organic Chemistry
Research Interests
Dr Buurma$acirc; s research is aimed at understanding reactions and interactions in aqueous solutions in order to control processes in water and is focused on two main areas.
The first area involves the development of conjugated DNA-binders with interesting optoelectronic properties for molecular diagnostics and therapeutic purposes as well as for use in self-assembled nanobioelectronic systems. Our contributions to this area include the synthesis of news DNA-binding compounds and subsequent studies of their DNA-binding properties as well as the development of data-analysis software for the analysis of isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) data for complex coupled equilibria.
The second area of interest involves the study of organic reactions in aqueous solutions. We currently focus on studies of micellar medium effects, kinetic and mechanistic studies of surfactant-assisted metal-catalysed as well as nanoparticle-catalysed reactions. In addition, we study pharmaceutically relevant racemisation processes (in collaboration with AstraZeneca).
The ultimate aim of all our projects is to develop and use our ability to control and direct reactions and interactions in aqueous solution, bringing chemistry, (nano)engineering and nature together.
For more information, click on the 'Research' tab above.
Teaching
CH0001 Fundamental Aspects of Chemistry
CH3203 Organic Chemistry of Multiply bonded Systems
CH3303 Advanced Organic Chemistry
Cyhoeddiad
2025
- Alkhaibari, I., Horton, P., Coles, S., Buurma, N. J. and Pope, S. J. 2025. DNA‐binding properties of non‐intercalating water‐soluble organometallic Ir(III) luminophores. Chemistry - A European Journal, article number: e202500290. (10.1002/chem.202500290)
- Rainbow, J., Judd-Cooper, E. P., Pope, S. J. A., Buurma, N. J. and Estrela, P. 2025. Electrochemical signal amplification for pathogen nucleic acid detection utilizing a cobalt-based DNA-binding metallo-intercalator. Sensors & Diagnostics (10.1039/D4SD00322E)
2024
- Alkhaibari, I. S. et al. 2024. Tuning excited state character in iridium(III) photosensitizers and its influence on TTA-UC. Inorganic Chemistry 63(21), pp. 9931-9940. (10.1021/acs.inorgchem.4c01003)
2023
- Buurma, N. J. and Bagley, S. W. 2023. A focus on computer vision for non-contact monitoring of catalyst degradation and product formation kinetics. Chemical Science 14(40), pp. 10994-10996. (10.1039/d3sc90145a)
- Pritchard, M. F. et al. 2023. Structure–activity relationships of low molecular weight alginate oligosaccharide therapy against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Biomolecules 13(9), article number: 1366. (10.3390/biom13091366)
2022
- Saud, Z. et al. 2022. The SARS-CoV2 envelope differs from host cells, exposes pro-coagulant lipids, and is disrupted in vivo by oral rinses. Journal of Lipid Research 63(6), article number: 100208. (10.1016/j.jlr.2022.100208)
2021
- Dasgupta, A. et al. 2021. Site-selective Csp3–Csp/Csp3–Csp2 cross-coupling reactions using frustrated Lewis pairs. Journal of the American Chemical Society 143(11), pp. 4451-4464. (10.1021/jacs.1c01622)
2020
- Day, A. H. et al. 2020. Targeted cell imaging properties of a deep red luminescent iridium(III) complex conjugated with a c-Myc signal peptide. Chemical Science 11(6), pp. 1599-1606. (10.1039/C9SC05568A)
2019
- Ballard, A. et al. 2019. Racemisation in chemistry and biology. Chemistry - A European Journal (10.1002/chem.201903917)
- Saeed, I. Q. and Buurma, N. J. 2019. Analysis of isothermal titration calorimetry data for complex interactions using I2CITC. In: Ennifar, E. ed. Microcalorimetry of Biological Molecules., Vol. 1964. Methods in Molecular Biology Humana Press, pp. 169-183., (10.1007/978-1-4939-9179-2_13)
- Ballard, A., Narduolo, S., Ahmad, H. O., Cosgrove, D. A., Leach, A. G. and Buurma, N. J. 2019. The problem of racemization in drug discovery and tools to predict it. Expert Opinion on Drug Discovery 14(6), pp. 527-539. (10.1080/17460441.2019.1588881)
2018
- Powell, L. C. et al. 2018. Targeted disruption of the extracellular polymeric network of pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms by alginate oligosaccharides. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes 4, article number: 13. (10.1038/s41522-018-0056-3)
