Karl Anker Jørgensen
was born in Århus, Denmark, on June 15, 1955. He was enrolled at Århus University to study chemistry and physics in 1975. During this period his main interest was not science, but track and field. From to 1981 Karl Anker Jørgensen was a member of the national team representing Denmark at international competitions, especially in decathlon and 1 10-meter hurdles. He won several Danish cham pionships in decathlon, 1 10-meter hurdles, and for teams, and in he won the Nordic Junior Championship in decathlon. He obtained his Ph.D. in 1984 under the guidance of S.-O. Lawesson and J. Linderberg. In 1985 he did postdoctoral work with R. Hoffmann at Cornell University, where he was introduced to catalysis. The stay with Hoffmann also opened his eyes that “chemistry is more than chemistry.”
Karl Anker Jørgensen was appointed as assistant professor at Århus University in 1985, as associate professor in 1988, and as professor in 1992. Since 1997 he also has been the Director of the Center for Catalysis at Århus University. In 1995 he received the Bjerrum Medal and in 2000, the Villum Kann Rasmussen Prize and the Lundbeck Foundation Nordic Research Prize. He is a member of The Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters and The Danish Academy of Technical Sciences.
Scientific Sketch
The scientific work of Jørgensen includes both experimental and applied theoretical chemistry. From the beginning of the 1990s, his main interest has been the development of new catalytic asymmetric reactions. During this period the research group was also engaged in developing catalytic enantioselective hetero-Diels-Alder reactions (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2000, 39, 3558). These reactions include the catalytic enantioselective hetero-Diels-Alder reaction of carbonyl compounds with both normal electron demand (J.Am. Chem. Soc. 1998, 120, 8599) and inverse electron demand (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 1998, 37, 2404) and the application of these reactions in total synthesis. More recently Jørgensen contributed to the development of catalytic asymmetric Friedel-Crafts reactions, e.g., the addition of aromatic compounds to α-imino esters catalyzed by BINAP-copper(I) complexes (Fig. 1) has shown to be an easy entry to optically active aromatic α-amino acids (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2000, 39, 4114). These reactions proceed well for both aromatic and heteroaromatic compounds, and the products are obtained with high enantiomeric excess.
Figure 1. Enantioselective Friedel-Crafts reaction.
The Friedel-Crafts addition of aromatic and heteroaromatic compounds to carbonyl compounds (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2000, 122, 12517) and alkenes (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2001, 40, 160) was also developed, and for these reactions chiral bisoxazoline-copper(II) complexes were found to be the catalysts of choice.
The group has also contributed various types of catalytic enantioselective Henry reactions. The first contribution was the aza-Henry reaction of PMP-protected α-imino esters with nitronates in the presence of chiral bisoxazoline-copper(II) complexes as catalysts (Fig. 2, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2001, 123, 5843).
Figure 2. Enantioselective Henry reaction.
Based on the concept that a Lewis acid can initiate a keto-enol tautomerization, the first direct α-amination reaction was disclosed (Fig. 3, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124, 2420). This reaction provided a simple synthetic approach to syn-β-amino-α-hydroxy esters, which are highly valuable chiral fragments in many pharmaceutical products.
Figure 3. Enantioselective enolate amination.
A Crustacean Catastrophe
Starting materials (serves 6):
100 g butter
oysters
mussels
shrimp
125 mL white wine
salt
pepper
a small bunch of dill weed
a couple sprigs of thyme
Melt the butter in a saucepan with a tightly fitting lid. When the butter has melted, put all the seafood into it.
Add the white wine, salt, pepper, and the fresh herbs and cover. Let the whole wonderful mixture steam for 3–5 minutes.
The seafood can be served with a few slices of smoked salmon and lemon fruit or, its mirror-image, orange fruit in quarters.
Serve with good bread and butter and white wine.
A good Italian white wine will be excellent to accompany this dish (KAJ).
