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July 21, 2008
From Diseases To Devices
Amyloid fibrils are hallmarks of disease but also may provide a basis for advanced nanomaterials.
RNA-Controlled Gene Expression
Target of transcription-altering synthetic RNA is another RNA.
Nana's NanoVisions
An artist discovers her visual icon in a life-or-death medical moment.
Inside Instrumentation
Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.
Science & Technology Concentrates 
- Gold Complex Changes Color Reversibly — Gentle grinding of a new Au(I) complex in solid form changes its luminescence behavior, Japanese researchers report. Read more
- ‘Sewing Machine’ Manipulates DNA Molecule — This ain't your grandmother's sewing machine. Using a single DNA molecule as thread, researchers in Japan designed microhooks and microbobbins to form a "sewing machine" to manipulate DNA. Read more
- Adding Metals To Toluene — Mixed-metal reagents can be tuned to selectively create metal-carbon bonds in toluene at 2,5 or 3,5 positions, depending on the identity of an alkyl component, says a group of researchers led by Robert E. Mulvey of the University of Strathclyde, in Scotland (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200801158). Read more
- Graphene Is The Strongest Material — Scientists have long suspected that graphene—chicken wire-like, two-dimensional sheets of carbon—is the strongest material ever examined. Read more
- Novel Radical Hydrogen Donors may be Less Toxic — A new class of hydrogen-atom donor reagents may be less toxic and therefore could have wider applicability than the trialkyltin reagents commonly used for radical reactions. Read more
- Vaccine Helper Targets Muscle Cells — Vaccines are formulated with additives that enhance their immune-stimulating effects. Read more
- Pressure Cooker Proteomics — Chopping collections of proteins into manageable peptide pieces is one of the most time-consuming parts of proteomics. Read more
- Spying Inside Steel — Corrosion wreaks havoc on steel, which is used in everything from kitchen sinks to nuclear reactors. Read more
July 14, 2008
Rebuilding Teeth
Next-generation treatments may reduce the need for dental fillings.
Digital Briefs
New Software and Websites for the Chemical Enterprise.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Moon Glass Contains Water — In a finding that counters the prevailing wisdom that the moon has always been dry as a bone, a new study shows that small spheres of lunar volcanic glass contain water. Read more
- Side Effects Help Teach Old Drugs New Tricks — The seemingly endless list of possible side effects that accompanies each dispensed prescription medication may now hold the clue to identifying new uses for existing drugs. Read more
- Fast Route To Radiolabeled Formaldehyde — Scientists and doctors may soon have access to a greater number of radiotracer compounds for positron emission tomography (PET). Read more
- Scans Expose Violins' Density Differences — Consistent wood density is the latest theory that researchers are floating to help explain the superior sound of Stradivarius and other classical Italian violins (PLoS ONE, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0002554). Read more
- Laser-Cooled Molecules — Two teams of researchers have demonstrated that laser methods can be used to cool molecules to near absolute zero. Read more
- Detecting Fingerprints with Lawsone — The law enforcement community is constantly looking for more sensitive techniques to sleuth out fingerprint evidence for criminal investigations. Read more
- Adorning with Alkenes — Two new ways to selectively modify proteins using alkene chemistry can now be added to chemical biology's toolbox. Read more
- Structure of Ebola Virus Surface Glycoprotein — After a five-year effort, researchers have determined the structure of the Ebola virus surface glycoprotein, which enables the virus to enter cells. Read more
July 7, 2008
Kitchen Chemistry
Our love of food is helping bring science to the masses.
Molecular Gastronomist Hervé This Tries To Define What We Eat
Food For Thought
A student finds a way to incorporate his love of science and food in his graduate work.
