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December 24, 2007

In The Niche Of Time

Unique ultrafast electron imaging tools use time to help elucidate function. With Video

A Materials Feast In Boston

Scientists dig in to sessions on unconventional electronics, nanoparticles, and polymers.

A Material World

Images captured during research turned into award-winning art. With Photo Gallery

Office Pollution

Computers and printers emit chemicals and particles into air.

Cover Story: 2007 Chemistry Highlights

This year's selections include numerous advances in structural analysis

Science & Technology Concentrates

H–Bonds Control Amyloids — Amyloid protein fibrils are best known as bad actors in Alzheimer's and related diseases. Read more

Chloramine Fallout In Water Purification — Disinfection by-products (DBPs) are the unintended consequence of chlorinating public water supplies to reduce microbial pathogens. Read more

Better Model Of Methanol Enzyme — Some bacteria rely on the enzyme methane monooxygenase (MMO) to convert methane into methanol. Read more

Sulfur: Mars's Ancient Mystery Ingredient — he CO₂ that made up much of Mars's ancient atmosphere, along with a water ocean that likely once covered the planet's surface, should have been a climatic recipe for the formation of carbonates.
Read more

Microfluidic Chip Snags Cancer Cells — In cancer patients, circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in the blood are the hallmark of the spread of the disease. But these cells are rare and difficult to isolate. Read more

December 17, 2007

Burning Batteries

Hazardous failures of lithium-ion batteries are uncommon, yet researchers strive to minimize dangers.With Videos

Chemophilately

Chemistry stamps depict key discoveries, famous chemists, and chemical errors.With Photo Gallery

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Copper-Templated Coupling — In 2000, Jiri Srogl and Lanny S. Liebeskind of Emory University reported a unique coupling of thiol esters with boronic acids to produce ketones. Read more

Firefly Radiance Revisited — Researchers have co-opted fireflies' twinkle for experimental readouts in forensic, cellular, and other studies, but full details about how the insects glow remain unclear. Read more

Novel biochlorination — A new biological chlorination pathway has been found that is distinctly different from previously known routes. Read more

Water-Gas Shift Mechanism Revealed — Brookhaven National Laboratory scientists have uncovered key pieces of the mechanism that drives the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction on gold/metal-oxide catalysts (Science 2007, 318, 1757).
Read more

RNA Transcription's Newfound Complexity — Expression of specific genes is controlled by the complex pattern of phosphorylation of the enzyme that converts DNA into RNA, according to a report by Dirk Eick of the Munich Center for Integrated Protein Science. Read more

December 10, 2007

Protecting Our Cultural Heritage

National Park Service program funds research to develop and apply technology for cultural preservation.

Digital Briefs

New software and websites for the Chemical enterprise

Science & Technology Concentrates

Chaining Up Fullerenes — Supramolecular polymers are chains of monomeric compounds that self-assemble through reversible interactions. Read more

Prion Protein May Play Protective Role — The function of prion protein (PrP) is not known, but a study by Glenn L. Millhauser and coworkers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, suggests it may have a redox-protective role (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007, 129, 15440). Read more

Two-piece Imaging Probe — For a molecule to be a good near-infrared fluorescence-imaging probe, it must fluoresce brightly and it has to be long-lived enough to shine through the duration of an imaging experiment. Read more

Oral Cyanide Antidote — Firefighters are at risk of cyanide poisoning because the toxic ion is produced during residential and industrial fires.
Read more

Exercising Depression — Exercise tends to lift depression, and researchers at Yale University think they have now learned how. Read more

December 3, 2007

Methanol’s Allure

Simplest alcohol shows promise as a feedstock and fuel.

Surface Surveyor

Gerhard Ertl's mapping of chemical landscapes landed him the 2007 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. With Video

A Simpler Window On The Brain

Functional near-infrared imaging shows promise as a research and clinical tool to study brain activity.

New Products

New and notable in the chemical industry.

Science & Technology Concentrates

New-Age Diabetes Drugs — Significantly limiting food intake delays aging in many types of organisms, in part by activating analogs of the mammalian SIRT1 protein, which affects insulin sensitivity. Read more

Assimilated Data On Earth's Carbon Flux — Scientists at NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory, Boulder, Colo., have released the first data from CarbonTracker, a new atmosphere-monitoring system. Read more

Iron-Catalyzed C-N Cross-Couplings — A promising iron-catalyzed reaction to make N-aryl pyrazoles and other aryl-substituted nitrogen compounds has been developed by Arkaitz Correa and Carsten Bolm at RWTH Aachen University, in Germany (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2007, 46, 8862). Read more

Chaperones' Influence On Protein Folding — Most protein-folding studies have focused on the folding of isolated proteins, so the often profound influence of chaperone proteins on the folding of other proteins remains poorly understood. Read more

'Nano-Flares' Probe Cellular Activities — Northwestern University chemists report fluorescence probes that can be used as transfection agents as well as tools for visualizing and quantifying RNA in living cells (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja0776529). Read more

November 26, 2007

A RenaIssance For Hofmeister

Flurry of new research overturns long-held ideas about ions, water, and macromolecules.

C&EN Talks With: Theodore Gray

Element enthusiast talks about making a periodic table for the 21st century.

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Key Measles Protein Revealed — The structure of a key protein found on the surface of the measles virus could help researchers identify an effective treatment for the disease, according to K. Christopher Garcia and coworkers at Stanford University School of Medicine (Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol., DOI: 10.1038/nsmb1342). Read more

Magnolia-Fresh Breath — One day soon, that piece of gum or mint you pop into your mouth or the mouthwash you swish over your gums may contain bark extract of the Chinese houpu magnolia (Magnolia officinalis). Read more

Sustainable Microbial Hydrogen Production — Hydrogen-powered transportation may reduce environmental emissions, but most H₂ is currently generated from nonrenewable fossil fuels, such as natural gas. Read more

Dumbbell-Shaped RNA Silences Genes — RNA molecules shaped like dumbbells can be used to trigger the gene-silencing phenomenon of RNA interference (RNAi), according to a new report (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja0754453). Read more

Monolayers Improve Organic Semiconductors — Rutgers University physicists report that self-assembled organosilane monolayer films can increase the electrical conductivity of organic semiconductors by several orders of magnitude (Nat. Mater., DOI: 10.1038/nmat2059). Read more

November 19, 2007

Catalysis At PNNL

National lab leverages its assets and diverse expertise for basic and applied research

Designer Reactions

Novel CO₂-based solvent systems meld reaction and separation steps into continuous processes.

