Dr. Richard W. Denton – Faculty Spotlight

Dr. Richard W. Denton – Assistant Professor

Richard Denton is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York. Before joining Medgar Evers College, he worked at Barnard-College-Columbia University as a Special Laboratory Instructor and at Hofstra University as a Special Assistant Professor of Chemistry. He holds a Ph.D. in Synthetic Organic Chemistry from the Graduate Center at CUNY and an M.Phil. in Natural Product Chemistry from the University of the West Indies, Mona campus.

While at Barnard College, he was intrigued by the application of microwave in organic synthesis. Hence, he developed his research around the use of MW technology in organic synthesis and extraction methods. His research applies microwave-assisted 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions to make heterocyclic molecules, specifically isoxazolines and isoxazolidines.  These nitrogen-containing heterocycles are suitable precursors to several natural and synthetic products with interesting biological and pharmacological properties.

His approach illustrates an expeditious method for preparing diacylglycerol lactones (DAG-lactones) mimetics.  These lactones are potent activators for various protein kinase C (PKC) isoforms, a group of enzymes that are promising therapeutic targets for cancer, dementia, HIV, AIDS, and multiple other disorders. Dr. Denton’s research interest also focused on using the microwave to extract organophosphate pesticides in fruits and grains from the local groceries within Crown Heights and neighboring communities of Brooklyn.