- Ballard, A. et al. 2018. Quantitative prediction of rate constants for aqueous racemization to avoid pointless stereoselective syntheses. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 57(4), pp. 982-985. (10.1002/anie.201709163)
2017
- Buurma, N. J. 2017. Aggregation and reactivity in aqueous solutions of cationic surfactants and aromatic anions across concentration scales. Current Opinion in Colloid & Interface Science 32, pp. 69-75. (10.1016/j.cocis.2017.10.005)
- Saeed, H. K. et al. 2017. Homo- and heteroleptic phototoxic dinuclear metallo-intercalators based on RuII(dppn) intercalating moieties: synthesis, optical, and biological studies. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 56(41), pp. 12628-12633. (10.1002/anie.201707350)
- Bouleghlimat, A., Othman, M., Lagrave, L., Matsuzawa, S., Nakamura, Y., Fujii, S. and Buurma, N. 2017. Halide-enhanced catalytic activity of palladium nanoparticles comes at the expense of catalyst recovery. Catalysts 7(9), article number: 280. (10.3390/catal7090280)
- Buurma, N. J. 2017. π-conjugated DNA binders. In: Stulz, E. and Clever, G. H. eds. Supramolecular Chemistry and Nanotechnology. Wiley, pp. ch1.2., (10.1002/9781118696880.ch1.2)
- Saeed, H., Saeed, I., Buurma, N. and Thomas, J. A. 2017. The structure of linkers affects the DNA binding properties of tethered dinuclear ruthenium (II) metallo-intercalators. Chemistry - A European Journal 23(23), pp. 5467 -5477. (10.1002/chem.201605750)
- Pritchard, M. F. et al. 2017. The antimicrobial effects of the alginate oligomer OligoG CF-5/20 are independent of direct bacterial cell membrane disruption. Scientific Reports 7, article number: 44731. (10.1038/srep44731)
- Cao, T., Zhang, F., Cai, L., Zhou, Y., Buurma, N. J. and Zhang, X. 2017. Investigation of the interactions between methylene blue and intramolecular G-quadruplexes: an explicit distinction in electrochemical behavior. Analyst 2017(142), pp. 987-993. (10.1039/C7AN00083A)
2016
- Hahn, L., Buurma, N. J. and Gade, L. H. 2016. A water-soluble tetraazaperopyrene dye as strong G-quadruplex DNA binder. Chemistry - A European Journal 22(18), pp. 6314-6322. (10.1002/chem.201504934)
2015
- Burley, G. A. et al. 2015. (Non-) covalently modified DNA with novel functions. In: Stults, E. and Clever, G. eds. DNA in Supramolecular Chemistry and Nanotechnology. UK: Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 1-15., (10.1002/9781118696880.ch1)
2014
- Zheng, G. et al. 2014. Palladium nanoparticle-loaded cellulose paper: a highly efficient, robust, and recyclable self-assembled composite catalytic system. The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters 6(2), pp. 230-238. (10.1021/jz5024948)
- Regan, E. M. et al. 2014. A novel cobalt complex for enhancing amperometric and impedimetric DNA detection. Electrochimica Acta 128, pp. 10-15. (10.1016/j.electacta.2013.10.028)
2013
- Salvia, M. et al. 2013. Thiazotropsin aggregation and its relationship to molecular recognition in the DNA minor groove. Biophysical Chemistry 179, pp. 1-11. (10.1016/j.bpc.2013.04.001)
- Postolachi, R., Danac, R., Buurma, N. J., Pui, A., Balan, M., Shova, S. and Deleanu, C. 2013. New cycloimmonium ylide ligands and their palladium(ii) affinities. RSC Advances 3(38), pp. 17260-17270. (10.1039/c3ra41911h)
- Dávila-Ibáñez, A. B., Buurma, N. J. and Salgueiriño, V. 2013. Assessment of DNA complexation onto polyelectrolyte-coated magnetic silica nanoparticles. Nanoscale 5(11), pp. 4797-4807. (10.1039/c3nr34358h)
2012
- Buurma, N. J. 2012. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 108, pp. 316-333. (10.1039/c2oc90021a)
- Leach, A. G. et al. 2012. Enantiomeric pairs reveal that key medicinal chemistry parameters vary more than simple physical property based models can explain. MedChemComm 3(5), pp. 528-540. (10.1039/c2md20010d)
- Fujii, S., Matsuzawa, S., Hamasaki, H., Nakamura, Y., Bouleghlimat, A. and Buurma, N. J. 2012. Polypyrrole-palladium nanocomposite coating of micrometer-sized polymer particles toward a recyclable catalyst. Langmuir 28(5), pp. 2436-2447. (10.1021/la204324f)
- Saad, F., Buurma, N. J., Amoroso, A. J., Knight, J. C. and Kariuki, B. . 2012. Co-ordination behaviour of a novel bisthiourea tripodal ligand: structural, spectroscopic and electrochemical properties of a series of transition metal complexes. Dalton Transactions 41(15), pp. 4608-4617. (10.1039/c2dt11732k)