New Strides In Metal-Metal Bonding

Recent Research efforts yield a record short Cr–Cr bond and the first stable Mg(I) compounds.

Digital Briefs

New software and websites for the chemical enterprise.

Science & Technology Concentrates

DNA Reveals New Reactions — In 2004, David R. Liu and coworkers at Harvard University developed a DNA-based system for discovering new chemical reactions, but the conditions required for DNA base-pairing restricted its utility. Read more

Beefy Carbon Nanotube Fibers — Individual carbon nanotubes are prized for their strength and stiffness, and scientists have been thinking that those properties might translate into high-performance fibers made from the material. Read more

Chemical Combo Made Pet Food Deadly — The pet food contaminant responsible for the deaths of dozens of dogs and cats earlier this year, leading to a major pet food recall, appears to be a combination of two chemicals, melamine and cyanuric acid Read more

Polymer Displays Extreme Birefringence — By taking advantage of the modular nature of coordination polymers, Daniel B. Leznoff, Zuo-Guang Ye, and coworkers at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, have designed a polymeric material that is among the most birefringent solids ever observed (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2007, 46, 8804). Read more

Revamped Molecular Transporters Shine — Molecular transporters, which deliver attached cargo such as drugs or proteins into cells, commonly feature positively charged arginine or other guanidinium-containing components. Read more

November 12, 2007

Hide And Seek

Cephalopod camouflage inspires materials research.With Web Exclusive Video

Drug Hybrids Enter the Fray

Combo molecules surpass components but sometimes work in unexpected ways.

C&EN Talks With: Armand Lattes

The French Chemical Society's outgoing president celebrates the group's 150th birthday.

What's That Stuff? Tattoo Ink

Pigments tattoo artists use to create body art vary as widely as the designs they create.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Hot-Wired Hydrogenase — When it comes to tapping into the power of hydrogen, nothing beats hydrogenase. Read more

Obesity Gene Encodes Demethylating Enzyme — Earlier this year, British scientists reported that a gene called FTO is associated with obesity. Read more

Lipoxin Analogs With Improved Performance — Researchers have synthesized analogs of bioactive lipoxins that appear to improve upon the anti-inflammatory activity of native lipoxins and previously prepared analogs (J. Med. Chem., DOI: 10.1021/jm060270d). Read more

RNA Interference Targets Pests — The gene-silencing technique known as RNA interference (RNAi) is a potential new weapon for insect control, according to two reports. Read more

Detecting Disease Via Polymerization — Inexpensive, rapid, and robust strategies for detecting diseases are desperately needed in many parts of the world. Read more

November 5, 2007

Catalysis in Scandinavia

Regional history and present-day activity tie Nordic countries to catalytic chemistry.

Academic R&D Spending Trends

Chemical research sector grew 3.6% in 2005, well below the overall 5.8% expansion for science and engineering.With Web Exclusive Tables

New Neutron-Rich Isotopes Discovered

Magnesium and aluminum isotopes push the limits of nuclear stability.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Controlled Phosphorylation — Protein phosphorylation, which is a major mechanism of cell signaling, can occur only on certain amino acids, including serine. Read more

Limb-Regenerating Protein is Revealed — Newts are well-known for regrowing lost limbs. A study by researchers in England now reveals the protein that makes this regeneration process possible (Science 2007, 318, 772). Read more

Alloy Catalyst Beats Pure Platinum — Chemical engineers at the University of Houston have developed a new type of platinum-alloy catalyst that's four to five times better at reducing oxygen than platinum alone (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200703331). Read more

Substrate Geometry Affects Antioxidant — Thioredoxins, which are antioxidant enzymes that are ubiquitous in living organisms, catalyze the reduction of disulfide bonds. Read more

Enediynes Taught How To Act Better — Researchers have engineered enediynes, a family of potent bioactive compounds, to enhance their anticancer activity (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0708274104). Read more

October 29, 2007

Butt In To Butt Out

Cigarette butts top the litter charts, but a healthy sense of outrage could snuff these eyes.

Breaking The Chiral Barrier

Chemically manipulating crystallization kinetics yields enantiopure products.

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and business news for the laboratory world.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Schizoid Chemical Reactivity — In what appears to be a chemical first, two equivalent functional groups in the same molecule are reported to undergo different reactions with the same reagent (Chem. Commun. 2007, 4227). Read more

Oceanic Redox Powers Monitoring Instruments — Microbial fuel cells that run on ocean redox chemistry will never create enough power to solve the global energy crisis, but Oregon State University researchers report a novel chambered design with the potential to replace batteries currently used in oceanographic monitoring equipment. Read more

Neutral Organic Electron Donor Cleaves Sulfonyls — A neutral organic compound that gives away its electrons with unusual enthusiasm may be an important new tool for a major area of organic and medicinal chemistry: the reductive cleavage of sulfones and sulfonamides (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007, 129, 13368). Read more

Tuning In With A Nanotube — Radio has gone nano. Electrical engineers at the University of California, Irvine, have built a radio receiver that uses a carbon nanotube as a key component (Nano Lett., DOI: 10.1021/nl0714839). Read more

Peptide Rings Death Knell for Bacteria — Programmed cell death is best known in eukaryotic, multicellular organisms, but it also occurs in bacteria. In both cases, sacrifice of some cells can enable the rest to survive. Read more

October 22, 2007

An Environmental Legacy Ends

Impending environmental lab closure generates protest, even while scientists prepare to move on.

Green Chromatography

Specialty conference highlights the benefits of supercritical fluids for chiral drug development.

Magnetic Route To Photonic Crystals

Method yields tunable materials that diffract visible light selectively.

Protein Baby Pictures

An NMR study enables analysis of a protein while it's still busy being born on the ribosome.

Sampling The San Andreas

First core samples from deep inside the fault zone promise new earthquake understanding.

