Background
He was born on February 20, 1952 in Chula Vista, California.
He was born on February 20, 1952 in Chula Vista, California.
Roush studied chemistry at the University of California Los Angeles (Bachelor of Science 1974) and Harvard University (Doctor of Philosophy 1977 under Robert Burns Woodward).
Following a year postdoctoral appointment at Harvard, he joined that faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 1987, Doctor Roush moved to Indiana University and was promoted to Professor in 1989 and Distinguished Professor in 1995. Two years later, he moved to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and served as the Warner Lambert/Parke Davis Professor of Chemistry.
He served as chair of the University of Michigan"s Department of Chemistry from 2002-2004.
In 2004 Professor Roush relocated with his group to the Jupiter, Florida campus of the Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) where he currently serves as Professor of Chemistry, Associate Dean of the TSRI graduate program and Executive Director of Medicinal Chemistry. Roush is active in the field of organic chemistry with research interests including natural product synthesis, methods development and medicinal chemistry.
He is known for his stereochemical studies and synthetic applications of the intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction and his work in the area of asymmetric and acyclic diastereoselective synthesis, specifically the use of tartrate ester modified allylboronates and other allylmetal compounds for the aldol-like construction of propionate-derived systems He has also made important contributions the synthesis of deoxyglycosides and polyhydroxylated natural products, and to the design and synthesis of inhibitors of cysteine proteases targeting important human pathogens (eg, Trypanosoma, Plasmodium and Entamoeba species).
William Roush has received numerous awards and honors including: Phi Beta Kappa, 1974 Merck Faculty Development Award, 1981 Eli Lilly Grantee, 1981-1983 Roger and Georges Firmenich Career Development Chair in Natural Products Chemistry (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), 1981-1984 Fellow of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, 1982-1986 Alan R. Day Award of the Philadelphia Organic Chemist"s Club, 1992 Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award, American Chemical Society, 1994 American College of Surgeons Akron Section Award, 1996 Merit Award, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, 1998 Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award, University of Michigan, 1998 Paul G. Gassman Distinguished Service Award - American College of Surgeons Division of Organic Chemistry, 2002 American College of Surgeons Ernest Guenther Award in the Chemistry of Natural Products, 2004 Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2006 Fellow, American Chemical Society, 2009.
