Drs cv new

Dionicio Rhodes Siegel


The University of Texas at Austin
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Fax: (512) 471-0397 Norman Hackerman Building, 5.132
Education
2003
B.A. Chemistry Reed College, Portland, OR Advisors: Arthur Glasfeld and Patrick McDougal
Activities and Awards

2013
College of Natural Sciences Outreach Excellence Award Camille and Henry Dreyfus Special Grant in the Chemical Sciences The University of Texas System Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award College of Natural Sciences Teaching Excellence Award CDMRP Postdoctoral Fellowship Award, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Captain, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Men’s Rugby Club Upjohn-Pharmacia Fellow, California Institute of Technology Institute Fellowship, California Institute of Technology Captain, Reed College Men’s Rugby Team
Research and Professional Experience

2007-present: Assistant Professor at The University of Texas at Austin with a research program
focused on synthesis and mechanism of action studies of natural products that promote
regeneration. In addition, the group develops new synthetic methods for the hydroxylation of
aromatic compounds.
2003-2007: CDMRP Postdoctoral Fellow at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center with Prof.
Samuel Danishefsky. Research involved the total syntheses of polyprenylated phloroglucin natural
products garsubellin A and nemorosone.
1998-2003: Graduate Student at Harvard University with Prof. Andrew Myers. Research centered
on the development of a laboratory preparation of tetracycline. The synthesis was developed to
permit the syntheses of new, tetracycline-based antibiotics and led to the inception of Tetraphase
Pharmaceuticals, a company that is now publicly-traded.
Other Activities

1. Director of “Texas Shamans”: The Texas Shamans workshop is based on the study of natural
products produced in plant species native to Texas. The program targets high schools in the
Austin Independent School District . Both high school students and science teachers have
participated in numerous weeklong workshops over the last four years. The Camille and Henry
Dreyfus Foundation, The University of Texas at Austin, NSF, and the Michael and Susan Dell
Foundation have funded the program. The outreach program is run in collaboration with the Lady
Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin Texas.
2. I have created a new research class at UT Austin, “Bioprospecting; Isolation of Biologically
Active Natural Products from Endophytes”. The Freshman Research Initiative class, supported by
HHMI and NSF focuses on the study of natural products produced by endophytes in various plant
species. Through a combination of fieldwork and laboratory experimentation students select and
locate plants of interest, cultivate and characterize the endophytic microorganisms, isolate the
natural products the microbes produce, and screen these compounds in cell and C. elegans-based
assays. The class spans multiple subdisciplines of biology and chemistry, ranging from
ethnobotany to analytical chemistry.

Publications

The University of Texas at Austin Publications

24.
K. Zlotkowski, A. M. Eliasen, A. Mitra, D. Siegel “Small-Molecule Mechanism of Action Studies in Caenorhabditis elegans.” ChemBioChem, in press. C. Yuan, Y. Liang, T. M. Hernandez, A. Berriochoa, K. N. Houk, D. Siegel “Metal-Free
Aromatic C-H Oxidation Through a Reverse Rebound Mechanism.” Nature 2013, 499, 192-
196.
Highlighted: “Easy Access to Phenols.” Chem. & Eng. News 2013, 91 (28), 7.
C. Yuan, C.-T. Chang, D. Siegel “Syntheses of (+)-Complanadine A and Lycodine
Derivatives by Regioselective [2+2+2] Cycloadditions.” J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78, 5647-5668.
A. Axelrod, A. M. Eliasen, M. R. Chin, K. Zlotkowski, D. Siegel “Syntheses of Xanthofulvin
and Vinaxanthone, Natural Products Enabling Spinal Cord Regeneration.” Angew. Chem.
Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 3421-3424.
Highlighted: “Synthesis of Xanthofulvin and Vinaxanthone.” SciBX 2012, 5 (44)
doi:10.1038/scibx.2012.1170. “Total Syntheses of Xanthofulvin and Vinaxanthone.”
Synfacts 2013, 9, 465.
K. Zlotkowski, J. T. Pierce-Shimomura, D. Siegel “Small Molecule-Mediated Axonal
Branching in C. elegans.” ChemBioChem 2013, 14, 307-310.
T. Barton, D. Siegel “Investigation of an Acrylate Lynchpin Approach Toward the Synthesis
of Stolonidiol.” Synthesis 2012, 44, 2770-2778.
X. Cheng, N. L. Harzdorf, Z. Khaing, D. Kang, A. M. Camelio, T. Shaw, C. E. Schmidt, D.
Siegel “Neuronal Growth Promoting Sesquiterpene-Neolignans; Syntheses and Biological
Studies.” Org. Biomol. Chem. 2012, 10, 383-393.
S. K. Piasecki, C. A. Taylor, J. F. Detelich, J. Liu, J. Zheng, A. Komsoukaniants, D. Siegel,
A. T. Keatinge-Clay “Employing Modular Polyketide Synthase Ketoreductases as
Biocatalysts in the Preparative Chemoenzymatic Syntheses of Diketide Chiral Building
Blocks.” Chem. Biol. 2011, 18, 1331-1340.
A. Vidal-Gadea, S. Topper, L. Young, L. Kressin, E. Elbel, T. Maples, M. Brauner, K.
Erbguth, A. Axelrod, A. Gottschalk, D. Siegel, J. T. Pierce-Shimomura “Caenorhabditis
elegans Selects Distinct Crawling and Swimming Gaits via Dopamine and Serotonin.” Proc.
Natl. Acad. 2011, 108, 17504-17509, direct submission.
Z. Khaing, D. Kang, A. M. Camelio, C. E. Schmidt, D. Siegel “Hippocampal and Cortical
Neuronal Growth Mediated by the Small Molecule Natural Product Clovanemagnolol.”
Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 2011, 21, 4808-4812.
C. Yuan, A. Axelrod, M. Valera, L. Danysh, D. Siegel “Synthesis and Reaction of
Phthaloyl Peroxide Derivatives, Potential Organocatalysts for the Stereospecific
Dihydroxylation of Alkenes.” Tetrahedron Lett. 2011, 52, 2540-2542.
Highlighted: “Metal or No Metal: That is the Question!” Angew. Chem. Int. Ed.
2011, 50, 10495-10497.
A. M. Camelio, T. Barton, F. Guo, T. Shaw, D. Siegel “Hydroxyl-Directed Cyclizations of
1,6-Enynes.” Org. Lett. 2011, 13, 1517-1519.
Highlighted: “Palladium-Catalyzed Enyne Cyclizations Toward Complex
Cyclopentanes.” Synfacts 2011, 6, 631.
M. Zhang, E. J. Cho, G. Burstein, D. Siegel, Y. Zhang “Selective inactivation of a human
neuronal silencing phosphatase by a small molecule inhibitor.” ACS Chem. Biol. 2011, 6,
511-519.
C. Yuan, C.-T. Chang, A. Axelrod, D. Siegel “Synthesis of Complanadine A, an Inducer
of Neurotrophic Factor Excretion.” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010, 132, 5924-5925.
Highlighted: “Symmetrizing the Unsymmetrical.” Nature 2010, 465, 560-561.
“Making Complanadine A.” Chem. & Eng. News 2010, 88 (17), 11. “Total
synthesis: Pseudosymmetry solved.” Nature Chem. Published online April 30th,
2010.
X. Cheng, N. D. Harzdorf, T. W. Shaw, D. Siegel “Biomimetic Syntheses of the
Neurotrophic Natural Products Caryolanemagnolol and Clovanemagnolol.” Org. Lett.
2010, 12, 1304-1307.