New Products

New and notable in the chemical industry.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Caged Buckyball — Buckyballs are known to enclose small molecules, but now C₆₀ itself has been completely enveloped, in this case by an inorganic fullerene-like molecular shell (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja075926m). Read more

Serotonin Regulates Lactation — A new study reports that the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is produced in the brain and intestinal tract, is also produced in human mammary glands, where it controls milk production and secretion (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0708136104). Read more

Zinc Binding Controls Protein Interactions — Protein-protein interactions, which are key to nearly all cellular processes, are guided by formation of many weak, noncovalent bonds (such as hydrogen bonds) spread over large molecular surfaces. Read more

Stuck On Dopamine — Inspired by the chemistry that gives mussels their muscle, scientists at Northwestern University have developed a surface coating that sticks to almost anything (Science 2007, 318, 426). Read more

Macrocyclic Peptide Displays High Affinity for Key Protein — Researchers report that an iterative selection technique allowed them to identify a macrocyclic peptide with extraordinarily high affinity for a key signaling protein, suggesting that the technique, in their words, "provides a general route to design novel, low-molecular-weight, high-affinity ligands that target protein surfaces," (ACS Chem. Biol. 2007, 2, 625). Read more

October 15, 2007

Fine Art Gets A Nano Sponge Bath

Tiny particles help tidy up delicate frescoes.

What's That Stuff? Adhesive Tape

Tiny bits of tacky tape hold together modern life.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Tunable Polymer Membranes — Take a close look at an average polymer membrane, and you'll find a landscape riddled with channels and pores. Read more

Stop-And-Go DNA Pyrosequencing — A set of modified nucleotides prepared by Jingyue Ju, Nicholas J. Turro, and coworkers at Columbia University could improve the accuracy of the DNA-sequencing technique known as pyrosequencing in homopolymeric regions of DNA where the same base is repeated (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0707495104). Read more

Metal Binding Arrests Umbrella Inversion — Metal coordination chemistry has been used to bestow controllable switching properties on an oscillating nitrogen ring, a result that could find application in nanoscale devices (Chem. Commun., DOI: 10.1039/b712447c). Read more

Cellulose Processing Via Acidic Hot Water — One technical hurdle to overcome in using cellulose as a renewable feedstock to make fuels and chemicals is transforming the glucose polymer chain into readily usable monomeric sugars. Read more

Silver Nanoparticles Monitored in Vivo — Silver nanoparticles passively diffuse into zebrafish embryos through their external pores, according to a study designed to explore nanoparticles' potential as imaging and therapeutic agents (ACS Nano 2007, 1, 133). Read more

October 8, 2007

Cover Story: Taking Mass Spec Into The Open

Open-air ionization methods minimize sample prep and widen range of mass spectrometry applications.

Close Your Hood!

Easy ways to save on energy costs include installing fewer fume hoods and vigilantly closing sashes.

Happening Hafnium

Once obscure transition metal is now garnering attention as a potential superstar catalyst.

Digital Briefs

New software and websites for the chemical enterprise.

Science & Technology Concentrates

New Nitric Oxide Messenger — Nitric oxide mediates myriad physiological processes, including blood vessel dilation and immune response. Read more

Branched Polymers Via Grubbs Catalyst — Using an olefin metathesis reaction and starting with easily synthesized monomers, Irina A. Gorodetskaya, Tae-Lim Choi, and Robert H. Grubbs at Caltech have synthesized hyperbranched polymers under mild conditions (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja0759040). Read more

Novel N–H Insertion Yields Amino Acids — Insertion of one reactant into a C–H bond of another reactant to form a chiral product is a valuable method in organic synthesis. Read more

Tree Bark Component Protects Neurons — A derivative of a traditional Chinese cancer treatment obtained from tree bark prevents neuronal cell death, or apoptosis, according to a new study by researchers at Emory University School of Medicine (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0706662104). Read more

β-Peptides Synthesized by Way of Enzymes — Researchers have used enzymes for the first time to couple β-amino acids to other β-amino acids and to peptides. Read more

October 1, 2007

Chemistry, Biology Cross-Fertilization

Young field provides new tools for biology, new applications for chemistry.

New Tactics For Trouncing Migraine

ACS Meeting News: Alternatives could overcome limitations of current drugs.

Science & Technology Concentrates

H–Bonding At Metal Surfaces — A potentially general method for determining the strength of hydrogen bonds between molecules bound to metal surfaces comes from Ludwig Bartels and coworkers at the University of California, Riverside (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja0724341). Read more

Raman Method Detects Liquid Explosives — A foiled plot in August 2006 raised the specter of terrorists smuggling liquid explosives onto commercial airline flights. Read more

Cleaved Ether Reveals Trace Palladium — Palladium reagents are prized for their powerful ability to catalyze covalent bond formation. Read more

Fluorous Tag Strategy Builds Microarrays — Fluorocarbon chains are viable mediators for assembling small-molecule microarrays on functionalized glass slides, according to a pair of studies (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200703198 and Chem. Commun. 2007, 3906). Read more

Nanotubes Imaged In Fruit Fly Larvae — Using near-infrared fluorescence imaging, scientists at Rice University have managed to sneak a peek at single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) inside the bodies of living fruit fly larvae (Nano Lett. 2007, 7, 2650). Read more

September 24, 2007

Cover Story: Taking Down TB

Even with tools to diagnose, treat, and prevent tuberculosis, the disease remains a significant public health and R&D challenge

TB Vaccines May Offer A Needed Boost

New tuberculosis vaccine candidates advance into clinical testing.

TB Diagnosis: Murky

Difficulties in identifying, classifying tuberculosis drive development of new diagnostics.

The Riches Of Gold Catalysis

Chemists are using this precious metal to catalyze a treasure trove of reactions.

Testing Our Food

ACS Meeting New: Analytical chemists are developing new methods to assess food safety.

Better Than Mint

ACS Meeting News: Medicinal chemistry methods lead to new cooling compounds that are more potent and last longer than menthol.

Polymer Devices In The Body

ACS Meeting News: Unique program promotes polymer science for both researchers and K-12 teachers.

Zebrafish In Drug Discovery

ACS Meeting News: Small fish can impact drug and target screening in a big way.

