Neil Garg


Neil K. Garg is currently a professor of chemistry and holds the Kenneth N. Trueblood Endowed Chair at the University of California, Los Angeles. Garg's research is focused on the chemical synthesis of organic compounds, with an emphasis on the development of new strategies for the preparation of complex molecules possessing unique structural, biological, and physical properties. His group has made breakthroughs in catalysis and in the understanding and utilization of strained intermediates, such as arynes, cyclic alkynes, and cyclic allenes. His laboratory has completed the total syntheses of many natural products, including welwitindolinones, akuammilines, and tubingensin alkaloids.
He has inspired a series of student-created music videos to encourage students to learn organic chemistry. He has led other innovative projects, such as the Organic Coloring Book, the Backside Attack smartphone app, QR Chem, and Biology And Chemistry Online Notes.

Education

Garg received his B.S. from New York University in 2000. He went on to earn his Ph.D. at the California Institute of Technology, where he studied organic chemistry under the supervision of Brian Stoltz as an NDSEG Fellow, completing his studies in 2005. Upon completion of his graduate work, he held an NIH post-doctoral appointment in the laboratory of Larry Overman at University of California - Irvine from 2005 to 2007.

Awards and honors

Garg was promoted to Full Professor at UCLA in 2013. In 2018, he became the inaugural holder of the Kenneth N. Trueblood Endowed Chair in Chemistry & Biochemistry. He has also served as Faculty In Residence in the UCLA dormitories since 2012.