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April 30, 2008

EU Initiative Targets Pharma Competitiveness

Program seeks to reverse decline in European drug discovery.

Firing Up The Tank With Nanoparticles

Aluminum or aluminum oxide particles could help improve fuel efficiency.

Tainted Heparin Called "A Deliberate Scheme"

Congress told that contamination of active ingredient appears intentional.

Academy Elects New Members

NAS elects 72 new members and 18 foreign associates from nine countries.

April 29, 2008

U.S. Sues Norfolk Southern For Damages From Chemical Spill

Lawsuit claims railroad was negligent in 2005 crash, chlorine release.

American Academy Of Arts & Sciences Elects New Fellows

Out of 212 new members, 30 are in the chemical or related sciences.

Nerve Agents Hit Cannabinoid System

Sarin homolog inhibits enzymes in endocannabinoid system.

DSM Will Acquire Polymer Technology Group

Dutch company will use purchase to expand in medical device market.

April 28, 2008

A Petal's Pull On Water

Surface features make moisture bead up and stick.

Cooling The Planet

Injecting sulfate into the stratosphere might deplete ozone layer, study says.

'Hotter' Superconductors

Iron- and arsenic-based crystals form new class of materials.

April 25, 2008

EPA Political Science

Survey finds that 60% of agency scientists report political interference in their work.

Chemical Makers Enjoy Growth

Companies raise prices to preserve profit margins in the first quarter.

Momentum Builds Against Bisphenol A

Move to eliminate chemical from some products begins.

April 24, 2008

Droplets Take On All Terrains

Flexible substrates permit devices to move droplets up, down, and upside down.

Costs Of Smog

EPA regulations should factor in premature deaths from ozone exposure, NRC says.

April 23, 2008

Banning Bisphenol A In Baby Bottles

Canada moves toward restricting the chemical; Congress proposes similar legislation.

$60 Million For Science Education

Howard Hughes Medical Institute provides funds to invigorate science teaching.

Impurity Linked To Adverse Events

Chinese officials question FDA's findings.

April 22, 2008

BASF Adds To Bioplastics

German firm will quadruple capacity for biodegradable polymer.

April 21, 2008

Rule On Hazmat Rail Safety Issued

Trains hauling most dangerous chemicals must use safest route.

Size-Selective Acid Catalysis

Framework pores control substrate access to exposed metal ions.

A Fast Track To Green Gasoline

Catalytic pyrolysis turns cellulose into fuel components in just one step.

Balancing The Safety Board

CSB head wants to diversify board membership.

April 18, 2008

AstraZeneca And Ranbaxy Settle Suit

Nexium agreement still has to get past regulators.

Bisphenol A Called Mostly Safe

Draft report sees some concern for infants, children.

Codexis Going Public

Biocatalyst developer files for initial public offering of $100 million, but there are risks.

April 17, 2008

Evolution Of Rose Aroma Explained

Mutation produces enzyme that makes scent production efficient.

R&D In Shanghai Is Intensifying

Three European chemical makers invest in Chinese laboratories.

April 16, 2008

Emissions Foil Flower Pollination

When common flower scents meet atmospheric pollutants, insects lose the trail to the bloom.

Formaldehyde Limits Set

FEMA acts to reduce formaldehyde levels in trailers for disaster victims.

Chemist Joan Shields Dies At 73

Dedicated educator served ACS in many leadership roles.

Taylor & Francis Launches Green Chemistry Journal

New title complements other journals that cover green chemistry and sustainability research.

April 15, 2008

NIEHS Management Troubles

Report from NIH finds problems in ethics, grants programs.

Paying For Renewables

DuPont, Mohawk find consumers will pay more for products made from renewable materials.

April 14, 2008

Spying On Catalysts

Infrared method probes reactions as they occur in zeolites.

Grace Reaches Asbestos Deal

Settlement could allow firm to emerge from bankruptcy by year's end.

Jungle Sky

Forest air can do more oxidizing than previously thought.

Courting Japan

Foreign suppliers of pharmaceutical chemicals affirm commitment to country's market.

April 11, 2008

Toxicity Reexamined

Critics say new EPA policy opens more opportunities for agencies to sway pollution risk assessments. (Updated April 18, 2008, 10:15 AM)

ACS Meets in New Orleans

Chemists, chemical engineers hold joint meeting in the Crescent City.

Takeda Buys Millennium

Purchase for $8.8 billion furthers globalization of Japanese firm.

April 10, 2008

Chemical Breakdown Helps Plants Grow

Agrochemical's metabolite protects rice from weed killer.

Multilayer Metal-Organic Films Go 3-D

Metal-ligand coordination and &pi–π interactions provide unprecedented structure to layered molecular assemblies.

April 9, 2008

EPA Science Probed

House committee investigation of industry bias in EPA science reaches former ACS president. (Updated, April 14, 2008, 10:30 AM)

April 8, 2008

REACH Preregistration

EU agency raises awareness about first deadlines under chemical law. (Updated, April 11, 2008, 10:30 AM)

Illuminating Hydrogen Peroxide In Cells

Chemiluminescent system is sensitive and specific for H₂O₂.

Energy Defines Sustainability

Presidential symposium lays out challenges and opportunities for chemists and chemical engineers in energy research.

Rohm And Haas Buys South Korea's Gracel Displays

Controlling interest in developer of organic light-emitting diodes deepens displays investment.

Copying Sea Cucumber's Cool Trick

New material switches from stiff to flexible when exposed to water.

Eye For Business

Novartis will pay billions for a majority stake in Nestlé's Alcon eye care unit.

Alligators To The Rescue

Reptile's blood may provide new source of antimicrobials.

Toxic Socks

Silver nanoparticles intended to control odor release in the wash.

Antibiotics For A Meal

Hundreds of soil bacteria thrive on antibiotics as their sole carbon source.

Former Lubrizol Researcher Is Charged

Employee is accused of selling technology to competitor.

Complex Synthesizes Purines

First evidence for the existence of 'purinosome'.

April 4, 2008

Cech Steps Down At HHMI

Chemist-president of prestigious biomedical institute will leave in spring 2009, return to teaching and research.

Jeremy Knowles Dies At 72

Eminent chemist and administrator unraveled enzyme mysteries.

Trial Results Roil Drug Companies

Merck, Schering-Plough are under fire for withholding negative clinical trial data.

Rail Safety Plan Proposed

Tougher, more resilient hazmat tank cars required.

Pharmaceutical Chemicals

Dowpharma sells its U.K. operations to India's Dr. Reddy's.

April 3, 2008

House Committee Probes ACC

Chemical industry's influence on EPA review panels to be examined.

Green Fluorescent Protein Mutant Forms A Red Chromophore

Ease of expressing the red version of GFP is a desirable advance over red fluorescent proteins

BASF And Dow Target Wind Turbine Market

Chemical leaders launch new epoxy products at Paris composites show

April 2, 2008

Inaction On CO₂ Assailed

Congressional panel, states, and environmental activists square off against Bush Administration. (Updated, April 4, 2008, 9:30 AM)

Porous Carbon/Metal Oxide Microfibers

New strategy to create hollow fibers uses ice and silica particles.

Federal employee pointed out problems with toxic FEMA trailers.

Steps In Tooth Enamel Formation Revealed

Matrix protein plays a critical role in crystallizing hydroxyapatite.

April 1, 2008

Stay With Statins

Companies respond to panel's suggestion that patients avoid some cholesterol-lowering drugs.