Chemistry professor aims to discover new reactions for future medicines and materials

In “The Gallic Wars,” circa 50 B.C., Julius Caesar recounts how a chieftain committed suicide by ingesting yew extracts. Known to be poisonous in ancient times, a component of that same tree bark extract has in recent decades become the powerful anticancer medicine paclitaxel (brand name Taxol).

About 5 kilograms (11 pounds) of Pacific yew tree bark are needed to isolate one milligram of paclitaxel. Demand for the scarce and slow-growing Pacific yew has spurred researchers to develop new chemical reactions to synthesize paclitaxel and related molecules efficiently in a laboratory.

Coupled with the low abundance of biologically active natural products like paclitaxel, the complexity of these important molecules makes isolating or synthesizing them difficult. Also, their scarcity challenges researchers seeking to identify new natural-product-based and bioinspired pharmaceuticals.

The quest to generate complex molecules, though challenging, often leads to new, more efficient reactions. The difficulty appeals to Elias Picazo, assistant professor of chemistry at the USC Dornsife College of Letters Arts and Sciences.

“I like challenging problems, and the idea of synthesizing molecules or materials that can later have an impact on life is captivating,” said Picazo, who joined USC Dornsife in January. “The challenge can be in building a specific molecule or it can be in creating new reactions that can later be used to build molecules.”

Picazo’s research interests include exploring iron as a catalyst to invent new reactions. Iron catalysis remains a challenging, unsolved chemical field due to iron’s complex chemical qualities, which can lead to unexpected results. But Picazo hypothesizes that, if controlled, iron’s temperamental but versatile nature can lead to a plethora of new reactions. Doing so would provide new tools to industries relying on chemical synthesis to produce molecules of interest.

Further, iron’s abundance, low cost and low toxicity provide reasons to study whether it can replace expensive elements like palladium, a scarce and precious metal used to synthesize pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals such as fertilizers and insecticides, and other materials.

Barriers to college

Picazo’s passion for research is matched by a commitment to reaching students who haven’t considered college or think it’s out of reach. In his view, barriers to higher education often include language, unfamiliarity with professions requiring college degrees, and economic hardships. His own unusual path to becoming a professor gives him unique insights on how such obstacles can block educational aspirations.

His parents immigrated from Mexico, and he grew up in a small farming community in California’s Central Valley. “My schooling essentially started in second grade when my family moved to Shafter,” said Picazo. “That is when I learned English because at home we had only spoken Spanish.”

By fifth grade, he was earning straight As in all subjects. “That’s when I became academically oriented,” Picazo said. Teachers encouraged him to apply to college, and he headed to the University of California, Santa Barbara.

After witnessing Picazo ace all of his chemistry quizzes, a teaching assistant suggested that he consider chemistry as a major. The TA showed him around a research lab and encouraged him to pursue undergraduate research.

Connecting the dots

As he progressed through courses, Picazo began connecting his classroom learning with observations in everyday life. “I thought it was so cool to see the chemical structures that became drugs and materials,” like the polyester clothing he wore as a cross country and track runner. “The polyurethane polymers that make up running shoe midsoles and the small molecules used as agrochemicals were interesting to me.”

He made it official and chose chemistry as his major in his sophomore year, and he began conducting undergraduate research as a junior. The notion of graduate school never entered his mind — until he learned that he could earn a PhD in chemistry while also earning a stipend.

“Wait,” he recalls thinking, “you’re literally paying me to better my life, to get a PhD doing something I love? Sign me up, 20 times over!”

He applied to and was accepted by UCLA, where his doctoral studies focused on the synthesis of complex natural products. In postdoctoral work at Harvard University, he received a five-year National Institutes of Health MOSAIC (Maximizing Opportunities for Scientific and Academic Independent Careers) fellowship. Support from the award is helping him launch his lab at USC Dornsife’s Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute, where he’s already making an impression on his colleagues.

“Elias is a great hire in the area of organic synthesis and materials chemistry, and he is a great communicator,” says Loker Institute Director G.K. Surya Prakash, George A. and Judith A. Olah Nobel Laureate Chair in Hydrocarbon Chemistry and professor of chemistry, noting Picazo’s “stellar achievements” in graduate and postdoctoral research.

While crediting his own dedication and hard work, Picazo is mindful of how mentors helped him aspire to a career in academia. “I’ve ended up here in part because of wonderful mentors. I’m indebted and grateful to everyone.” That list of supporters includes his parents, who supported and encouraged his aspirations despite being unfamiliar with academia’s structure.

Inspiring others

Picazo returns each year to his high school to encourage students to pursue higher education. He visits classes, speaks at breakfast events for Advanced Placement students, makes himself available for informal chats and shares his contact information for questions about college applications and essays.

Convinced that incremental efforts can be powerful and grow to larger ones, Picazo remains committed to spreading the message among students in California’s Central Valley, where he believes that students often don’t see postsecondary education in their future.

“I didn’t know what it meant to be a chemist, or even a scientist, when I was in high school, let alone how to become one. I grew up thinking institutions and academic achievements were out of reach simply because of financial constraints,” he says. “My experience resonates with other students in similar situations, which is why I continue to share my academic journey.”