What's That Stuff? Oil Paints

Painters create their art using various formulations of pigments, oils, and other additives.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Sweat Perception — Genetic differences determine whether a component of male body odor smells like sweat, something sweet, or nothing at all, according to newly published research. Read more

Platinum-Free Hydrazine Fuel Cell — A new type of fuel cell that runs on hydrazine (N₂H₄) bypasses some of the barriers impeding wide-scale implementation of conventional hydrogen fuel cells in automobiles (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200701334). Read more

Lipid-Lowering Agent Sidesteps Side Effects — For some time, researchers have been trying to develop therapeutic agents with the same kind of lipid-lowering activity that natural thyroid hormone has when it activates receptors in the liver. Read more

Model Devised for Polyolefin Catalysts — Producing polyolefins via Ziegler-Natta catalysts is one of the most fundamental industrial chemical processes. Read more

Sugary Sites Promote Malarial Invasion — The malaria parasite infects a mosquito by clutching onto newly discovered sugar chains in the insect's gut. Read more

September 17, 2007

Cover Story: A Chemist In Charge

Marye Anne Fox, chancellor of UC San Diego, reflects on the challenges of leading a top-tier research university

Tweaking Coffee's Flavor Chemistry

ACS Meeting News: Roasting, cooling, and storage conditions affect the chemicals that contribute to brew's flavor and aroma.

Terminal Gold-Oxo Complexes Debut

ACS Meeting News: Unexpected complexes required extensive characterization to convince chemists of their existence.

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.

Science & Technology Concentrates

One-Pot γ-Lactams — Synthesizing substituted γ-lactams, which are key intermediates in the synthesis of medicinal leads and natural products, has generally required at least four separate reaction steps. Read more

How Plants Know it's Time to Flower — Light-dependent formation of a protein complex allows plants to monitor seasonal changes in daylight so that they can, in effect, select the most favorable time for flowering, according to Takato Imaizumi and colleagues at Scripps Research Institute (Science, DOI: 10.1126/science.1146994). Read more

Big Holey Metal-organic Frameworks — In the menagerie of porous materials, examples of metal-organic frameworks typically have been limited to those in the microporous range-with minute pores of 3 nm in diameter or less. Read more

New Take on Dietary Habits of Ancient Life — Hungry microorganisms in the primordial world may have relied on a scarcely explored process called sulfur disproportionation to stay well-fed (Science 2007, 317, 1534). Read more

Gold Scorpionates Capture Ethylene — Transition metal-ethylene complexes, known for nearly 200 years, were first made famous by Zeise's salt, K[PtCl₃(C₂H₄)]•H₂O, a once-mysterious complex in which an ethylene molecule binds side-on to the platinum atom. Read more

September 10, 2007

Cover Story: Mimicking Biological Systems

Control of the chemistry and physics of cell-populated microenvironments reveals new biology.

Printing Without Ink

Consumers will soon get digital prints in an instant, thanks to organic dyes.

Printing Without Ink

Consumers will soon get digital prints in an instant, thanks to organic dyes.

Fluorous Peptides Get Ready To Heal

Fluorinated analogs of natural products start to take shape as potential therapeutic drugs.

Digital Briefs

New software and websites for the chemical enterprise.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Metal-Free Hydrogenations — Hydrogenation, the addition of hydrogen to unsaturated organic compounds, is broadly used in chemical production and usually mediated by precious-metal catalysts. Read more

Taking Control Of Transcription — A small-molecule mimic of a protein transcription factor has been used to manipulate only a subset of its natural counterpart's web of genomic targets. Read more

Tracking Down Acetyltransferases — By employing a functional group never before used in protein labeling, a new chemical probe could enable closer scrutiny of an enormous and diverse enzyme family. Read more

Peptide Undergoes 'Jekyll-Hyde' Mutation — A single mutation has been found to convert the function of a peptide in a "Jekyll and Hyde" manner&mdsh;from a version that forms toxic amyloid fibrils to another that inhibits amyloid formation. In type 2 diabetes patients. Read more

Probing Femtosecond Molecular Dynamics — 2005, With a new, fast, and high-energy laser spectroscopy method, researchers can now probe the dynamics of highly excited molecular species on the femtosecond timescale with angstrom-level spatial resolution. Read more

September 3, 2007

Cover Story: Hold That Thought

Slowly but surely, scientists are unveiling the complex chemical underpinnings of memory.

Molecules For Memory

Several companies are developing compounds that improve memory, but ethical issues abound.

The Well-Endowed Mind

Brainy mice and mice with mental deficits reveal reasons for the differences between good and poor memory.

Memory At Its Worst

Emotional memory gone awry leads to posttraumatic stress disorder.

Sleep Anchors Memory

Aided by dramatic swings in neurochemicals, different stages of sleep help preserve different types of memory.

Mapping the Future of Catalysis R&D

Scientists and engineers gather to identify priority research areas.

Boston's Chemistry Smorgasbord

ACS meeting in Boston spotlights polyethylene synthesis, bile acid analysis, a new dialysis membrane, plastic plumbing woes, and calcium fluoride precursors.

Conservation at Arm's Length

Researchers at IUPAC congress advocate a measured approach to the conservation of cultural artifacts.

New Products

New and notable in the chemical industry.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Naphthalocyanine Switcheroo — Chemists at IBM Zurich Research Laboratory, in Switzerland, have come up with a single-molecule switch that shifts from one form to another via a simple tautomerization (Science 2007, 317, 1203). Read more

Gold Nanoparticles Carry Paclitaxel — One day, nanoparticles studded with a powerful therapeutic drug might be used to deliver that drug to disease sites in the body. Read more

Sex-specific Compound Uncovered in Crabs — Males and females of many types of animals and plants are known to possess differing levels of hormones and other metabolites, but a new finding marks the first discovery in any species that a particular metabolite occurs in only one sex (PLoS One, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0000780). Read more

New Instruments Help Size up Aerosols — Atmospheric scientists have speculated that aerosols, which impact climate and air quality, can form from particle clusters that start out smaller than 3 nm in diameter. But until now, they lacked instruments capable of detecting such particles. Read more

Tetracycline synthesis improves — n 2005, Andrew G. Myers and colleagues at Harvard University reported an enantioselective semisynthetic route to tetracyclines that yielded an unprecedented series of structurally diverse analogs of this broad-spectrum class of antibiotics. Read more

August 27, 2007

Cover Story: Tapping The Sun

Basic chemistry drives development of new low-cost solar cells.

Proteins From Birth To Death

From their biosynthesis to their folding, signaling, and degradation, proteinscommand the attention of many researchers.

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and business news for the laboratory world.

Chemistry Unexpected

Simple chemistry brings a Pennsylvania creek back to life.

