Kevin Lam
The Electric Chemist

Kevin Lam

For episodes 5 and 6 of the Modern Chemistry Podcast, I interviewed Kevin Lam. Kevin completed his Ph.D. studies at the Université Catholique de Louvain (Belgium) in 2010 and, since then, has held research roles at universities in the USA and Kazakhstan. He is currently a Reader in Medicinal Chemistry, based at the University of Greenwich, at their Chatham (UK) campus – where we recorded this episode.

Kevin’s research interests focus on the applications of electrochemistry, particularly in the fields of organic electrochemistry, organometallic electrochemistry, and medicinal electrochemistry.

I strongly suggest you listen to episode 5 before episode 6 because the discussion with Kevin covered so much ground.

Episode 5
Also, you can click on this link: https://0-series-preview.simplecast.com/episodes/kevin-lam-the-electric-chemist-part-1
Episode 6
Also, you can click on this link: https://0-series-preview.simplecast.com/episodes/kevin-lam-the-electric-chemist-part-2

Our theme music is “Wholesome” by Kevin MacLeod
Music from Film Music
License: CC BY
Connect with me (Paul) on LinkedIn.

Terms used during interview

  • Electrochemistry
  • Organic electrochemistry (electrosynthesis) – Organic electrochemistry uses electrical current through a reaction to activate organic molecules using the addition or removal of electrons. Organic molecules are, broadly speaking, those containing one or more carbon atoms covalently linked to other atoms.
  • Organic Synthesis – Any chemical or biochemical method used to make organic substances.
  • Flow (electro)chemistry – for more information on flow chemistry, I suggest that you check out episode 2 of the Modern Chemistry Podcast with Russell Taylor. Flow Electrochemistry is a technique whereby the components of a reaction are passed between typical electrochemistry electrodes.
  • Positron Emission Tomography – An imaging technique, also referred to as PET, is often used in medical diagnosis.
  • C11 (Carbon 11) – A radioactive isotope of carbon. Typically made in a cyclotron, one of the primary uses for Carbon 11 is as a tracing agent in PET scans.
  • Cyclotron – A particle accelerator, often used to prepare radionuclides for use in nuclear medicine applications – such as PET.
  • Metastatic Melanoma – Melanoma is a type of cancer that develops from pigment-containing cells (melanocytes) typically found in the skin. Metastatic Melanoma occurs when initial cancer spreads to other locations in the body.
  • Organometallic drug – A drug that contains carbon atoms directly bonded to metals or metalloids.
  • Chloroquine – A medicine used to treat malaria.
  • Electron Transfer – A process that occurs when an electron relocates from an atom or molecule to another such chemical entity. ET is a mechanistic description of a redox reaction, wherein the oxidation state of reactant and product changes

You can find out more about Kevin and his work on his lab group page or find her on LinkedIn and Twitter.