I love to study how transition metal complexes interact with biological systems. My research involves the synthesis, structural characterization, and in vitro anticancer assessment of organoplatinum(IV) complexes. My students and I have discovered organometallic compounds that are much more cytotoxic toward cancer cells than cisplatin. We are working on ways to make these compounds water-soluble and more selective at targeting cancer cells and leaving healthy cells alone. My students become proficient at inorganic synthesis, employing Schlenk line techniques and an inert atmosphere glovebox. My students routinely characterize their products by multinuclear NMR, infrared, and electronic absorption spectroscopies. My students also model their complexes computationally using B3LYP theory. My collaborator, Dr. Kraig Wheeler of Whitworth University, obtains our X-ray structures for us. More collaborators at the National Cancer Institute carry out in vitro cell death assays for us, using 60 different cancer cell lines.