P.B. Reese Head of Department B.Sc.(General), U.W.I., D.Phil., Sussex. Professor (Organic) paul.reese@uwimona.edu.jm

Research Interests

2. Microbial transformations. Natural products of agricultural and pharmaceutical interest are structurally modified by selected strains of fungi in an effort to produce a range of new analogues with enhanced bioactivity.

3. Steroids. Partial synthesis of steroid hormones is studied with the aim of identifying cheaper routes to the production of these costly biochemicals.

Selected publications

• D.O. Collins, W.A. Gallimore, W.F. Reynolds, L.A.D. Williams and P.B. Reese, "New Skeletal Sesquiterpenoids, Caprariolides A - D, from Capraria biflora and their insecticidal activity." J. Nat. Prod., 2000, 63, 1515-1518.
• P.B. Reese, Remote Functionalization Reactions in Steroids. Steroids, 2001, 66, 481-497.
• D.O. Collins, P.L.D. Ruddock, J. Chiverton de Grasse, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "Microbial Transformation of Cadina-4,10(15)-dien-3-one, Aromadendr-1(10)-en-9-one and Methyl Ursolate by Mucor plumbeus ATCC 4740." Phytochemistry, 2002, 59, 479-488.
• D.O. Collins, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "New Cembranes from Cleome spinosa." J. Nat. Prod., 2004, 67, 179-183.
• G.D.A. Martin, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "Investigation of the importance of the C-2 oxygen function in the transformation of stemodin analogues by Rhizopus oryzae ATCC 11145." Phytochemistry, 2004, 65, 701-710.
• P.L.D. Ruddock, D.J. Williams and P.B. Reese, "The reactions of palladium(II), thallium(III) and lead(IV) trifluoroacetates with 3beta-acetoxyandrost-5-en-17-one; crystal structure of the first trifluoroacetate bridged 5,6,7-pi-allyl steroid palladium dimer." Steroids, 2004, 69, 193-199.
• A.R.M. Chen, P.L.D. Ruddock, A.S. Lamm, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "Stemodane and stemarane diterpenoid hydroxylation by Mucor plumbeus and Whetzelinia sclerotiorum." Phytochemistry, 2005, 66, 1898-1902.
• A.S. Lamm, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "Bioconversion of Stemodia maritima diterpenes and derivatives by Cunninghamella echinulata var. elegans and Phanerochaete chrysosporium." Phytochemistry, 2006, 67, 1088-1093.
• A.S. Lamm, A.R.M. Chen, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "Steroid hydroxylation by Whetzelinia sclerotiorum, Phanerochaete chrysosporium and Mucor plumbeus." Steroids, 2007, 72, 713-722.
• G.D.A. Martin, M.C. Durrant and P.B. Reese, "A predictive cytochrome P450 monooxygenase functional model for generic hydroxylation by Rhizopus oryzae ATCC 11145." Journal of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, 2008, 7, 421-433.
• A.S. Lamm, A.R.M. Chen, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "Fungal hydroxylation of (-)-Santonin and its analogues." J. Mol. Catal. B: Enzym., 2009, 59, 292-296.
• F.A. Russell, V. Mulabagal, D.R. Thompson, M.A. Singh-Wilmot, W.F. Reynolds, M.G. Nair, V. Langer and P.B. Reese, "Novel stemodin-derived analogues with lipid peroxidation, cyclooxygenase enzymes and human tumour cell proliferation inhibitory activities." Phytochemistry, 2011, 72, 2361-2368.
• P.C. Peart, A.R.M. Chen, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "Entrapment of mycelial fragments in calcium alginate: A general technique for the use of immobilized filamentous fungi in biocatalysis." Steroids, 2012, 77, 85-90.
• K.P. McCook, A.R.M. Chen, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "The potential of Cyathus africanus for transformation of terpene substrates." Phytochemistry, 2012, 82, 61-66.
• P.C. Peart, W.F. Reynolds and P.B. Reese, "The facile bioconversion of testosterone by alginate-immobilized filamentous fungi." J. Mol. Cat. B: Enzymat., 2013, 95, 70-81.