Nobel Prize "for the development of the metathesis method in organic synthesis”.
 
Prof. Schrock is a pioneer in the development of catalysts for metathesis reactions, a type of transformation of unprecedented utility for building molecules (metathesis means change of place, as in a dance in which people can exchange partners).

Many daily products that contribute to our welfare like perfumes, plastics, fibers and particularly, drugs, are nonnatural products that have to be prepared in synthetic laboratories using laborious and costly methods.

The discovery of Prof. Schrock proposes a new way of joining molecular fragments and in this way has opened the door to the preparation of these products in much more rapid, cost-efficient and ecological manner. The development of metathesis reactions has brought a paradigmatic change in the way synthetic chemists plan the construction of new molecules.