2011
- Taladriz Blanco, P., Buurma, N. J., Rodriguez Lorenzo, L., Perez Juste, J., Liz Marzan, L. and Herves, P. 2011. Reversible assembly of metal nanoparticles induced by penicillamine. Dynamic formation of SERS hot spots. Journal of Materials Chemistry 21(42), pp. 16880-16887. (10.1039/C1JM12175H)
- Buurma, N. J. 2011. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 107, pp. 328-348. (10.1039/c1oc90014e)
- Onel, L. and Buurma, N. J. 2011. The Nature of the Sodium Dodecylsulfate Micellar Pseudophase as Studied by Reaction Kinetics. Journal of Physical Chemistry B 115(45), pp. 13199-13211. (10.1021/jp208171w)
- Jones, J. E., Amoroso, A. J., Dorin, I. M., Parigi, G., Ward, B. D., Buurma, N. J. and Pope, S. J. A. 2011. Bimodal, dimetallic lanthanide complexes that bind to DNA: the nature of binding and its influence on water relaxivity. Chemical Communications 47(12), pp. 3374-3376. (10.1039/C1CC00111F)
2010
- Buurma, N. J., Cook, J. L., Hunter, C. A., Low, C. M. R. and Vinter, J. G. 2010. The role of functional group concentration in solvation thermodynamics. Chemical Science 1(2), pp. 242-246. (10.1039/C0SC00209G)
- Wheelhouse, R. T., Garbett, N. C., Buurma, N. J. and Chaires, J. B. 2010. Probing the molecular recognition of a DNA-RNA hybrid duplex. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 49(18), pp. 3207-3210. (10.1002/anie.200907235)
- Carregal-Romero, S., Buurma, N. J., Pérez-Juste, J., Liz-Marzán, L. M. and Hervés, P. 2010. Catalysis by Au@pNIPAM nanocomposites: effect of the cross-linking density. Chemistry of Materials 22(10), pp. 3051-3059. (10.1021/cm903261b)
- Onel, L. and Buurma, N. J. 2010. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 106, pp. 344-375. (10.1039/b927079p)
2009
- Onel, L. and Buurma, N. J. 2009. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 105, pp. 363-379. (10.1039/b905116n)
- Buurma, N. J. 2009. Kinetic medium effects on organic reactions in aqueous colloidal solutions. Advances in Physical Organic Chemistry 43, pp. 1-37. (10.1016/S0065-3160(08)00001-4)
2008
- Buurma, N. J. and Haq, I. 2008. Calorimetric and spectroscopic studies of Hoechst 33258: self-association and binding to non-cognate DNA. Journal of Molecular Biology 381(3), pp. 607-621. (10.1016/j.jmb.2008.05.073)
- Spillane, C. B., Dabo, M. N., Fletcher, N. C., Morgan, J. L., Keene, F. R., Haq, I. and Buurma, N. J. 2008. The dichotomy in the DNA-binding behaviour of ruthenium(II) complexes bearing benzoxazole and benzothiazole groups. Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry 102(4), pp. 673-683. (10.1016/j.jinorgbio.2007.10.011)
- Mullice, L. A., Laye, R. H., Harding, L. P., Buurma, N. J. and Pope, S. J. A. 2008. Rhenium complexes of chromophore-appended dipicolylamine ligands: syntheses, spectroscopic properties, DNA binding and X-ray crystal structure. New Journal of Chemistry 32(12), pp. 2140-2149. (10.1039/b800999f)
2006
- Shibata, T., Buurma, N. J., Brazier, J. A., Thompson, P., Haq, I. and Williams, D. M. 2006. 7,8-Dihydropyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidin-2-one; a bicyclic cytosine analogue capable of enhanced stabilisation of DNA duplexes. Chemical Communications(33), pp. 3516-3518. (10.1039/b606058g)
2004
- Buurma, N. J., Serena, P., Blandamer, M. J. and Engberts, J. B. F. N. 2004. The Nature of the Micellar Stern Region As Studied by Reaction Kinetics. 2. The Journal of Organic Chemistry 69(11), pp. 3899-3906. (10.1021/jo049959l)
2003
- Buurma, N. J., Blandamer, M. J. and Engberts, J. B. F. N. 2003. General-base catalysed hydrolysis and nucleophilic substitution of activated amides in aqueous solutions. Journal of Physical Organic Chemistry 16(8), pp. 438-449. (10.1002/poc.607)
2001
- Buurma, N. J., Pastorello, L., Blandamer, M. J. and Engberts, J. B. F. N. 2001. Kinetic Evidence for Hydrophobically Stabilized Encounter Complexes Formed by Hydrophobic Esters in Aqueous Solutions Containing Monohydric Alcohols. Journal of the American Chemical Society 123(48), pp. 11848-11853. (10.1021/ja010617w)
Articles
- Alkhaibari, I., Horton, P., Coles, S., Buurma, N. J. and Pope, S. J. 2025. DNA‐binding properties of non‐intercalating water‐soluble organometallic Ir(III) luminophores. Chemistry - A European Journal, article number: e202500290. (10.1002/chem.202500290)