Science & Technology Concentrates

DNA repair process revealed — By using chemical, crystallographic, and NMR techniques, James T. Stivers and coworkers at Johns Hopkins Medical School have established the recognition mechanism that the enzyme uracil DNA glycosylase uses to carry out a key DNA repair. Read more

Nanoparticles by candlelight — It doesn't necessarily take fancy equipment or complicated procedures to produce carbon nanoparticles. Read more

Airborne iron alters ocean productivity — Nicolas Cassar of Princeton University and colleagues have demonstrated that iron-containing aerosols carried by the wind increase biological production in the Southern Ocean. Read more

Light sparks bacterial virulence — The notorious pathogen Brucella abortus, which causes abortions in cows and fevers in humans, uses light to regulate its virulence, according to a new study (Science 2007, 317, 1090). Read more

Tetracycline synthesis improves — n 2005, Andrew G. Myers and colleagues at Harvard University reported an enantioselective semisynthetic route to tetracyclines that yielded an unprecedented series of structurally diverse analogs of this broad-spectrum class of antibiotics. Read more

August 20, 2007

Cover Story: One Pill, Many Uses

Small molecules blocking the Met receptor could have an impact on a wide range of cancers.

The Long Road

Scientists worked for years to unravel Met's role in cancer.

Big Biotechs Take Antibody Approach To Blocking Met Receptor

Biochem Engineers Meet In Quebec

Engineers combine chemistry and biology to tackle an array of challenges.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Two-faced detergents — A new detergent with a structure that deviates from the conventional topology of amphiphilic molecules could help drug developers eke out hard-to-get structural information about membrane-bound protein targets (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200701556). Read more

Nanocomposite paper device stores energy — Carbon nanotubes, cellulose, and a room-temperature ionic liquid have been combined to create a nanocomposite paper that functions as a thin, lightweight, flexible energy-storage device (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2007, 104, 13574). Read more

Iron cluster assumes snakelike structure — Taking advantage of a little-used O,N,N,O chelating ligand, George Christou and coworkers at the University of Florida have created new iron cluster compounds. Read more

Germanium goes glassy — By applying a lot of pressure to a little germanium, C. Austen Angell of Arizona State University and an international team of collaborators have prepared the first monatomic metallic glass (Nature 2007, 448, 787). Read more

Cats as canaries for thyroid disease — Hyperthyroidism is a leading cause of illness in cats, and the first reports of the feline disease in the late 1970s coincided with the first reports of environmental contamination arising from polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Read more

August 13, 2007

Cover Story: Molecules That Could Be

Calculations reveal stable but imaginary molecules that push the limits of what chemists know of chemical bonding

Science & Technology Concentrates

Tips For Writing A Journal Article

Get organized, revise, and ask for help when you need it.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Modular Bent DNAs — Many DNA-protein interactions involve structural distortions of the DNA helix. Read more

Copper Enzyme Must Preload — A study of a copper enzyme that misfolds and malfunctions in copper- and iron-metabolism diseases indicates that it can't be fixed simply by inducing the copper-deficient misfolded version to take up more copper (Biochemistry, DOI: 10.1021/bi700715e). Read more

Monitoring Heat At The Molecular Level — In conventional electronic devices, heat diffuses through bulk materials such as wires via quantized lattice vibrations, which can be detected by a thermometer. Read more

Insect's Venom Eyed For Cancer Defense — Camouflage is not the only trick Madagascar walkingsticks use to thwart their enemies. These insects also spray a defensive fluid. Read more

Hydrogel Could Sort Out Cellular Traffic — A surprisingly simple hydrogel made from amino acid repeat units mimics the exquisite selectivity of the giant protein pores that control traffic between the nucleus and cytoplasm and may shed light on how these pores do their job (Cell 2007, 130, 512). Read more

August 6, 2007

Cover Story: Centering On Chirality

Chemists are finding asymmetric synthesis increasingly handy for making pharmaceutical compounds at large scale.

What's That Stuff? Chewing Gum

Popular confection began as a not-so-sweet treat from trees.

Toxicity Testing Without Animals

High-throughput methods could reduce need for animals when assessing toxicity of chemicals in environment.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Adenine From Outer Space — A major goal of origin-of-life studies is to determine potential mechanisms for the prebiotic synthesis of nucleic acid bases, such as adenine. Read more

Solvent Can Dominate Optical Rotation — The three-dimensional arrangement of achiral solvent molecules surrounding chiral solute molecules has been shown to make an unexpectedly large contribution to the optical properties of the solution. Read more

Tracking Diesel Exhaust Exposure — Urinary metabolites of 1-nitropyrene (1-NP, shown), a major component of diesel exhaust, can be used as a biomarker to assess human exposure to this kind of environmental pollution, according to a new study (Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2007, 20, 999). Read more

Antifungalhydrogels Thwart Infections — Fungal infections are a potentially serious complication stemming from implanted medical devices. But newly developed antifungal hydrogels could be used as a coating for medical implants, helping to ward off such infections. Read more

Oil-Spill Dispersants Are Toxic to Corals — Oil dispersants, the tool of choice for treating oil spills in tropical oceans, turn out to be significantly more toxic to marine life than the crude oil itself, according to a study on corals (Environ. Sci. Technol. 2007, 41, 5571). Read more

July 30, 2007

Experiments Of Concern

Well-intentioned research, in the wrong hands, can become dangerous.

C&EN Talks With: Janet G. Hering

Caltech professor is first woman, and one of the few foreigners, to lead a Swiss federal research institute.

New Products

New And Notable In The Chemical Industry

Science & Technology Concentrates

Porous Chalcogenide Gels — A new type of porous inorganic gel with semiconducting properties and large surface areas also has the ability to bind heavy metals (Science 2007, 317, 490). Read more

New main-group dicarbides prepared — Using a supersonic discharge jet source, Dennis J. Clouthier and colleagues at the University of Kentucky, Lexington, prepared two new main-group dicarbide free radicals (CCP and CCAs).
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Imines and CO form polypeptide mimics — Polypeptide production generally begins with the synthesis of amino acids, which are subsequently activated with stoichiometric amounts of reagents such as carbodiimides and phosgene. Read more

Eight-carbon anion found in space — Interstellar chemistry may be more complicated than previously thought. Until recently, astronomers supposed that molecules wouldn't be able to retain a negative charge in space amid the UV radiation. Read more

Pulling apart DNA — After taking a closer look under the hood of an enzyme motor that unwinds double-stranded DNA, researchers have reported a new "spring-loaded" mechanism for its unraveling action (Science, DOI: 10.1126/science.1144130). Read more

July 23, 2007

Creature Features

What's That Stuff? Sandpaper

Getting down to the nitty-gritty of the ubiquitous abrasive.

