Our research involves the development, the optimization and the mechanistic understanding of a range of organic transformations, but especially cyclization reactions and tandem processes, as well as the application of these transformations to the synthesis of complex organic molecules.

"Selective Formation of Angular Tricyclic Compounds by Ruthenium-Mediated Ring-Rearrangement Metathesis." F. Gao, C. T. M. Stamp, P. D. Thornton, T. S. Cameron, L. E. Doyle, D. O. Miller, and D. Jean Burnell* (Chem. Comm., 2012, 48, 233-235). "Facial Selectivity in the Diels–Alder Reactions of 2,2-Disubstituted Cyclopent-4-ene-1,3-dione Derivatives and a Computational Examination of the Facial Selectivity of Diels–Alder Reactions of Structurally Related Dienes and Dienophiles." P.-Y. Liu, Y.-J. Wu, C. C. Pye, P. D. Thornton, R. A. Poirier, and D. Jean Burnell* (Eur. J. Org. Chem., 2012, 1186-1194). "Trapping the Oxyallyl Cation Intermediate Derived from the Nazarov Cyclization of Allenyl Vinyl Ketones with Nitrogen Heterocycles." V. M. Marx, F. M. LeFort, and D. Jean Burnell* (Adv. Synth. Catal., 2011, 353, 64-68). "Vinylogous Anionic Processes in the Formation and Interconversion of Tetracyclic Ring Systems." P. D. Thornton, T. S. Cameron, and D. Jean Burnell* (Org. Biomol. Chem., 2011, 9, 3447-3457). "Nazarov Cyclizations of an Allenyl Vinyl Ketone with Interception of the Oxyallyl Cation Intermediate for the Formation of Carbon-Carbon Bonds." V. M. Marx and D. Jean Burnell* (J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2010, 132, 1685-1689).