- Rainbow, J., Judd-Cooper, E. P., Pope, S. J. A., Buurma, N. J. and Estrela, P. 2025. Electrochemical signal amplification for pathogen nucleic acid detection utilizing a cobalt-based DNA-binding metallo-intercalator. Sensors & Diagnostics (10.1039/D4SD00322E)
- Alkhaibari, I. S. et al. 2024. Tuning excited state character in iridium(III) photosensitizers and its influence on TTA-UC. Inorganic Chemistry 63(21), pp. 9931-9940. (10.1021/acs.inorgchem.4c01003)
- Buurma, N. J. and Bagley, S. W. 2023. A focus on computer vision for non-contact monitoring of catalyst degradation and product formation kinetics. Chemical Science 14(40), pp. 10994-10996. (10.1039/d3sc90145a)
- Pritchard, M. F. et al. 2023. Structure–activity relationships of low molecular weight alginate oligosaccharide therapy against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Biomolecules 13(9), article number: 1366. (10.3390/biom13091366)
- Saud, Z. et al. 2022. The SARS-CoV2 envelope differs from host cells, exposes pro-coagulant lipids, and is disrupted in vivo by oral rinses. Journal of Lipid Research 63(6), article number: 100208. (10.1016/j.jlr.2022.100208)
- Dasgupta, A. et al. 2021. Site-selective Csp3–Csp/Csp3–Csp2 cross-coupling reactions using frustrated Lewis pairs. Journal of the American Chemical Society 143(11), pp. 4451-4464. (10.1021/jacs.1c01622)
- Day, A. H. et al. 2020. Targeted cell imaging properties of a deep red luminescent iridium(III) complex conjugated with a c-Myc signal peptide. Chemical Science 11(6), pp. 1599-1606. (10.1039/C9SC05568A)
- Ballard, A. et al. 2019. Racemisation in chemistry and biology. Chemistry - A European Journal (10.1002/chem.201903917)
- Ballard, A., Narduolo, S., Ahmad, H. O., Cosgrove, D. A., Leach, A. G. and Buurma, N. J. 2019. The problem of racemization in drug discovery and tools to predict it. Expert Opinion on Drug Discovery 14(6), pp. 527-539. (10.1080/17460441.2019.1588881)
- Powell, L. C. et al. 2018. Targeted disruption of the extracellular polymeric network of pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms by alginate oligosaccharides. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes 4, article number: 13. (10.1038/s41522-018-0056-3)
- Ballard, A. et al. 2018. Quantitative prediction of rate constants for aqueous racemization to avoid pointless stereoselective syntheses. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 57(4), pp. 982-985. (10.1002/anie.201709163)
- Buurma, N. J. 2017. Aggregation and reactivity in aqueous solutions of cationic surfactants and aromatic anions across concentration scales. Current Opinion in Colloid & Interface Science 32, pp. 69-75. (10.1016/j.cocis.2017.10.005)
- Saeed, H. K. et al. 2017. Homo- and heteroleptic phototoxic dinuclear metallo-intercalators based on RuII(dppn) intercalating moieties: synthesis, optical, and biological studies. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 56(41), pp. 12628-12633. (10.1002/anie.201707350)
- Bouleghlimat, A., Othman, M., Lagrave, L., Matsuzawa, S., Nakamura, Y., Fujii, S. and Buurma, N. 2017. Halide-enhanced catalytic activity of palladium nanoparticles comes at the expense of catalyst recovery. Catalysts 7(9), article number: 280. (10.3390/catal7090280)
- Saeed, H., Saeed, I., Buurma, N. and Thomas, J. A. 2017. The structure of linkers affects the DNA binding properties of tethered dinuclear ruthenium (II) metallo-intercalators. Chemistry - A European Journal 23(23), pp. 5467 -5477. (10.1002/chem.201605750)
- Pritchard, M. F. et al. 2017. The antimicrobial effects of the alginate oligomer OligoG CF-5/20 are independent of direct bacterial cell membrane disruption. Scientific Reports 7, article number: 44731. (10.1038/srep44731)
- Cao, T., Zhang, F., Cai, L., Zhou, Y., Buurma, N. J. and Zhang, X. 2017. Investigation of the interactions between methylene blue and intramolecular G-quadruplexes: an explicit distinction in electrochemical behavior. Analyst 2017(142), pp. 987-993. (10.1039/C7AN00083A)
- Hahn, L., Buurma, N. J. and Gade, L. H. 2016. A water-soluble tetraazaperopyrene dye as strong G-quadruplex DNA binder. Chemistry - A European Journal 22(18), pp. 6314-6322. (10.1002/chem.201504934)
