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Neil Garg delivers plenary lecture at 100th National Organic Symposium
His lecture was titled “Strained Intermediates and Chemical Education.”
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Malvika Choudhary - Tue, 08, Jul 2025
- 13:31 EDT
- 21
Neil Garg / Wikipedia
Indian American professor Neil Garg delivered a plenary lecture at the 100th National Organic Symposium (NOS), held in Troy, New York which took place between June 22 to June 26.
A chemistry professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, Garg was among the invited speakers at the biennial symposium, organized by the American Chemical Society’s Division of Organic Chemistry.
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This year’s event marked the centennial celebration of the NOS and was themed “Return to the Roots,” referencing the symposium’s historical ties to the northeastern United States.
Garg’s lecture titled “Strained Intermediates and Chemical Education,” discussed his group’s research on highly reactive structures such as cyclic allenes and anti-Bredt olefins, and how these intermediates are being used to develop new synthetic methods.
His talk also highlighted education-focused projects from his lab, including the Organic Coloring Book series and a newly released animation aimed at improving public engagement with organic chemistry.
Garg, like several speakers at the centennial event, traced his academic lineage to James F. Norris, who attended the first NOS in 1925.
Having joined UCLA in 2007, Garg currently holds the Kenneth N. Trueblood Endowed Chair in Chemistry and Biochemistry. He served as department chair from 2019 to 2023 and is now vice chair. From 2012 to 2021, he participated in UCLA’s Faculty-in-Residence program, living among undergraduate students.
His lab is known for its work on nickel-catalyzed bond activations, including reactions involving esters and amides, and for completing the total synthesis of complex natural products such as welwitindolinones and akuammilines. In 2024, his group reported the first practical synthetic route to anti-Bredt olefins, addressing a longstanding challenge in the field.
Outside research, Garg has led a range of science education and outreach efforts. He co-founded ElectraTect, a company developing electrosynthesis technologies and has developed virtual reality tools, mobile apps, and Chem Kids, a summer program launched in 2023 to introduce children to organic chemistry.
Garg earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from New York University in 2000. He completed his doctorate. at the California Institute of Technology in 2005 and was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Irvine.
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