What's That Stuff? Bowling Balls
Knocking down pins and getting strikes with polymer science and surface chemistry. With Video
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Fast Photochromism — Bespectacled folks once marveled at lenses that darken in sunlight and return to their untinted state indoors, but the sluggish transition from tinted to transparent left some feeling less than enlightened. Read more
- Ionic-Liquid Solar Cells — Chemists in China and Switzerland have designed a robust and efficient dye-sensitized solar cell (DSC) based on a solvent-free mixture of three imidazolium compounds (Nat. Mater., DOI: 10.1038/nmat2224). Read more
- Dunking Polymer Doughnuts Into Cells — Rather than dunking their doughnuts in coffee, researchers in Scotland have found a way to dunk polymeric doughnuts into cells (Chem. Commun., DOI: 10.1039/b805323e). Read more
- Water Makes Diamond Coatings Slippery — Crystalline diamond is prized as a durable, low-friction coating for the contacting surfaces of high-performance tools and certain machine parts. Read more
- Another Way To Form Atmospheric Chlorine — National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration scientists report a new mechanism for the formation of molecular chlorine in the atmosphere: N2O5 can oxidize Cl– to Cl2 on acidic aerosols, the researchers say (Science, DOI: 10.1126/science.1158777). Read more
- Organic Fluorophore Switches On Demand — High-resolution, single-molecule imaging methods such as PALM and STORM require fluorophores that can be switched on and off on demand. Read more
- A New Take On Vibrational Excitation — A previously unknown mechanism describing vibrational excitation of molecules undergoing collisions may play a role in all collisions between pairs of neutral species that have the potential to form chemical bonds with one another, according to a new study (Nature 2008, 454, 88). Read more
- Calcium Misregulation Contributes To Alzheimer's Disease — Two studies provide further evidence that calcium regulation in the brain is intimately involved in Alzheimer's disease. Read more
June 30, 2008
Battle Of The 'Functionals'
New tools fix many problems with density functional theory, but which one is best?
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Defeating Diarrhea — Forget chugging chalky Kaopectate when your next bout of diarrhea hits. A newly synthesized pyridopyrimidine derivative may one day be used to halt diarrhea caused by toxin-producing strains of the bacteria Escherichia coli. Read more
- Thick-Shelled Quantum Dots Blink Less — Fluctuations in the emission intensity of individual fluorophores, a phenomenon known as blinking, can be a problem when those fluorophores are used as labels in single-molecule experiments. Read more
- Designing With DNA Made Easy — DNA is more than just the basic building block of life. Read more
- strong>Mass Spec Reveals NeuroAIDS-Related Metabolites — A mass spectrometry analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of macaques that are infected with simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) and that develop neurological disorders has revealed clues about mechanisms of the nervous system diseases and could lead to new therapeutic treatments (J. Clin. Invest., DOI: 10.1172/JCI34138). Read more
- Vanadium-B-12 Bioconjugates Lower Blood Glucose — Nicola E. Brasch and Derek S. Damron of Kent State University and colleagues report the synthesis of the first vanadium-vitamin B-12 bioconjugates (Chem. Commun., DOI: 10.1039/b806598e). Read more
- Why Anesthetics Sometimes Cause Pain — General anesthetics are welcomed for their ability to banish pain during surgery, but some of these drugs increase postsurgical pain and inflammation. Read more
- Peptide Backbone's Folding Role — Modifying elements of a peptide's backbone yields nonnatural peptides that reproduce the three-dimensional structure of the original amino acid sequence, a strategy that could help in designing protein mimics (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0801135105). Read more
- Accelerated Electron Transfer Observed In Model Protein — In biological systems, electron flow often occurs very quickly between distant redox centers in electron-transfer proteins. Read more
June 23, 2008
Electron Microscopy For Chemists
Advances in imaging and elemental analysis move TEM toward the realm of analytical chemistry. With Videos
A Fat Chance To Cure Cancer
Blocking fatty acid assembly is a potential strategy against disease.