- Zheng, G. et al. 2014. Palladium nanoparticle-loaded cellulose paper: a highly efficient, robust, and recyclable self-assembled composite catalytic system. The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters 6(2), pp. 230-238. (10.1021/jz5024948)
- Regan, E. M. et al. 2014. A novel cobalt complex for enhancing amperometric and impedimetric DNA detection. Electrochimica Acta 128, pp. 10-15. (10.1016/j.electacta.2013.10.028)
- Salvia, M. et al. 2013. Thiazotropsin aggregation and its relationship to molecular recognition in the DNA minor groove. Biophysical Chemistry 179, pp. 1-11. (10.1016/j.bpc.2013.04.001)
- Postolachi, R., Danac, R., Buurma, N. J., Pui, A., Balan, M., Shova, S. and Deleanu, C. 2013. New cycloimmonium ylide ligands and their palladium(ii) affinities. RSC Advances 3(38), pp. 17260-17270. (10.1039/c3ra41911h)
- Dávila-Ibáñez, A. B., Buurma, N. J. and Salgueiriño, V. 2013. Assessment of DNA complexation onto polyelectrolyte-coated magnetic silica nanoparticles. Nanoscale 5(11), pp. 4797-4807. (10.1039/c3nr34358h)
- Buurma, N. J. 2012. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 108, pp. 316-333. (10.1039/c2oc90021a)
- Leach, A. G. et al. 2012. Enantiomeric pairs reveal that key medicinal chemistry parameters vary more than simple physical property based models can explain. MedChemComm 3(5), pp. 528-540. (10.1039/c2md20010d)
- Fujii, S., Matsuzawa, S., Hamasaki, H., Nakamura, Y., Bouleghlimat, A. and Buurma, N. J. 2012. Polypyrrole-palladium nanocomposite coating of micrometer-sized polymer particles toward a recyclable catalyst. Langmuir 28(5), pp. 2436-2447. (10.1021/la204324f)
- Saad, F., Buurma, N. J., Amoroso, A. J., Knight, J. C. and Kariuki, B. . 2012. Co-ordination behaviour of a novel bisthiourea tripodal ligand: structural, spectroscopic and electrochemical properties of a series of transition metal complexes. Dalton Transactions 41(15), pp. 4608-4617. (10.1039/c2dt11732k)
- Taladriz Blanco, P., Buurma, N. J., Rodriguez Lorenzo, L., Perez Juste, J., Liz Marzan, L. and Herves, P. 2011. Reversible assembly of metal nanoparticles induced by penicillamine. Dynamic formation of SERS hot spots. Journal of Materials Chemistry 21(42), pp. 16880-16887. (10.1039/C1JM12175H)
- Buurma, N. J. 2011. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 107, pp. 328-348. (10.1039/c1oc90014e)
- Onel, L. and Buurma, N. J. 2011. The Nature of the Sodium Dodecylsulfate Micellar Pseudophase as Studied by Reaction Kinetics. Journal of Physical Chemistry B 115(45), pp. 13199-13211. (10.1021/jp208171w)
- Jones, J. E., Amoroso, A. J., Dorin, I. M., Parigi, G., Ward, B. D., Buurma, N. J. and Pope, S. J. A. 2011. Bimodal, dimetallic lanthanide complexes that bind to DNA: the nature of binding and its influence on water relaxivity. Chemical Communications 47(12), pp. 3374-3376. (10.1039/C1CC00111F)
- Buurma, N. J., Cook, J. L., Hunter, C. A., Low, C. M. R. and Vinter, J. G. 2010. The role of functional group concentration in solvation thermodynamics. Chemical Science 1(2), pp. 242-246. (10.1039/C0SC00209G)
- Wheelhouse, R. T., Garbett, N. C., Buurma, N. J. and Chaires, J. B. 2010. Probing the molecular recognition of a DNA-RNA hybrid duplex. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 49(18), pp. 3207-3210. (10.1002/anie.200907235)
- Carregal-Romero, S., Buurma, N. J., Pérez-Juste, J., Liz-Marzán, L. M. and Hervés, P. 2010. Catalysis by Au@pNIPAM nanocomposites: effect of the cross-linking density. Chemistry of Materials 22(10), pp. 3051-3059. (10.1021/cm903261b)
- Onel, L. and Buurma, N. J. 2010. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 106, pp. 344-375. (10.1039/b927079p)
- Onel, L. and Buurma, N. J. 2009. Reactivity in organised assemblies. Annual Reports Section "B" (Organic Chemistry) 105, pp. 363-379. (10.1039/b905116n)
- Buurma, N. J. 2009. Kinetic medium effects on organic reactions in aqueous colloidal solutions. Advances in Physical Organic Chemistry 43, pp. 1-37. (10.1016/S0065-3160(08)00001-4)
- Buurma, N. J. and Haq, I. 2008. Calorimetric and spectroscopic studies of Hoechst 33258: self-association and binding to non-cognate DNA. Journal of Molecular Biology 381(3), pp. 607-621. (10.1016/j.jmb.2008.05.073)
