Helen Sneddon

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Helen Fiona Sneddon
Alma mater University of Cambridge
Scientific career
Institutions GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals
University of California, Irvine
University of York
Thesis The application of [beta-keto dithianes in natural product synthesis] (2005)
Doctoral advisor Steven V. Ley

Helen Sneddon is a British chemist who is Professor of Sustainable Chemistry and Director of the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence at the University of York. Her research looks to identify sustainable synthetic strategies, including alternatives to carbon-halogen bonds and ways to make chemical products more robust.

Contents

Early life and education

Sneddon was an undergraduate student at the University of Cambridge, where she worked alongside Steven V. Ley. After earning her doctorate, Sneddon was supported by a Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 fellowship to move to the University of California, Irvine, where she worked on asymmetric synthesis of palladium(II) compounds. [1]

Research and career

Sneddon spent most of her career at GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, where she first worked in medicinal chemistry. She became interested in sustainable processes and expanding their "green" chemistry activity. [2] She established the Green Chemistry group at GSK, which she has led since 2011. During this campaign she reduced the use of chlorinated solvents at GSK by >50%, which involved advocacy, education and investigations into the properties of replacement solvents. She devised new strategies to improve sustainability in the design of new drugs, including finding a replacement for toxic reaction media and reagents. [1]

Sneddon was made Director of the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence at the University of York in 2022. [3] [1] In 2024, she helped to establish the Doctoral Training Centre focussed on Chemical Synthesis for a Healthy Planet. [4]

Selected publications

Related Research Articles

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