Molecular Cage May Contain ... Nothing
Self-assembled prisms may enclose empty spaces rather than solvent. With Video
Inside Instrumentation
Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- One Pot, Six Chiral Centers — By using an amine-based catalyst, researchers at Aarhus University, in Denmark, have sculpted six chiral centers into a molecule in one fell swoop (Chem. Commun., DOI: 10.1039/b806418k). Read more
- Gravity-purified MOFs — Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) can now be quickly and easily purified via a simple solvent-based method that takes advantage of minor density differences between the porous materials and any impurities. Read more
- Chaperonin's Iris-Like 'lid' — By twirling rather than flapping is how a "lid" on the barrel-shaped eukaryotic chaperonin called TRiC closes and opens when proteins enter or depart its interior (Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol., DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1436). Read more
- Cantilever Array Weighs Single Cells — A new array of microfabricated silicon cantilevers gives researchers a way to track the growth of individual adherent cells (Lab Chip, DOI: 10.1039/b803601b). Read more
- Colorful Magnetic Resonance Imaging — Microengineered magnetic particles could bring color to traditionally gray-scale magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), U.S. government scientists report (Nature 2008, 453, 1058). Read more
- Light-Driven Pulleys Turn Plastic Motor — Tomiki Ikeda at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and colleagues have developed the first plastic motor powered only by light (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2008, 47, 4986). Read more
- Five-Membered Chemical Combo Gels — A novel multicomponent combination of chemicals that causes organic solvents to irreversibly gel up may allow scientists to begin tuning or designing other similar mixtures (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja8002777). Read more
- Nanotube Membranes Desalinate Water — Arrays of densely packed, vertically aligned carbon nanotubes can serve as membranes to filter ions out of water while allowing the water to flow significantly faster than through conventional filters. Read more
June 16, 2008
Fraud Busters
New tools emerge for detecting and weeding out plagiarism and data falsification in journal articles.
DNA Repair Mechanism Probed
Single-molecule methods, crystallography reveal surprises about strand-swapping process.
Interstellar Complexity
Discovery of aminoacetonitrile highlights the rigors of space molecule detection.
What's That Stuff? Liquid Bandages
Polymeric materials patch up acute and chronic wounds.
New Products
New and notable in the chemical industry.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Visualizing A Protein's Shape-Shifting — By using an advanced NMR technique, researchers in Germany have taken a closer look at how a protein can alter its structure to bind to different partners (Science 2008, 320, 1471). Read more
- White LED Formed From A Bulk Material — Energy-efficient light-emitting diodes that produce white light have potential as a next-generation technology for general lighting applications. Read more
- Coffee: Good To The Last Stress-Free Sniff — The invigorating aroma of coffee might be doing more than helping you wake up in the morning—it might also be helping to relieve stress, according to a new report (J. Agric. Food Chem., DOI: 10.1021/jf8001137). Read more
- Substrate-Targeting Inhibitors Hint At New Drug Discovery Tactic — Biochemists have uncovered how certain small molecules, including nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as the ibuprofen analog tarenflurbil, reduce production of a form of amyloid-β peptide. Read more
- New Route To α-Alkylated Ketones — A new method for asymmetrically α-alkylating ketones—adding alkyl substituents to carbons adjacent to ketone groups to give chiral products—is simpler and more amenable to scale-up than current approaches. Read more
- Replenished Ozone Could Affect Southern Hemisphere Winds — Earth's healing ozone layer may have unexpected effects on the climate of the Southern Hemisphere, researchers predict (Science 2008, 320, 1486). Read more
- SPR Imaging With White Light — A new surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor that is optimized for visible and near-infrared wavelengths could make SPR imaging cheaper and easier to use. Read more
- X-Rays Discern Crystal Enantiomers — Conventional X-ray crystallography can identify structures of enantiomers, but it can't distinguish between right- and left-handed crystals. Read more
June 9, 2008
Formulations For Fighting Abuse
Opioid makers aim to thwart misuse with excipients, additives, and antagonists.
Extreme Elements
Chemists characterize the far reaches of the periodic table.