- Spillane, C. B., Dabo, M. N., Fletcher, N. C., Morgan, J. L., Keene, F. R., Haq, I. and Buurma, N. J. 2008. The dichotomy in the DNA-binding behaviour of ruthenium(II) complexes bearing benzoxazole and benzothiazole groups. Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry 102(4), pp. 673-683. (10.1016/j.jinorgbio.2007.10.011)
- Mullice, L. A., Laye, R. H., Harding, L. P., Buurma, N. J. and Pope, S. J. A. 2008. Rhenium complexes of chromophore-appended dipicolylamine ligands: syntheses, spectroscopic properties, DNA binding and X-ray crystal structure. New Journal of Chemistry 32(12), pp. 2140-2149. (10.1039/b800999f)
- Shibata, T., Buurma, N. J., Brazier, J. A., Thompson, P., Haq, I. and Williams, D. M. 2006. 7,8-Dihydropyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidin-2-one; a bicyclic cytosine analogue capable of enhanced stabilisation of DNA duplexes. Chemical Communications(33), pp. 3516-3518. (10.1039/b606058g)
- Buurma, N. J., Serena, P., Blandamer, M. J. and Engberts, J. B. F. N. 2004. The Nature of the Micellar Stern Region As Studied by Reaction Kinetics. 2. The Journal of Organic Chemistry 69(11), pp. 3899-3906. (10.1021/jo049959l)
- Buurma, N. J., Blandamer, M. J. and Engberts, J. B. F. N. 2003. General-base catalysed hydrolysis and nucleophilic substitution of activated amides in aqueous solutions. Journal of Physical Organic Chemistry 16(8), pp. 438-449. (10.1002/poc.607)
- Buurma, N. J., Pastorello, L., Blandamer, M. J. and Engberts, J. B. F. N. 2001. Kinetic Evidence for Hydrophobically Stabilized Encounter Complexes Formed by Hydrophobic Esters in Aqueous Solutions Containing Monohydric Alcohols. Journal of the American Chemical Society 123(48), pp. 11848-11853. (10.1021/ja010617w)
Book sections
- Saeed, I. Q. and Buurma, N. J. 2019. Analysis of isothermal titration calorimetry data for complex interactions using I2CITC. In: Ennifar, E. ed. Microcalorimetry of Biological Molecules., Vol. 1964. Methods in Molecular Biology Humana Press, pp. 169-183., (10.1007/978-1-4939-9179-2_13)
- Buurma, N. J. 2017. π-conjugated DNA binders. In: Stulz, E. and Clever, G. H. eds. Supramolecular Chemistry and Nanotechnology. Wiley, pp. ch1.2., (10.1002/9781118696880.ch1.2)
- Burley, G. A. et al. 2015. (Non-) covalently modified DNA with novel functions. In: Stults, E. and Clever, G. eds. DNA in Supramolecular Chemistry and Nanotechnology. UK: Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 1-15., (10.1002/9781118696880.ch1)
- Taladriz Blanco, P., Buurma, N. J., Rodriguez Lorenzo, L., Perez Juste, J., Liz Marzan, L. and Herves, P. 2011. Reversible assembly of metal nanoparticles induced by penicillamine. Dynamic formation of SERS hot spots. Journal of Materials Chemistry 21(42), pp. 16880-16887. (10.1039/C1JM12175H)
- Onel, L. and Buurma, N. J. 2011. The Nature of the Sodium Dodecylsulfate Micellar Pseudophase as Studied by Reaction Kinetics. Journal of Physical Chemistry B 115(45), pp. 13199-13211. (10.1021/jp208171w)
- Jones, J. E., Amoroso, A. J., Dorin, I. M., Parigi, G., Ward, B. D., Buurma, N. J. and Pope, S. J. A. 2011. Bimodal, dimetallic lanthanide complexes that bind to DNA: the nature of binding and its influence on water relaxivity. Chemical Communications 47(12), pp. 3374-3376. (10.1039/C1CC00111F)
- Buurma, N. J., Cook, J. L., Hunter, C. A., Low, C. M. R. and Vinter, J. G. 2010. The role of functional group concentration in solvation thermodynamics. Chemical Science 1(2), pp. 242-246. (10.1039/C0SC00209G)
- Wheelhouse, R. T., Garbett, N. C., Buurma, N. J. and Chaires, J. B. 2010. Probing the molecular recognition of a DNA-RNA hybrid duplex. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 49(18), pp. 3207-3210. (10.1002/anie.200907235)
- Carregal-Romero, S., Buurma, N. J., Pérez-Juste, J., Liz-Marzán, L. M. and Hervés, P. 2010. Catalysis by Au@pNIPAM nanocomposites: effect of the cross-linking density. Chemistry of Materials 22(10), pp. 3051-3059. (10.1021/cm903261b)
- Buurma, N. J. and Haq, I. 2008. Calorimetric and spectroscopic studies of Hoechst 33258: self-association and binding to non-cognate DNA. Journal of Molecular Biology 381(3), pp. 607-621. (10.1016/j.jmb.2008.05.073)
Ymchwil
Mae'r ddau brif faes ymchwil yn y grŵp (datblygu rhwymyddion DNA-rhwymyddion cytseiniaid ac astudiaeth o adweithiau organig mewn atebion dyfrllyd) yn cwmpasu sawl prosiect cysylltiedig.