Graduate and Postdoctoral Publications

9.
C. Tsukano, D. R. Siegel, S. J. Danishefsky “Total Synthesis of Polycyclic
Polyprenylated Acylphloroglucinols.” J. Syn. Org. Chem. Japan 2010, 68, 592-600.
C. Sun, Q. Wang, J. D. Brubaker, P. M. Wright, C. D. Lerner, K. Noson, M. Charest, D.
R. Siegel, Y.-M. Wang, A. G. Myers “A Robust Platform for the Synthesis of New
Tetracycline Antibiotics.” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008, 130, 17913-17927.
C. Tsukano, D. R. Siegel, S. J. Danishefsky “Differentiation of Nonconventional
“Carbanions” The Total Synthesis of Nemorosone and Clusianone.” Angew. Chem. Int.
Ed. 2007, 46, 8840-8844.
D. R. Siegel, S. J. Danishefsky “Total Synthesis of Garsubellin A.” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006,
128, 1048-1049.
H. Liu, D. R. Siegel, S. J. Danishefsky “Studies Directed Toward the Synthesis of
Terreulactone A: Rapid Synthesis of the A, B, C Rings.” Org. Lett. 2006, 8, 423-425.
M. G. Charest, D. R. Siegel, A. G. Myers. “Synthesis of (–)-Tetracycline.” J. Am. Chem.
Soc. 2005, 127, 8292-8293.
M. G. Charest, C. D. Lerner, J. D. Brubaker, D. R. Siegel, A. G. Myers. “A Convergent,
Enantioselective Synthetic Route to Structurally Diverse 6-Deoxytetracycline Antibiotics.”
Science 2005, 308, 395-398.
A. G. Myers, D. R. Siegel, D. J. Buzard, M. G. Charest. “Synthesis of a Broad Array of
Highly Functionalized, Enantiomerically Pure Cyclohexanecarboxylic Acid Derivatives by
Microbial Dihydroxylation of Benzoic Acid and Subsequent Oxidative and Rearrangement
Reactions.” Org. Lett. 2001, 3, 2923-2926.
P. B. Alper, C. Meyers, A. Lerchner, D. R. Siegel, E. M. Carreira. “Facile, Novel
Methodology for the Synthesis of Spiro[pyrrolidin-3,3'-oxindoles]: Catalyzed Ring Expansion
Reactions of Cyclopropanes by Aldimines.” Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 1999, 38, 3186-3189.

Patents

4.
“Composition and Methods to Aid in Spinal Cord Regeneration.” D. Siegel, M. Chin, A. Eliasen, A. Axelrod. The University of Texas at Austin. (61/866,430). “Compositions and Methods for Regeneration by Small Molecule Modulation of GPR91.” D. Siegel, A. Eliasen, M. Chin, A. Axelrod. The University of Texas at Austin. (61/863,237). “Cyclic Peroxide Oxidation of Aromatic Compounds Production and Use Thereof.” D. Siegel, C. Yuan. The University of Texas at Austin. (61/805,781). “Synthesis of Tetracyclines and Analogues as Antibiotics.” A. G. Myers, M. G. Charest, C. D. Lerner, J. D. Brubaker, D. R. Siegel. Harvard University. U.S. Patent 7,807,842.

Source: http://dsiegel.cm.utexas.edu/uploads/file_uploads/DRS%20CV%20August.pdf