Japanese Nobel Winner Negishi Dies at 85 in U.S.

Tokyo, June 12 (Jiji Press)--Japanese scientist Eiichi Negishi, a winner of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, died in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Sunday, Purdue University has said. He was 85. Negishi, who was distinguished professor at the U.S. university, shared the prize with scientists Akira Suzuki of Japan and Richard Heck of the United States. The three won the prize for developing so-called palladium-catalyzed cross couplings, which make it far easier to create complex organic compounds, such as for pharmaceuticals and electronic products including liquid crystal displays. Negishi graduated from the University of Tokyo in 1958 and joined Japanese chemical maker Teijin Ltd. <3401>. He took a leave of absence from the company to study at the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a doctor's degree. After quitting Teijin, Negishi joined Purdue University as a postdoctoral researcher. He became professor at the university in 1979. Negishi developed a cross-coupling method using organic zinc compounds in 1977. Co-winner Suzuki, 90, professor emeritus at Hokkaido University, developed a method that uses organic boron compounds. END