Sijbren Otto

Abstract

Angewandte Chemie International EditionVolume 57, Issue 33 p. 10416-10416 Author ProfileFree Access Sijbren Otto First published: 06 July 2018 https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201806450AboutSectionsPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Graphical Abstract The most important thing I learned from my parents is that when you do something, you do it properly. The biggest problem that scientists face is the metrics by which success is measured …” Find out more about Sijbren Otto in his Author Profile. Sijbren Otto The author presented on this page has published more than 10 articles since 2007 in Angewandte Chemie. His most recent contribution is published in this issue: “Parasitic Behavior of Self-Replicating Molecules ”: M. Altay, Y. Altay, S. Otto, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2018, 57, 10564; Angew. Chem. 2018, 130, 10724. Date of birth: August 3, 1971 Position: Professor of Systems Chemistry, University of Groningen E-mail: s.otto@rug.nl Homepage: www.otto-lab.com ORCID: 0000-0003-0259-5637 Education: 1994 MSc, University of Groningen 1998 PhD with Prof. Dr. Jan B. F. N. Engberts, University of Groningen 1998 Postdoc with Prof. Dr. Steven L. Regen, Lehigh University 1999–2001 Marie Curie Fellow with Prof. Dr. Jeremy K. M. Sanders, University of Cambridge Awards: ERC Starting (2011) and Advanced (2016) Grants Current research interests: Systems chemistry; de novo synthesis of life; dynamic combinatorial chemistry; supramolecular chemistry; catalysis; origins of life Hobbies: Fossil hunting, hiking, korfball The most important thing I learned from my parents is that when you do something, you do it properly. The biggest problem that scientists face is the metrics by which success is measured. My favorite quote is “When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new” (Dalai Lama XIV). I chose chemistry as a career because I thought it would provide a better chance for a job than what I ideally would have liked to become: a paleontologist. Chemistry was a good second choice though, as, unlike paleontology, it allows you to create something new. My most exciting discovery to date has been that working with self-replicating molecules allows combining the fun of chemistry with my fascination for evolution. My biggest motivation is to see if we can synthesize life in the lab, not by “simply” reconstructing a cell from its complex biological components, but by enabling it to emerge step by step from simple synthetic building blocks. My best investment was the five days I spent writing an ERC starting grant application (I do not normally earn € 30 000 per hour). Things happened this way because I only found out that, because of paternity leave, I was still eligible for it five days before the deadline. I did have to promise my wife not to make such investments again though. What I look for first in a publication is conceptual novelty. Amazing how few papers you really need to read once you take conceptual novelty as a filter. When I'm frustrated, I go running. Fortunately, the reverse is not true most of the time. I lose track of time when on a 12-hour flight back from Japan, which I am while I type this sentence. My favorite place on earth is home with my family. Especially near the end of a 12-hour flight. My 5 top papers: 1“Lewis-Acid Catalysis of a Diels–Alder Reaction in Water”: S. Otto, F. Bertoncin, J. B. F. N. Engberts, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1996, 118, 7702. (Describes a reaction that I developed at the start of my PhD and that continues to be used in new contexts.) 2“Selection and Amplification of Hosts from Dynamic Combinatorial Libraries of Macrocyclic Disulfides”: S. Otto, R. L. E. Furlan, J. K. M. Sanders, Science 2002, 297, 590. (Dynamic combinatorial chemistry is a powerful tool for developing synthetic receptors.) 3“Systems Chemistry”: R. F. Ludlow, S. Otto, Chem. Soc. Rev. 2008, 37, 101. (Early ideas about the emerging field of systems chemistry.) 4“Mechanosensitive Self-Replication Driven by Self-Organization”: J. M. A. Carnall, C. A. Waudby, A. M. Belenguer, M. C. A. Stuart, J. J.-P. Peyralans, S. Otto, Science 2010, 327, 1502. (A new and in principle general mechanism of self-replication that is driven by self-assembly into nanostructures.) 5“Diversification of self-replicating molecules”: J. W. Sadownik, E. Mattia, P. Nowak, S. Otto, Nature Chem. 2016, 8, 264. (Self-replicating molecules can show behavior akin to the formation of species as encountered in biology.) Volume57, Issue33August 13, 2018Pages 10416-10416 ReferencesRelatedInformation