Digital Briefs
New Software and Websites for the Chemical Enterprise.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Nanowire Membrane Sops Up Oil — When placed on an oil spill, a thin nanowire mesh membrane material selectively absorbs the oil and leaves water behind, researchers have found. Read more
- Nanoparticles Guide Protein Folding — Coated gold nanoparticles can help denatured proteins refold properly, according to a study (Chem. Commun., DOI: 10.1039/b805242e). Read more
- Multitasking Enzyme — Enzyme-catalyzed reactions are a significant part of the toolkit chemists use to generate chiral building blocks with high purity. Read more
- Lacing Up Polycyclic Lycopodium Alkaloids — A handful of alkaloids derived from Lycopodium club mosses possess promising biological activity, including neurotrophic and anticancer properties. Read more
- Enzyme Structure And Mutations Reveal Disease Roles — The structure determination and mutational analysis of XPD helicase, a key DNA repair enzyme, have yielded molecular insights into its roles in cancer and aging. Read more
- Sunlight Drives Degradation Of Some Flame Retardants — Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants degrade in natural sunlight and could be producing significant amounts of toxic compounds in household dust and the environment. Read more
- Multiple Components Individually Wrapped — An electrospray method developed by Yong Zhao, Lei Jiang, and coworkers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing can trap and keep separate multiple components in a single cell-like capsule in one step (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja801803x). Read more
- Three Protein Copper Sites Interconnected — The copper sites in cupredoxins, a family of proteins that facilitate a variety of redox activities, are structurally and functionally diverse. Read more
June 2, 2008
The Louvre Laboratory
A subterranean research center buzzes beneath Paris' most famous museum.
C&EN Talks With: H. Holden Thorp
Chemist prepares to ascend to top job at UNC Chapel Hill, where he plans to focus on faculty recruitment and retention.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Glowing Polymers Detect Explosives — Three silafluorine-fluorine polymers can quickly and easily reveal the presence of minute quantities of explosives left behind on surfaces. Read more
- MRI Of Tissue pH Makes For Diagnostic Tool — Because changes in tissue pH can indicate problems such as cancer and inflammation, a clinical method for imaging pH in living systems could be a powerful diagnostic tool. Read more
- Multitasking Enzyme — Enzyme-catalyzed reactions are a significant part of the toolkit chemists use to generate chiral building blocks with high purity. Read more
- Sensor Measures Protons, Polarity — A two-for-one sensor that can simultaneously detect local proton concentration and polarity could lead to a tool that can measure the proton gradients across biological membranes involved in the production of adenosine triphosphate, the cell's energy currency. Read more
- Tiny Bubbles, Stabilized — Micrometer-sized bubbles favorably affect the taste, smell, and texture of foods and cosmetics, but the bubbles are unstable and don't last long. Read more
- Partially Folded Protein Is Catalytically Active — Researchers have discovered that a partially folded enzyme is catalytically active, even though its active site is not in its native-state shape. Read more
- Milder Benzyne Click Chemistry — With a safer, easier way of obtaining a reactive intermediate from an aromatic system, Richard C. Larock and colleagues at Iowa State University have improved the versatility of click chemistry. Read more
- Incense Proves Psychoactive — Frankincense, which is often burned in religious and cultural ceremonies, may offer more punch to participants than just smoke and scent. Read more
May 26, 2008
The Import Of Impact
New types of journal metrics grow more influential in the scientific community.
House Cleaning
Coping with errors, ambiguity, and fudging in the realm of citations. Web Exclusive
Insights: Redefining The Kilogram
A new kilogram standard is coming. What does it mean for science?