New Products

New And Notable In The Chemical Industry

Science & Technology Concentrates

Isomerization At a Distance — A new "zipper" catalyst can isomerize a variety of functionalized alkene derivatives, including diallyl ether, geraniol, and tert-butylpent-4-enyloxydimethylsilane, to form high-purity (E)-isomer products. Read more

Small Molecules Disrupt RNA Splicing — The identification of the first small molecules capable of disrupting the work of the spliceosome promises new insight into how this crucial biological machine helps convert DNA into proteins.
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Another Practical Route to Tamiflu — The threat of an influenza pandemic has prompted an increase in demand of the flu-fighting drug (-)-oseltamivir phosphate, marketed by Roche as Tamiflu. Read more

Brain Protein Counters Despair — Mice that are more resilient when faced with inescapable stress can thank a brain protein called δFosB, according to Eric J. Nestler of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and colleagues (Neuron 2007, 55, 289). Read more

Viral RNA Outfoxes Human Immune System — A newly identified role in infection for viral RNA shows that this molecule does more than encode viral proteins. Read more

July 16, 2007

Stopping The Tin Whisker Stalkers

Researchers aim to suppress filaments that sprout from tin coatings in lead-free electronic equipment.

Coping With Whiskers

The Five Stages Of Metal Whisker Grief.

Digital Briefs

New software and websites for the Chemical enterprise.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Imidazole Spurs Neurogenesis — Finding a chemical compound that could replace neurons lost through degenerative conditions—including stroke, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's—by activating mature muscle cells and other easily available cells could circumvent the technical and ethical issues surrounding embryonic stem cells. Read more

Separations Boost Microchemistry — Microfluidic reactor systems permit efficient and safe continuous syntheses for small-scale screening, optimization, and production purposes. Read more

Amended Route To Odd Natural Product — A revised view of how an unusual phosphinic acid-containing natural product is put together has emerged from a study by Neil L. Kelleher, Wilfred A. van der Donk, William W. Metcalf, and coworkers at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (Nat. Chem. Biol., DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.2007.9). Read more

Attosyringe Delivers Via Electrochemistry — Talk about your tiny needles. Michael V. Mirkin and coworkers at Queens College of the City University of New York have developed a syringe just nanometers in diameter that's capable of sampling and dispensing fluid in attoliter to picoliter (10^-18 to 10^-12 L) volumes (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2007, 104, 11895).Read more

Hybrid Polymer Films For Solar Cells — By combining the charge-transport properties of conjugated polyelectrolytes and the attractive physical properties of hyperbranched polymers, researchers have made new materials intended for solar cell applications. Read more

July 9, 2007

What's That Stuff? Leather

Tanning turns raw hide into a useful, durable product.

Green For the Greater Good

Presidential awards honor chemical advances that promote pollution prevention and sustainability.

Inside Instrumentation

Partnerships between manufacturers and academic researchers advance instrument development.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Predicting Protein Function — By adapting a technique normally used for drug discovery, researchers have determined the function of an enzyme whose activity previously had been unknown (Nature, DOI: 10.1038/nature05981). Read more

Visualizing the Chemistry of Vision — In an effort to see how we see, scientists in Japan have imaged the cis-to-trans isomerization of retinal at the atomic level by using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (Nat. Nanotechnol., DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2007.187). Read more

Zinc and Gallium Neighbors Join Hands — Zinc and gallium, chemically similar elements nestled next to each other in the periodic table, finally have been convinced to join together to form the first structurally characterized complexes containing a zinc-gallium bond (Dalton Trans., DOI: 10.1039/b706402k). Read more

Cancer Drug Interactions Revealed — The detailed manner by which the cancer drug etoposide interacts with its enzyme target, topoisomerase II, has been revealed for the first time.Read more

Reducing the Sting of Jellyfish Costs — Thousands of jellyfish regularly clog water intakes at power plants around the world. Read more

July 2, 2007

An Abundance Of Organic Chemistry

Meeting spotlights diverse interests of organic chemists, including biological and catalytic systems.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Macrocycle-Encircled Proton — Gazing down the contents list of the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the eye is drawn to the concise, provocative title, "Encircled Proton."Read more

Genome Transplant On The Horizon — Taking a small step toward synthetic biological systems, scientists have replaced the entire genome of a bacterial cell with one from a closely related species.Read more

HHMI To Require Free Access To Articles — Howard Hughes Medical Institute has announced a new policy regarding articles authored by biomedical researchers supported by the prestigious philanthropic organization.Read more

Methylation Mimic Silences DNA Targets — Nature turns off transcription of a gene by adding a methyl group to the gene.Read more

Unexpected Finding Of Stellar Molecules — Carbon-rich stars were previously considered the most likely source for the galaxy's complex chemical makeup.Read more

June 25, 2007

Cover Story: Biofuel Bonanza

Brazil has become a model and an ally for the U.S. in the pursuit of sustainable bioethanol, biodiesel, and bioelectricity.

A New Science Channel

Organizations and scientists experiment with YouTube as an outreach tool.

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and business news for the laboratory world.

Insights: Second Life Science

Take a scientific field trip to a digital world.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Copper intermediate sighted — After eluding investigators for more than three decades.Read more

New drug lead for Parkinson's disease — Parkinson's disease, which kills off dopamine-producing neurons, is associated with the clumping of misfolded α-synuclein protein.Read more

Zeptoscale cell metabolism — A new assay allows scientists to analyze the metabolism of glycosphingolipids in single cells.Read more

Ionic liquids shoot for the moon — A smooth, shiny liquid that resists perturbation of its surface is just the thing astronomers are looking for.Read more

Boron compound stops fungal enzyme — A newly identified antifungal agent works in an unusual way.Read more

June 18, 2007

Cover Story: Form And Function

The choice of pharmaceutical crystalline form can be used to optimize drug properties, and cocrystals are emerging as new alternatives.

Cover Story: War Of The Words

Dispute Over Crystal Structure Nomenclature Takes Center Stage.

Masks Unveil New Synthetic Routes

Protection schemes enable iterative use of organic coupling reaction.

Air Force Funds High-Flying Research

Physical scientists supported by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research sing its praises.

C&EN Talks With: Yitzhak Apeloig

Technion president and chemistry professor emphasizes the need to attract youngsters to science.

