» October Latest News

October 31, 2006

Elusive Natural Product Is Synthesized

Kinamycin C, an antibiotic with unusual diazo group, is created from scratch.

NIH Scientists Are Unhappy With Ethics Rules

Survey finds many scientists chafing under year-old restrictions.

October 30, 2006

Splitting Water Creates Alloy

X-rays cause ice under pressure to form H₂-O₂ solid.

New Pathway To Pain Medications

Gene, enzyme, and small molecule control pain sensitivity.

Huntsman Textiles

Company reorganizes unit it purchased in July to focus on expansion in Asia.

October 27, 2006

Probing Enzyme Function In Cells

Technique combines activity-based assays with metabolic profiling.

Chemical Earnings Jump

Firms post strong growth compared with 2005 period; sales also climb.

Fighting Flu

World Health Organization lays out new plan for fighting pandemic influenza.

Lonza Will Buy Cambrex Biotech Businesses

Cambrex will shrink to half its size in $460 million deal

October 26, 2006

National Chemistry Week In Full Swing

Reception on Capitol Hill gets everyone revved up about NCW.

Periwinkle Yields Unnatural Natural Products

Feeding plants indole derivatives coaxes them to produce complex drug precursors.

EPA Seeks Health Data On Four Chemicals Found At Superfund Sites

Data will be used for health assessments and setting standards for cleanup.

Ciba Forms Printable Electronics Pact

Swiss chemical maker will work with Germany's Max Planck Institute.

October 25, 2006

Mystery Behind Iron's Smells Is Revealed

'Metallic' odors attributed to iron are due to organic carbonyl and organophosphine compounds.

October 24, 2006

Derailment Leads To Ethanol Fire

Growing market for ethanol puts more pressure on rails.

Dow Investing In Thailand

New ethylene cracker is latest move in an aggressive strategy of foreign joint ventures.

October 23, 2006

Roomy Zeolite

Porous crystal has wide, interconnecting channels and superior properties.

Lilly To Acquire Partner ICOS

$2.1 billion deal will yield full ownership of Cialis.

Blood-Clotting Model

Simple chemical system provides insights into complex biological phenomenon.

Industry Looks To Academia

Degussa and DSM tap into the academic community's expertise.

October 20, 2006

Ozone Hole Grows

Temperature shifts and ozone-depleting chemicals add up to the largest and thinnest hole yet.

Peptide Lingo

Linguistic analysis leads to new antimicrobial peptides.

Merck Taps India For New Drug

German company pays Glenmark for rights to diabetes treatment.

Crawford Guilty

Former FDA commissioner didn't disclose ownership of stock in companies affected by agency regulations.

October 19, 2006

Strawberry Flavonoid Enhances Memory

Mouse study shows that small molecule mimics peptides to help nerve cells.

ExxonMobil Advances Qatar Chemical Plan

Project is latest to proceed in feedstock-rich country

Railroads Seek Stronger Tank Cars

Heavier rail cars for transporting anhydrous ammonia and chlorine would cost more to build.

IP Group Signs 10th Partnership

Intellectual property development firm links with University of Glasgow.

October 18, 2006

Rohm and Haas, Rockwood Form Wood Treating Pact

Two firms will combine wood treatment businesses into $200 million venture.

October 17, 2006

Element 118 Detected, With Confidence

High-energy experiments yield three atoms of superheavy nuclide.

Mix-Up Led to BP Explosion

Pipes switched during maintenance is cause of $30 million fire in 2005.

October 16, 2006

Laser Guides Reaction Outcome

Novel method uses light's electric field to steer reactions toward selected products.

Intramembrane Protease

Study suggests how protein cleavage in membranes might work.

Korean Blast Put Detectors On Spot

Monitoring system for explosions has again worked as designed.

Rohm And Haas Focuses Abroad

CEO Raj Gupta says firm will redeploy efforts to boost sales in rapidly industrializing regions.

DuPont Sets Green Goals

Company aims to double green R&D spending, help avert global warming.

Nanoparticle Sheets Form Spontaneously

CdTe nanocrystals mimic proteins.

National Chemistry Week 2006

ACS's largest annual event, this year focused on chemistry and the home, begins on Oct. 22.

October 12, 2006

Two Metals Better Than One For Hydrogenations

Platinum complex activates metal-hydride bond toward alkyne insertion.

EU Parliament Committee Beefs Up REACH

Changes would require substitution of the most hazardous substances.

BASF Boosts Plasticizer

Firm will expand capacity fourfold for product used in sensitive applications.

October 11, 2006

Molecules Get Suited Up

Novel assembly features one molecule clothed with another.

October 10, 2006

Pfizer Set to Buy DNA Vaccine Firm

Drug major sees PowderMed's delivery system as a leg up in entering the vaccine market.

Aesica Acquires Merck U.K. facility

Deal includes a multiyear product supply agreement.

October 9, 2006

Boron Attacks

Electropositive element pressed into action as nucleophilic boryllithium.

First Synthesis Of Platensimycin

Work could ease way to improved analogs of unique antibiotic natural product.

Brighter Prospects

After several dismal years, fine chemicals companies are seeing industry stabilization.

Supreme Court

Court to hear cases involving Clean Air Act, huge punitive damages.

October 6, 2006

DuPont, Chevron Aim To Advance Cellulosic Ethanol

Chemical producers and their partners take steps to bring ethanol derived from crop wastes to market.

Cigarettes' Smoking Gun?

Acrolein causes DNA mutations similar to those found in lung cancer.

Gilead Buys Myogen

Hot drug prospect justifies $2.5 billion sale price, Gilead says.

Brain Chemistry

Molecular clue links ALS to other dire ailments.

National Security

Congress focuses on security before adjourning.

October 5, 2006

Three Members Of EPA Chemicals Advisory Panel Resign

Letter charges that the committee won't deliberate problems with management of substances under TSCA.

Rapid Uric Acid Detection

Luminescent lanthanide complexes team up for nonenzymatic method to monitor gout and kidney ailments.

GSK And Roche Boost Flu Drugs

Firms take steps to increase production of Relenza and Tamiflu.

Masterbatch Business Changes Hands

Clariant to acquire Ciba's business for an undisclosed sum.

October 4, 2006

2006 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Another Kornberg Nabs Nobel

Structural biologist is honored for work to understand how genetic code is transcribed into RNA.

October 3, 2006

2006 Nobel Prize in Physics

Award Honors Cosmological Investigation

Two Americans share prize for measurements of energy distribution in infant universe.

Reorganization Hits Air Products

Sale of amines business and related reorganization to hit company's fourth-quarter profits.

REACH Debate Enters Final Stage

European Parliament kicks off second reading of new chemicals regulation program.

October 2, 2006

2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Award Honors Discoverers Of RNA Interference

Two Americans share Nobel prize for discovery of RNA gene-silencing mechanism.

Amgen Will Acquire Protein Specialist Avidia

Purchase will give biotech giant access to new 'bead' technology.

Membrane Close-Up

Mass spec technique images lipid bilayer with better than 100-nm resolution.

Plant Security

Congress grants DHS authority to develop chemical plant antiterrorism protections.

Anthrax Redux

FBI scientist says powders in 2001 attacks contain pure, but untreated spores.