Cooper Razzi, FCLC 2026

Major: Natural Sciences

Bio: Cooper Razzi is an undergraduate at Fordham University, Lincoln Center, majoring in Natural Sciences on the pre-dental track. His interests include organic chemistry, neuroscience, and human health. He conducted research on the synthesis of the A-ring of pancratistatin, a promising anti-cancer compound, and also performs EEG-based studies on learning modalities and brain activity. Cooper plans to pursue dentistry and enjoys integrating creativity through design and interdisciplinary work.

Title of Research: Routes to Highly Oxygenated and Functionalized Aromatic Rings: An Approach Towards the A-Ring of Pancratistatin

Mentor: Dr. Martin Di Grandi, Natural Sciences

Research Partners: Rudy Zarate III and Elliott Brickner

Abstract: Pancratistatin, a member of the Amaryllidaceae family of natural products, was originally isolated from a Hawaiian spider lily and was subsequently found to have unique anti-cancer properties, including selective toxicity toward tumor cells. However, its clinical potential is limited because the highly substituted and heavily oxygenated aromatic A-ring of this natural product poses a unique synthetic challenge. This project aimed to develop an efficient synthetic route to a suitably functionalized A-ring synthon as a key intermediate toward the total synthesis of pancratistatin. Several commercially available polyhydroxylated benzene analogs were used as starting materials in an attempt to secure appropriately functionalized A-ring synthons. Multiple synthetic strategies were explored to introduce the required functional groups, including functionalization and transformation reactions designed to generate highly oxygenated aromatic intermediates. Despite extensive efforts, a novel, high-yielding synthetic pathway to the desired A-ring precursors was not achieved. Consequently, modified literature procedures were employed to synthesize key intermediates. These findings highlight the synthetic challenges associated with densely functionalized aromatic systems and provide direction for future optimization toward scalable routes to pancratistatin.