What's That Stuff? Pool Chemicls

A cornucopia of additives keeps pool water sparkling and clean.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Material heals its cracks — Taking a cue from nature, scientists have developed materials that can heal themselves.Read more

Proteins sequester Zinc nanoparticles — Biofilms produced by sulfate-reducing bacteria may help clean up contaminated environments.Read more

Enzyme inhibitor targets hidden site — Researchers at AstraZeneca facilities in Mölndal, Sweden, and Waltham, Mass., have characterized in several pathogenic bacteria a key enzyme-glutamate racemase.Read more

Refining treatment for bipolar disorder — An experimental therapy for mania associated with bipolar disorder could improve treatment for the disease.Read more

Campuses pledge climate neutrality — More than 280 U.S. colleges and universities have pledged to make their campuses climate neutral by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.Read more

June 11, 2007

Counterfeiting Countermeasures

Chemistry could play a major role in future deterrents against currency fraud.

Digital Briefs

New software and websites for the chemical enterprise.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Mousing out pathogens — By making a tiny tweak to the human food-borne pathogen that causes listeriosis, German scientists have created a strain that can infect mice.Read more

Silver mediates C–H aminations — Nitrogen-containing functional groups abound in natural products and pharmaceutical chemistry.Read more

Chelating carbene ligand unveiled — The planar chelating bitriazole molecule shown is the latest addition to the versatile family of N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands.Read more

Solid-state NMRgets more sensitive — By redesigning the detector coil assembly, researchers in France have boosted the sensitivity of solid-state NMR spectroscopy.Read more

Mapping glycoproteins by their sugars — Researchers have devised a way to identify glycoproteins having specific sugar residues on a proteome-wide scale.Read more

June 4, 2007

Cover Story: Peeking Into Live Cells

Fluorescent imaging of single molecules in live cells uncovers details of gene expression, structural proteins, and molecular motors.

Brain Barricade

Researchers are tackling the grueling challenge of getting brain therapies across the blood-brain barrier.

Stripped-Down Synthesis

Phil Baran is Spearheading Natural Products Synthesis Without Protecting Groups.

Uncomfortable Issues in 'Phallacy'

Carl Djerassi’s Play Exposes Bias Among the Dueling Tribes of Science and the Humanities.

New Products

New and Notable in the Chemical Industry.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Cells grow on a bed of nails — Putting cells on pins and needles is a way of getting foreign molecules into the cells.Read more

Method identifies histone modifications — Post-translational modifications (PTMs) of histones—the protein spools that DNA is wound around—help regulate gene expression.Read more

Direct fluorescence detects explosives — Few techniques can directly detect RDX and PETN, explosives that could be hidden in war zones and transportation hubs..Read more

Blowing bubbles for nanoelectronics — The key to realizing many of the proposed electronics applications of nanomaterials may be as simple as blowing bubbles.Read more

Cold receptor identified — Next time someone gives you the cold shoulder, take some solace in knowing which of your protein receptors detected it.Read more

May 28, 2007

Cover Story: Ascent of Quadruplexes

Nucleic acid structures become promising drug targets.

Porous Crystalline Organic Frameworks

Designed syntheses lead to covalent 3-D materials with potential uses in gas storage and separation.

Meetings And The Media

Do journals' rules on prior publication stifle scientific communication?

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Mineral Structure Solved — Ferrihydrite is a naturally occurring iron oxide and is produced commercially to scavenge heavy metals.Read more

Enzyme Gets Metal Makeover — An unprecedented manganese-iron cofactor is at the heart of a human pathogen's ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) enzyme.Read more

Dendrimer Cleaves Cooperatively — The functional units of enzymes often cooperate with each other to carry out catalytic tasks efficiently.Read more

Demethylase's Specificity Explained — The first structure of a key histone demethylation enzyme linked to a substrate-like peptide.Read more

Fingerprints May Divulge Drug Use — A new antibody-based technique for visualizing and analyzing fingerprints could one day be used to diagnose diseases.Read more

May 21, 2007

Microwaves Beam into Bioscience

Technology that improves product yields and reaction rates in organic synthesis shows potential for biosciences.

The Prognosis For Chemistry

U.S. dominance is still strong, but growth in Europe and Asia augurs the flattening of chemistry worldwide.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Lanthanide Spectral Arsenal — Lanthanide metal ions are gaining in popularity as a means to increase the power of spectroscopy for studying proteins.Read more

'Shish' polymer structure unraveled — Physical properties of polyolefins, the most widely used family of synthetic polymers, are strongly affected by the polymers' semicrystalline morphology.Read more

Catalyst acidity sets enantioselectivity — Efforts to design better asymmetric catalysts that rely on hydrogen bonding to activate their substrates will get a leg up from a new study.Read more

Enzyme oxidizes single-handedly — Enzymes that catalyze oxidation reactions typically rely on metal or organic cofactors to activate molecular oxygen.Read more

Ocean's carbon sink is filling up — Oceans should absorb 70–80% of anthropogenic carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere.Read more

May 14, 2007

Silence, Please

A variety of small RNAs turn down the volume on gene expression.

A Material World

Images of the aesthetic side of materials science.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Sorting Nanotube Isomers — Optical isomers of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) now can be sorted from one another for the first time, thanks to a pair of chiral diporphyrin "tweezers" developed by researchers in Japan (Nat. Nanotechnol., DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2007.142).Read more

Nanotube needles deliver quantum dots — Multiwalled carbon nanotubes can be used as nanoinjectors to deliver quantum dots inside cells, a technique that could enhance studies of cellular processes (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0700567104).Read more

Small molecules aid protein degradation — Three newly identified small molecules that help degrade proteins associated with Huntington's and Parkinson's diseases show potential as treatments for these neurodegenerative disorders (Nat. Chem. Biol., DOI: 10.1038/nchembio883).Read more

Riboswitch controls bacterial migration — Chemotactic bacteria can be reprogrammed to respond to particular small molecules and thus navigate their surroundings, according to a report by Justin P. Gallivan and Shana Topp of Emory University (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja0692480).Read more

Sila-explosives offer a better bang — By swapping a silicon atom for a carbon atom in a pair of common high explosives, a German research team has devised a new class of compounds with the potential to outperform traditional organic nitrogen explosives and have a lower environmental impact (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja071299p).Read more

Science & Technology Concentrates

Unique C-H Activation — A new allyl nitrosyl complex of tungsten selectively activates the terminal C-H bond of linear alkanes under ambient conditions in a new way that could prove useful in chemical syntheses.Read more

