Activities & Awards

• Honorary Doctorate, Texas A&M University

• Chinese Government "International Cooperation Award in Science and Technology" (Chinese equivalent to the U.S. National Medal of Science)

• Chinese Government "Friendship Award" (Highest Chinese Award to foreigners)

• D.H.L. honoris causa, Doctor of Humane Letters, DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois

• Award for International Scientific Cooperation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences

• D.Sc. honoris causa, Honorary Doctorate, Technion, Haifa, Israel

• David P. Gardner Presidential Chair, U of U, 2014

• Priestly Medal of the American Chemical Society, 2012

• National Medal of Science, 2011

• Paul G. Gassman Distinguished Service Award of the ACS Division of Organic Chemistry, 2010

• F.A Cotton Medal for Excellence in Chemical Research, 2010

• Honorary Professor CAS Institute of Chemistry, Beijing, Zheijiang U; East China Normal U and East China U of Science and Technology, 2010

• Fred Basolo Medal for Outstanding Research in Inorganic Chemistry, 2009

• Foreign Member, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, 2007

• ACS Award for Creative Research and Applications of Iodine Chemistry, 2007

• Linus Pauling Medal, 2006

• Foreign Member, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2006

• Editor, JACS, 2002-present.

• Fellow, American Academy of Arts & Sciences

• Member, National Academy of Sciences

• Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2000-2001

• ACS George A. Olah Award in Hydrocarbon or Petroleum Chemistry, 2003.

• Member, AAAS Board of Directors, 2003-2007

• Robert W. Parry Teaching Award, 2000

• ACS James Flack Norris Award in Physical Organic Chemistry, 1998

• University of Utah Rosemblatt Prize for Excellence, 1995

• Utah Award in Chemistry, American Chemical Society, 1994

• The Governor's Medal for Science and Technology, 1993

• Honorary Doctorate of Science (D. Sc. honoris causa) Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia 1992

• Fulbright Senior Scholar, 1987-1988

• Univ. of Utah Distinguished Research Award, 1987

• Fellow AAAS, JSPS Fellow 1985, 1998

• Lady Davis Visiting Professor, Technion, Israel, 1986, 1997

• Humboldt "Senior U.S. Scientist" Award, 1977, 1996, 2010

• Associate Editor, Journal of the American Chemical Society 1982-1999

• 1985 National Organic Symposium Executive Officer

Research Interests

The primary focus of our current research is molecular architecture and supramolecular chemistry via self-assembly. The motif used to construct supramolecular species is coordination and chelation to form discrete molecular entitites with well defined geometries and shapes. We are particularly interested in the assembly of various polygons and polyhedra. To build these supramolecular species one needs only units that provide the proper angles at the corners and hence shape and appropriate di and tritopic connectors.

Illustrative examples are:

The ultimate goal of this research is the rapid assembly of nanoscale molecular devices for practical applications such as information storage, artificial photosynthetic devices, etc. Short term interest includes uses in molecular recognition, chiral recognition, host-guest interactions, catalysis, enantoselective catalysis, etc.

Selected Key Publications

(565 total publications including 7 monographs and 3 dozen reviews)

• Orthogonal Self-Assembly of an Organoplatinum (II) Metallacycle and Cucurbit [8] uril That Delivers Curcumin to Cancer Cells, S. Datta, S.K. Misra, M.L.Saha, N. Lahiri, J. Louie, D. Pan, P.J. Stang, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 2018, 115, 8087-8092

• Antitumor Activity of a Unique Polymer that Incorporates a Fluorescent Self-Assembled Metallacycle, G. Yu, M. Zhang, M. L. Saha, Z. Macey, X. Yan, J. Chen, Y. Yao, Z. Zhou, Y. Liu, C. Gao, F. Huang, X. Chen, P. J. Stang, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2017, 139, 15940-15949.

• Photophysical Properties of Pt(II)-Compounds and Derived Self-Assembled Metallacycles and Metallacages: Fluorescence and its Applications, P.J. Stang, M.L. Saha, X. Yan, Accounts Chem. Res., 2016, 49, 2527-2539.

• Highly Emissive Organoplatinum(II) Metallacages, X. Yan, T.R. Cook, P. Wang, F. Huang, P.J. Stang, Nature Chem., 2015, 7, 342-348.

• Recent Developments in the Preparation and Chemistry of Metallacycles and Metallacages via Coordination, T.R. Cook, P.J. Stang, Chem. Rev., 2015, 115, 7001-7045.

• In Vivo Anti-Cancer Activity of Rhomboidal Pt(II) Metallacycles, I.V. Grishagin, J.B. Pollock, S. Kushal, T.R. Cook, P.J. Stang, B.Z. Olenyuk, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 2014, 111, 18448-18453.

• Synthesis and Photophysical Studies of Self-Assembled Multicomponent Supramolecular Coordination Prisms Bearing Porphyrin Faces, Y. Shi, I. S.-M. Santos, C. Cao, T.R. Cook, P.J. Stang, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 2014, 111, 9390-9395.

• Biomedical and Biochemical Applications of Self-Assembled Metallacycles and Metallacages, T.R. Cook, V. Vajpayee, M.H. Lee, P.J. Stang, K.-W. Chi, Acc. Chem. Res., 2013, 46, 2464-2474.

• Metal-Organic Frameworks and Self-Assembled Supramolecular Coordination Complexes: Comparing and Contrasting the Design, Synthesis and Functionality of Metal-Organic Materials, T.R. Cook, R.Y. Yang, P.J. Stang, Chem. Rev.2013, 113, 734-777.

• Supramolecular Coordination: Self-Assembly of Finite Two- and Three-Dimensional Ensembles, R. Chakrabarty, P.S. Mukherjee, P.J. Stang, Chem. Rev.2011, 111, 6810-6918.

• Surface Confined Metallosupramolecular Architectures: Formation and STM Characterization, S.S. Li; B.H. Northrop, Q.H. Yuan, L.J. Wan, P.J. Stang, Accounts, Chem. Res.2009, 42, 249-259.

• High Symmetry Coordination Cages via Self-Assembly, S.R. Seidel, P.J. Stang, Accounts Chem. Res. 2002, 35, 972-983.

• Archimedean Solids: Transition Metal Mediated Rational Self-assembly of Truncated Supramolecular Tetrahedra, S. Leininger, J. Fan, M. Schmitz, P.J. Stang, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 2000, 97, 1380-1384.

• Self-assembly of Discrete Cyclic Nanostructures Mediated by Transition Metals, B. Olenyuk, S. Leininger, P.J. Stang, Chem. Rev. 2000, 100, 853-907.

• Self-Assembly of Nanoscopic Dodecahedra from 50 Predesigned Components, B. Olenyuk, M.D. Levin, J.A. Whiteford, J.E. Shield, P.J. Stang, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1999, 121, 10434-10435.

• Self-Assembly of Nanoscale Cuboctahedra by Coordination Chemistry, B. Olenyuk, J.A. Whiteford, A. Fechtenkotter, P.J. Stang, Nature1999, 398, 796-799.

• Self-Assembly, Symmetry and Molecular Architecture: Coordination as the Motif in the Rational Design of Supramolecular Metallacyclic Polygons and Polyhedra, P.J. Stang, B. Olenyuk, Accounts Chem. Res. 1997, 30, 502-518.