Florida State University College of Arts and Sciences - Chemistry and Biochemistry

Chemistry and Biochemistry

Research in the Chemistry department currently spans fields ranging from analytical through organic, using experimental techniques and equipment including advanced lasers, spectrometers and superconducting magnets.

A new, 5-story 168,000-square-foot (15,600 m2) chemistry building was completed in April 2008 and officially opened on May 2, 2008. The building features state-of-the-art facilities and houses all fields of chemistry. Labs are located on floors 2 - 5 and are segregated by division. The second floor is home to material chemists, while the third and fourth floors serve physical and analytical chemists. The fifth floor is home to synthetic organic chemistry with labs specifically designed to accommodate organic synthesis research. The building serves to enhance the department's strengths in molecular recognition, materials, nanotechnology, biochemistry, molecular synthesis, computational chemistry, and advanced measurement science as well as further support its robust Ph.D. and postdoctoral fellow training programs.

Also working in the field of materials science and nanoscience at FSU is the Nobel laureate Sir Harry Kroto, the co-discoverer of the C₆₀ 'buckyball', who is a member of FSU's Chemistry and Biochemistry Department.

Taxol - anti-cancer drug
A significant achievement at the university was chemistry professor and synthetic organic chemist, Robert A. Holton's synthesizing of Taxol on Dec. 9, 1993. The chemical has been used as an effective breast cancer and ovarian cancer treatment.

Dr. Holton and his organic chemistry team won a race to develop a cheaper semisynthetic version (Holton Taxol total synthesis). In 1993, Bristol-Myers Squibb began marketing Taxol, ultimately earning more than $1.6 billion by the year 2000. Just like other chemotherapy drugs, it had side effects, but it also prolonged lives, and in many cases caused a full remission of cancer.

Before the drug company's exclusive license expired, Florida State earned $351 million in royalties, vaulting the school into the ranks of Columbia University and California's state universities in research profits. By comparison, Taxol has earned Florida State more than three times what the popular beverage Gatorade earned the University of Florida.