The primary research interests of the Deyrup Lab at Siena College are discovery of new bioactive compounds from natural sources (fungi, plants, bugs, etc.) and describing the chemistry of biological interactions. To put it another way, we are natural products chemists and chemical ecologists. However, working at a liberal arts college, we are always flexible and opportunistic, and have therefore explored projects in other fields as well.
Insect Chemical Ecology
How organisms interact through chemistry is called chemical ecology. There are a seemingly infinite number of fascinating ecological interactions to explore within the biosphere. However, we have focused on the chemical defenses of insects, following in the footsteps of the great insect chemical ecology duo of Jerrold Meinwald and Tom Eisner. Our current research efforts in this field are focused on the chemical defenses of fireflies.
Searching for Fungal Antibiotics
Fungi are a tried and true source of bioactive compounds for people to use. It is our goal to elicit the production of antibiotic compounds from carefully selected fungi by using biorational culturing. We then use 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy for both structure elucidation and to guide isolation of the active components.
Chemical Investigations of Ornamental Plants
Plants used in gardens and buildings for their showy blooms or attractive foliage offer several advantages to the natural products chemist. They are easily available, in bulk, no permits required, and no concerns over damaging wild populations. Although many have been chemically studied, there are numerous remaining to be investigated for secondary metabolites.
Other Studies
In addition to our core projects, our group has explored the physical chemical aspects of some molecules. We are working with Jason Hofstein (also at Siena) to try to find natural molecules capable of acting as a gain medium for dye lasers. We have also used the solvatochromic effect to analyze the dipole moments of dyes in the ground and excited states.