δ Aromaticity Spied In Metal Clusters — Computational studies and gas-phase photoelectron spectroscopy experiments have confirmed the existence of delocalized bonding involving the d atomic orbitals of transition metals.Read more

Molecules' Open Arms Influence Nanoshapes — A nanoparticle's shape and size can influence its properties just as much as its chemistry, so the ability to predict the former from the latter would be a boon to nanoscientists.Read more

Protein Motion Guides Photosynthesis — A study of the initial stages of electron transfer in bacterial photosynthesis reinforces previously obtained evidence that photosynthetic proteins do more than simply provide the scaffolding on which to hang chromophores.Read more

Zipper Structures Play Key Role In Amyloid Aggregates — Two years ago, David Eisenberg of UCLA and a collaborative international group obtained the first atomic structure of an amyloid fibril formed from a yeast prion protein and found that an interdigitated β-sheet structure called a steric zipper was essential to fibril formation.Read more

April 30, 2007

Using Accidents To Educate

Accidents can teach valuable lessons, if only they are heeded.

Inside Instrumentation

Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.

Cover Story: What Can We Do With Carbon Dioxide?

Scientists are trying to find ways to convert the plentiful greenhouse gas into fuels and other value-added products.

Greenhouse Gases

Running the numbers on CO2 emissions.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Perkin's mauveine mystery — Two new compounds have been found in museum samples of mauveine, the distinctive purple dye that serendipitously launched the synthetic dye industry 150 years ago.Read more

Boron buckyball predicted to be stable — Theorists at Rice University have predicted that a fullerene-like cage molecule consisting of 80 boron atoms would be "unusually stable" and "likely to appear as a result of self-assembly of boron atoms".Read more

Carbon flux in the ocean's twilight zone — The twilight zone in the ocean falls between the sunlit photosynthetic layer at the surface and depths below 1,000 meters.Read more

Water's unexpected acidic surface — If there's one thing everyone remembers from their introductory chemistry course, it's that the pH of a glass of pure water is 7.Read more

New malaria drugs arise from the old — Novel derivatives of artemisinin, the active compound in an ancient Chinese remedy for malaria, could be just what the doctor ordered in the hunt for innovative treatments for drug-resistant malaria.Read more

Science & Technology Concentrates

Building barriers in roots — When root cells soak up nutrients from the soil, a single layer of cells called the endodermis (indicated by white arrows) acts as the quality-control barrier.Read more

Rhenium diboride stands up to diamond — With its milquetoast metallic appearance, rhenium diboride (ReB₂) probably won't usurp the place of diamond as a girl's best friend.Read more

Zeptoliter pipette delivers nanodroplets — Nanometer-sized droplets of liquid crystallize differently than their larger counterparts, according to a new study that challenges conventional theories of phase transformations and may lead to new techniques for manipulating microscopic droplets (Nat. Mater., DOI: 10.1038/nmat1894).Read more

Soil bacteria expand antibiotic arsenal — Screening of natural product extracts has unearthed a new antibiotic that could help in the fight against drug-resistant bacteria.Read more

Faster route to NMR chemical shift data — A new technique makes it easier and faster to determine a type of fundamental nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy value that is rich with information about molecules.Read more

April 16, 2007

Drugs from Academia

Some drug discovery efforts are anything but 'academic'.

New Products

New And Notable In The Chemical Industry.

Cover Story: Separations Science

Molecular-beam methods and novel electrodes simplify analysis of mixtures.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Hobbling neuron receptors — Efforts to determine the roles of two related neuronal receptors should get a boost from recent discoveries at the University of California, San Francisco.Read more

Sharper image of fatty acid synthase — The gargantuan 2.6-megadalton protein complex that catalyzes the iterative assembly of fungal fatty acids has just come into sharper focus.Read more

Novel cancer-starving target identified — Antiangiogenesis agents, which are drugs that inhibit blood vessel growth in an effort to starve tumors.Read more

Proton bond observed in a better light — A clearer picture of the intermolecular proton bond that forms when a proton (hydrogen ion) is shared between two Lewis-base solvent molecules is now possible thanks to a gas-phase ion spectroscopy study.Read more

T. rex fossil harbors ancient protein — A surprisingly well-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex leg bone has let loose some of its ancient protein.Read more

April 9, 2007

Chicago's Feast Of Chemistry

ACS meeting spotlights chemistry of insects, oceans, optical devices, and more.

Digital Briefs

New Software and Websites for the Chemical Enterprise.

Science & Technology Concentrates

Acid catalysis in basic solution — By confining a reactant inside electrostatically tuned molecular cages, chemists have performed acid catalysis in basic solution.Read more

Getting to the root of leaf streaks — Plant leaves aren't always uniformly green; some have streaks of white or yellow, a characteristic known as variegation.Read more

Probe detects H²O₂ in living cells — Interest in monitoring hydrogen peroxide in living cells has increased considerably now that it is not just considered a marker for oxidative stress and damage but also thought to be a messenger in cell signaling.Read more

RNA's role inblood coagulation — A clearer picture of the intermolecular proton bond that forms when a proton (hydrogen ion) is shared between two Lewis-base solvent molecules is now possible thanks to a gas-phase ion spectroscopy study.Read more

Fabric-ated electronics — It's not farfetched to envision a world in which electronic fibers are used, for example, in clothing that monitors a patient's vital signs.Read more

April 2, 2007

Leveraging Disorder

The prevalence of unstructured regions in proteins suggests that absence of form has its perks.

Science By And for The People

Using computers at home, volunteers participate in big science

Science & Technology Concentrates

Pruning Blood's Sugars — Blood transfusions can go terribly awry if our immune systems detect red blood cells that possess foreign surface sugars.Read more

Flexible Solids' Swell Secret — Simulation has given scientists a glimpse at how some unusual crystalline solids swell to more than triple their normal volume in the presence of organic solvents.Read more

Microscopic 'Alphabet Soup' — In a process that brings to mind the sorcerer's apprentice, two UCLA chemists have designed and mass-produced billions of fluorescent microscopic particles in the shape of the letters of the alphabet.Read more

Thin Is In — Long, skinny micelles last longer in the blood than their spherical counterparts.Read more

ACS Safeguards Its Journal Content — The American Chemical Society has signed an agreement to preserve the content of its scholarly journals in a digital archive hosted by Portico.Read more