Targedu DNA
Mae DNA yn darged pwysig ar gyfer cyffuriau a genosynwyryddion posibl. Felly mae moleciwlau sy'n caniatáu rheolaeth dros ddetholusrwydd a chysylltiad ar gyfer DNA o ddiddordeb arbennig fel genosynyddion (a/neu asiantau therapiwtig). Rydym yn datblygu motiffau DNA rhwymo newydd sy'n cynnwys systemau wedi'u cydgysylltu'n llawn sy'n arddangos newidiadau mewn eiddo optoelectroneg ar ôl rhyngweithio â DNA. Defnyddir y moleciwlau hyn fel sensitisers mewn biosensitisyddion sy'n canfod presenoldeb pathogenau bacteriol trwy ganfod eu dilyniannau DNA unigryw. Yn y synwyryddion hyn, amlygir ffurfio helics dwbl rhwng llinyn dal a llinyn targed oherwydd bod y sensitisers yn rhwymo i'r DNA deublyg ffurfiedig.
Yn yr un modd, gellir defnyddio moleciwlau sy'n targedu DNA mewn cymwysiadau mewn fforensig. Rydym yn datblygu llifynnau ar gyfer canfod tystiolaeth olion biolegol mewn lleoliadau trosedd yn ddiogel ac yn ddiogel, heb ddiraddio'r dystiolaeth yn y broses. Rydym wedi nodi sawl cyfansoddyn o ddiddordeb yr ydym yn eu profi gan ddefnyddio dulliau cemeg ffisegol mewn modelau o olygfeydd trosedd i asesu sensitifrwydd a detholedd.
Ar wahân i fod yn darged diddorol ar gyfer cymwysiadau biofeddygol a fforensig, mae DNA ynddo'i hun yn ffurfio bloc adeiladu amlbwrpas ar gyfer ystod o strwythurau 3D. Mae cyfuno'r strwythurau 3D hyn â moleciwlau sy'n rhwymo DNA â phriodweddau electronig diddorol yn agor byd nanobioelectroneg. Yn y maes hwn, rydym yn datblygu dulliau newydd a thechnegau dadansoddol i nodi'r blociau adeiladu ar gyfer nanostrwythurau swyddogaethol hunan-gydosod.
Am drosolwg o'r cymwysiadau hyn, gweler ein pennod llyfr yn "DNA mewn Cemeg Supramoleciwlaidd a Nanodechnoleg".
Adweithedd organig mewn atebion dyfrllyd
Mae ein diddordeb mewn adweithedd organig yn canolbwyntio ar atebion dyfrllyd.
Mae astudiaethau cinetig a mecanistig o adweithiau hiliol mewn atebion dyfrllyd yn un o'n meysydd diddordeb allweddol. Er gwaethaf diddordeb aruthrol mewn synthesis enantioselective , anwybyddwyd maes sefydlogrwydd y siral ers degawdau. O ganlyniad, mae adnoddau sylweddol yn cael eu gwario ar synthesis enantioselective o ganolfannau stereogenig dibwrpas, hy canolfannau ystrydebol a fydd yn rasio'n gyflym wrth eu defnyddio mewn atebion biolegol berthnasol. Rydym wedi datblygu'r rhagfynegiad meintiol cyntaf o risg hil gyda chymhwysedd cyffredinol. Mae'r dull rhagfynegol hwn yn caniatáu i ymchwilwyr yn y diwydiant a'r byd academaidd osgoi canolfannau stereogenig ansefydlog ac fe'i cyhoeddwyd fel "Papur Poeth" yn Angewandte Chemie . Mae gan yr ymchwil hon gymwysiadau amlwg mewn cemeg feddyginiaethol a thu hwnt.