Inside Instrumentation
Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Sodium's Many Lattice Patterns — Sodium, a paradigm of simplicity highlighted in many textbooks, actually has extremely complicated crystal structures and may not be a metal at high pressures, according to new research (Science 2008, 320, 1054). Read more
- How Aluminum Helps Vaccines — A team of immunologists at Yale University has uncovered a crucial aspect of how aluminum compounds called adjuvants make some types of vaccines more effective. Read more
- Antiangiogenic Agent Synthesized — The first chemical synthesis of the promising antiangiogenic agent cortistatin A has been achieved by Phil S. Baran and coworkers at Scripps Research Institute (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja8023466). Read more
- Iodinated Polymers Visible To X-Rays — A new class of iodinated polymers may provide a way to monitor medical implants and drug delivery devices in the body. Read more
- Airborne Particles Leave Lungs Susceptible To Ozone — Epidemiological studies have demonstrated that airborne particles cause lung problems, but scientists haven't known how. Read more
- Method Tags Molecules' Neighbors — A reaction catalyzed by horseradish peroxidase (HRP) could help identify the molecules that come together to produce signal transduction, cell adhesion, and other biological events (Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI:10.1073/pnas.0710346105). Read more
- Fellutamide Blocks Proteasome To Aid Neurons — The natural product fellutamide B aids brain cells by inhibiting the proteasome, the cell's garbage disposal for proteins, Yale researchers have found. Read more
- Crude Oil's Polar Portion Yields To MS — A new method makes it easier to analyze asphaltenes, mostly aromatic compounds that make up the heaviest and most polar fraction of crude oil. Read more
May 19, 2008
Digging Beneath The Martian Surface
Scientists hope the Phoenix spacecraft will send home clues about Mars's mysterious past.With Podcast
A Mouthful Of Evidence
The ratio of calcium and strontium in baby teeth enamel reveals infant diet.
C&EN Talks With: Brian Malow
For this comedian, science is not just a source of awe but also the stuff that mirth is made of.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Rotundone Imparts Peppery Aroma — The sesquiterpene rotundone gives pepper its distinctive aroma, an international group of researchers argues in a pair of papers in the Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry (DOI: 10.1021/jf800183k and 10.1021/jf800184t). Read more
- Low-Cost Water-Splitting Photocatalyst — Cadmium sulfide doped with a small amount of molybdenum disulfide serves as an efficient photocatalyst for the water-splitting reaction under visible light, according to researchers at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics in China (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja8007825). Read more
- Fighting HIV With Multivalent Gold Nanoparticles — A therapeutically inactive small molecule has been transformed into a potent drug for fighting HIV simply by conjugating the compound to a gold nanoparticle (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja710321g). Read more
- Nanosizing Improves Hydrogen Storage — For hydrogen storage applications, materials composed of nanometer-sized particles outperform samples with larger particles in terms of energetics and hydrogen-release (desorption) temperature, according to researchers in the Netherlands (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja710667v). Read more
- New Asymmetric Route To α-Amino Acid Esters — Developed in 1997 by Nicos A. Petasis of the University of Southern California, the Petasis reaction. Read more
- Interface boosts MS Performance — Many popular mass spectrometry methods require an atmospheric-pressure interface to couple the ionization source to the mass analyzer. Read more
- Making Methanol From Carbon Dioxide And Sunlight — One of the sustainability challenges chemists face is finding an energy-efficient method for reducing industrial emissions of carbon dioxide. Read more
- Compound Stops DNA Replication Before It Starts — Many anticancer agents interfere with the polymerization step of DNA replication, but these drugs can be toxic to noncancerous cells. Read more
May 12, 2008
Analytical Chemistry Comes To The Fore
Retractions set off controversy but seem unlikely to stymie progress in the field.
Heparin Undone
A consortium of scientists raced against the clock to identify the cause of adverse reactions.
Anatomy Of A Pet Food Catastrophe
Investigators deployed an array of analytical tools while probing a wave of pet deaths in 2007.
Agency Depends On In-House Forensic And Toxicological Expertise
FDA scientific units have compiled evidence needed for several high-profile cases.Web Exclusive
Sweet Success
ACS Meeting News: Innovations in agricultural and processing practices extend the range of products derived from the sugar industry.