Tenderloin of Wild Boar
Starting materials (serves 6):
2 wild boar tenderloins,
(1 kg each)
2 tbsp mustard
10 crushed juniper berries
a good beer
salt
melted honey
As a main course, the Vikings might have served tenderloin of wild boar with mushrooms or other fungi fried in butter, cabbage in white sauce with horseradish, and bread. After the discovery of America and the potato-German’s immigration to Denmark, it would have been served with boiled potatoes.
Make a marinade from the beer, juniper, mustard, and salt and marinate the tenderloins for 1 hour. Heat the oven to 200 °C. Roast the meat for 15–20 minutes, but baste with melted honey while it roasts. Can be served with boiled potatoes.
An Italian red wine: Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is my favorite (KAJ).
The Royal M&M Almond Cake
Starting materials (serves 6):
12 stiffly whipped egg whites
350 g icing sugar
500 g finely ground almonds,
unpeeled
2 baking pans lined with wax
paper
100 g frozen raspberries
28 g sugar
500 mL whipping cream
1 bag of M&M’s
This cake has its origin from Århus Festival Week’s biggest event ever – Kosmopolitan – where it acquired its present form and name. Chili John: “The Crown Prince of Denmark, Frederik, was coming to see the Stone Temple Pilots, so we had to be hospitable – we owed him a favor. There was only almond cake and whipped cream left from the dessert, and so according to the principle of using the available garnish, that’s what we used: one bag of M&M’s.”
Heat the oven to 175 °C. First fold the icing sugar into the stiffly whipped egg whites and then fold in the ground almonds. Put half of the mixture in each of the two equally sized pans and bake for about 35 minutes. Blend the frozen raspberries with sugar. When the cake is cold, spread this mixture onto one of the cakes and put the other one on the top of it. Whip the cream, spread it over the cake, and then decorate with the M&M’s.
Port wine – Feist 1977 – is my favorite to accompany this cake (KAJ).
A Gastronomic Rock n’ Roll World Tour
«My wife is an excellent cook and I have to confess that I can’t cook at all - I am able to grill fish and steak - that’s it!
For both my wife and me (and also our kids - I think), art plays a central part in our life. We have several friends who are professional artists, working as, e.g., painters and musicians. One of our friends writes the lyrics and music, and is the front figure in tv2 (www.tv-2.dk), one of the most popular Danish rock bands. He introduced us to Chili John (www.chilijohn.com). I am sure that Chili John’s artistic cooking has not only made a whole lot of musicians -and a lot of other people for that matter - both replete and happy, but also that his food has sneaked its way into countless concerts and recordings. Over the last 15 years, Chili John has cooked for many different bands during concerts and recordings. Van Morrison, Willie Nelson, Bryan Ferry, Toto, Elton John, Bob Dylan, Björk, Lenny Kravitz, Rage Against The Machine, Crowded House, Ray Charles, and many other international rock bands as well as Danish bands have had concerts where Chili reinforcement was called for.
The following story is from the recording of one of Elton John’s CDs which took place in the PUK studios near Århus: “There were 17 persons in Elton’s entourage, and I had to take into consideration that there were vegetarians, a person who was allergic to refined sugar but loved sweet things, fish eaters, etc. In reality it is not particulary difficult, but people really appreciate it if you take their eating habits seriously. The first day was chili, the second day Chinese. The third day was a gamble - Indian - all English musicians are experts - but they applauded. On the fourth day it was Cajun - Gumbo, Jambalaya. Blackened Redfish, and Crawfish produced a standing ovation. But on the fifth day I ran into trouble. I was short of time because my assistant was ill, and she usually helped me serve the meals. But Elton noticed the crisis, came into the kitchen and offered to help. Ever since, I have always called him one of my former assistants. It was actually Elton’s producer, Chris Thomas, who suggested that I write a cookbook about studio food.” I have had the privilege of being served Chili John’s food many times. Recently, we had him prepare dinner for my research group, and sometimes he offers to prepare special dinners in his apartment when I have guests. Here I have chosen a three-course meal from his kitchen based on Danish food traditions. The dishes and comments are from Chili John Rasmussen, Around the World on 80 Calories or More, Indigo Books.»
Karl Anker Jørgensen