Rydym hefyd yn defnyddio ein dealltwriaeth o effeithiau cyfryngau adwaith mewn atebion dyfrllyd wrth ddatblygu adweithiau pontio â chateli metel gan ddefnyddio cyfadeiladau moleciwlaidd a nanoronynnau fel catalyddion.
Yn olaf, mae gennym ddiddordeb mewn astudiaethau mecanyddol o brosesau pylu ffotocemegol ac rydym yn cynnal astudiaethau o'r fath mewn cydweithrediad â'r grŵp o Dr Joe Beames.
Datblygu model a dull
Mae ein hymchwil yn aml yn gofyn am ddatblygu modelau mathemategol newydd neu ddatblygu technegau arbrofol newydd.
Un o'r technegau a ddefnyddir ar gyfer astudio rhyngweithio â DNA a macromolecylau eraill (bio) yw calorïaumetreg titrad isothermol (ITC). Rydym yn datblygu meddalwedd dadansoddi data ar gyfer ecwilibia cymhleth (coupled). Mae ein meddalwedd yn cyfuno cyfuniad modiwlaidd o brosesau rhyngweithio, algorithmau optimeiddio o ddeallusrwydd artiffisial, a dadansoddiad pwerus ôl-ffitio paramedr-ddilysrwydd. Mae'r cyfuniad hwn yn sicrhau'r hyblygrwydd mwyaf posibl wrth ddadansoddi data tra'n cadw paramedrau ystadegol arwyddocaol. Mae ein meddalwedd yn cael ei ddefnyddio ledled y byd ac yn aml yn ffurfio sail cydweithrediadau gyda'r byd academaidd a diwydiant.
Mae ein hastudiaethau o adweithiau a rhyngweithiadau hefyd yn gofyn am ddatblygu modelau mathemategol ar gyfer dadansoddi data arbrofol. Er enghraifft, yn ychwanegol at ein meddalwedd ar gyfer dadansoddi data ITC cymhleth, rydym wedi datblygu modelau ar gyfer dadansoddi byd-eang o kinetics ensym pH a thymheredd dibynnol, ar gyfer dadansoddi data cinetig ar gyfer catalysis gan nanoronynnau aur wedi'u crynhoi o fewn cragen thermosensitif, ac ar gyfer rhwymo metelau i systemau cynnal deuol.
Oherwydd yr angen am ddata meintiol, cefnogir llawer o'n hymchwil hefyd gan gemeg ddadansoddol. Felly mae'r defnydd o dechnegau dadansoddol presennol a datblygu technegau newydd yn bwysig hefyd.
Deallusrwydd artiffisial mewn cemeg
Mae'r grŵp wedi datblygu meddalwedd dadansoddi data ers ymhell dros ddegawd. Mae'r algorithmau deallusrwydd artiffisial a ddefnyddir mewn dadansoddi data hefyd yn cynnig potensial wrth optimeiddio ymateb. Rydym yn defnyddio algorithmau o'r fath, sy'n rhedeg ar gyfrifiaduron Raspberry Pi, i ddatblygu systemau optimeiddio adweithiau awtomataidd cost isel mewn cydweithrediad â'r grŵp o Joe Beames. Un o'r rhesymau dros ddatblygu'r systemau hyn yw ein bod yn credu y dylai llwyfannau optimeiddio adweithiau fod yn fforddiadwy i bob grŵp ymchwil fel bod ymchwil mewn cemeg yn parhau i fod yn hygyrch i bawb sydd am archwilio syniad synthetig da.
I gael rhagor o wybodaeth am brosiectau penodol sydd ar gael gyda Dr Niek Buurma, darllenwch adran Synthesis Moleciwlaidd ein themâu prosiect ymchwil.
Addysgu
Bywgraffiad
MSc (1997) and PhD (both cum laude), University of Groningen (2003, J. B. F. N. Engberts). Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Sheffield (2002-2006, C. A. Hunter and I. Haq). Appointed Lecturer in Physical Organic Chemistry, Cardiff, in 2006.
Member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Member of the RSC Physical Organic Chemistry Group committee. Unilever Research Prize 1998.
Meysydd goruchwyliaeth
Goruchwyliaeth gyfredol
Emily Judd-Cooper
Contact Details
+44 29208 70301
Y Prif Adeilad, Ystafell 1.53, Plas y Parc, Caerdydd, CF10 3AT