Guiding Migration
Radical chemistry could help birds use Earth's magnetic field as a compass.
Nerve Agents Hit Cannabinoid System
Sarin homolog inhibits enzymes in endocannabinoid system.
Digital Briefs
New Software and Websites for the Chemical Enterprise.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Drug-Quadruplex Interactions Revealed — A newly obtained X-ray crystal structure shows how the anticancer agent BRACO-19 interacts with its molecular targets, which are human quadruplexes—guanine-rich DNA assemblies of highly defined structure found at chromosome ends (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja8016973). Read more
- Kelp Keeps Iodide As An Antioxidant — Iodine was first discovered in kelp two centuries ago, but its bioactive chemical form and function have remained a mystery. Read more
- Fungi Mineralize Depleted Uranium — Certain fungi can colonize surfaces of pieces of depleted uranium and transform the metal into stable minerals. Read more
- Expanded Suzuki Cross-Coupling — The Suzuki reaction has proven to be an indispensible tool for organic chemists, allowing them to build complex molecules via the palladium- or nickel-catalyzed cross-coupling of organoboron compounds with a variety of electrophiles. Read more
- Glaciers Are A Source Of Residual DDT — Glacier meltwater is a probable source of the banned pesticide DDT in Antarctic marine ecosystems, according to a new study (Environ. Sci. Technol., DOI: 10.1021/es702919n). Read more
- Retooling The Fungal Chemical Factory — Fungi suppress biosynthetic pathways for certain natural products when those compounds aren't needed. Read more
- More Sensitive Piezoresistive Sensors — Metal-semiconductor composites exhibit a piezoresistive effect at room temperature that is 10 times greater than that of pure metals or semiconductors, according to a study by Alistair C. H. Rowe of Ecole Polytechnique, Palaiseau, France, and coworkers (Phys. Rev. Lett. 2008, 100, 145501). Read more
- An Ionic Liquid Thermometer — Most commercial liquid-in-glass thermometers are filled with mercury or an alcohol such as ethanol. Read more
- Seawater boosts tomato's antioxidants — Irrigating cherry tomatoes with diluted seawater produces tastier fruit with increased antioxidant levels, according to a new study (J. Agric. Food Chem., DOI: 10.1021/jf0733012). Read more
May 5, 2008
Enzyme Design Papers Retracted
Retractions set off controversy but seem unlikely to stymie progress in the field.
Absinthe Myths Finally Laid To Rest
Vintage samples of the notorious alcoholic drink don't contain high levels of psychoactive compound.
Power To The Students
Grad students produce high-profile symposium as part of an innovative education initiative.
Perfecting An Artificial Pancreas
Specialized polymer is key to insulin-regulating device.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Microfluidic spider silk — How a spider's spinning duct turns protein solutions into threads as strong as steel is still largely a mystery. But German scientists have now designed a microfluidic device. Read more
- Firing up the tank with nanoparticles — In an attempt to make liquid fuels more energy efficient, scientists have found that adding aluminum or aluminum oxide nanoparticles to diesel fuel improves its ignition properties (Nano Lett., DOI: 10.1021/nl080277d). Read more
- Oligogermanes start to branch out — The periodic table foretells that the chemistry of germanium should be similar to that of carbon. Indeed, a growing number of linear oligogermanes are being synthesized. Read more
- Semiconductors via combustion — Combustion synthesis is a low-cost, low-tech, and energy-efficient preparation method that can be used to synthesize nanocrystalline tungsten trioxide, an important inorganic oxide semiconductor. Read more
- Getting stuffed improves stability of boron fullerenes — Adding to the growing theoretical collection of boron analogs of fullerenes, chemists have postulated that a new family of boron clusters stuffed with a few extra boron atoms should be more stable than the previously hypothesized champion of stability, B80. Read more
- Souped-up nanomotors — Drop a bimetal nanowire, composed of a segment of gold and a segment of platinum, into a solution of aqueous hydrogen peroxide and the tiny rod will chug along at about 8 µm/second. Read more
