Dear Colleagues,

Throughout history, there have been quite a few dragons roaming various scenic locations, from the rolling hills of Camelot to the ruins of the Roman amphitheater in the ancient city of Mettis, present-day Metz in Lorraine. Apart from the dragon Graoully, this region is renowned for its exquisite mirabelle, colorful history, unsuspected places with suspicious names such as Thionville, and a former and world’s only Smurf adventure park. In fact, the greater region surrounding Metz is considered by many as a jolly place where French savoir vivre meets German efficiency, the true heart and soul of Europe, with Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium, and Switzerland within cycling distance.

 Cycling across borders may also best describe the more than 50 years of synthetic chemistry associated with Gilbert Kirsch and the innovative Laboratoire d'Ingénierie Moléculaire et Biochimie Pharmacologique (LIMBP) in Metz. Born in 1947, in nearby Merlebach, a small town right at the border with the Saarland and with a long tradition in coal mining, Gilbert studied chemistry and physics at the Paul Verlaine University of Metz, graduating with a B.Sc. in 1969 and an M.Sc. degree in 1971. In 1973, he obtained his PhD degree at the same University under the supervision of Denise Cagniant with a thesis entitled “Synthesis and reactivity of sulfur-selenium heterocycles with benzo[b]selenophene skeleton. Comparison with the benzo[b]furane analogues.”

This general theme of research into chalcogen- and nitrogen heterocycles subsequently has formed the focus of the Kirsch laboratory in Metz, which Gilbert established in 1985 after a few years abroad, and which witnessed Gilbert rising through the usual professorial ranks until his retirement in 2015. For the last four decades, and with over 250 publications, numerous book chapters, international cooperations, and lectures at conferences, Gilbert Kirsch and his group at the LIMBP have been far from limp – they have turned Metz into a center of excellence, an amphitheater of organic synthetic chemistry famous within the community and esteemed by followers worldwide.

It is, therefore, our great pleasure to launch this Special Issue of Molecules in honor of Gilbert Kirsch and as a true celebration of his beloved heterocyclic chemistry. Submissions on any aspects of heterocyclic chemistry, from the synthesis to biological applications are welcome, ice-cold or hot as the Graoully, blue as a Smurf, yellow as a mirabelle or red as a cherry, moony in the sky as selenium or just simply down to earth as tellurium.

Prof. Dr. Claus Jacob
Prof. Dr. Patrick Chaimbault
Guest Editors

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