- New And Improved Covalent Atomic Radii — An updated set of atomic radii has been generated for the elements hydrogen through curium, an accomplishment that fills in gaps and resolves inconsistencies in a pool of data currently used to study chemical structure, bonding, reactivity, and periodic trends (Dalton Trans., DOI: 10.1039/b801115j). Read more
- How to dissolve your carbon nanotubes — Although carbon nanotubes are generally regarded as insoluble in all solvents, a research team led by Jonathan N. Coleman of Trinity College Dublin and James P. Hamilton of the University of Wisconsin, Platteville, has found that carbon nanotubes actually can be dissolved in N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP) and other solvents with a surface energy that matches that of graphitic surfaces (Adv. Mater., DOI: 10.1002/adma.200702451). Read more
- Seawater boosts tomato's antioxidants — Irrigating cherry tomatoes with diluted seawater produces tastier fruit with increased antioxidant levels, according to a new study (J. Agric. Food Chem., DOI: 10.1021/jf0733012). Read more
April 28, 2008
Drug Candidates Unveiled
ACS Meeting News: Medicinal chemists disclose drug candidates for hepatitis, cancer, and other conditions.
Healing Clays
ACS Meeting News: Scientists probe antibacterial mechanism of natural clays.
Brotherly Love, Sisterly Affection
Annual conference returns to Philadelphia to highlight achievements of black chemists and chemical engineers.
NOBCChE: 2008 Competition Winners
'Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed'
Ben Stein's antiscience 'documentary' equates evolution with Nazism.
C&EN Talks With Bob Peoples
Green Chemistry Institute's personable new director plans to build consensus for chemists' sustainability efforts.
Inside Instrumentation
Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.
Cover Story: Chromatography In The Extreme
Smaller particles, higher pressures, and other unconventional conditions spur speed and efficiency in separations
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Microfluidic Aerobatics — Digital microfluidics, in which individual droplets are manipulated on an array of electrodes, is currently limited to a single horizontal plane. Read more
- Membrane Anchors May Outwit Alzheimer's — Cell-membrane-spanning protease enzymes called β-secretases play a critical role in β-amyloid peptide formation, a key step in the progression of Alzheimer's disease. Read more
- DNA Repair Job Gets Inspected — With the help of a clever cross-linking strategy, chemists at the University of Chicago have determined why one repair protein sticks to fixing up double-stranded DNA damaged by alkylation, whereas its relatives prefer mending single-stranded DNA (Nature 2008, 452, 961). Read more
- Mouse Skin Doubles as an Oxygen Sensor — Besides guarding muscle and internal organs, the skin of a mouse can sense oxygen levels in the local environment and adjust the animal's physiological response accordingly, report University of California, San Diego, biology professor Randall S. Johnson and coworkers (Cell 2008, 133, 223). Read more
- RNNNNNNR: A Tamed High-Energy Compound — Chemicals with high nitrogen content also tend to be highly energetic, so chemists must tread lightly when handling or storing them lest they explode. Read more
- Catalyst Shape Matters — When it comes to catalyzing certain reactions, new research shows that the shape of a nanoparticle catalyst may be more important than its size. Read more
- New And Improved Covalent Atomic Radii — An updated set of atomic radii has been generated for the elements hydrogen through curium, an accomplishment that fills in gaps and resolves inconsistencies in a pool of data currently used to study chemical structure, bonding, reactivity, and periodic trends (Dalton Trans., DOI: 10.1039/b801115j). Read more
- Tagged Metals Are Ready To Star in Action Movies — A new family of fluorescent compounds may enable transition-metal-catalyzed reactions to be imaged at the single-molecule level, according to a study by Stephen M. Canham, Suzanne A. Blum, and coworkers at the University of California, Irvine (Organometallics, DOI: 10.1021/om800228v). Read more
- A Golden Crown — In what some might call a crowning achievement of metal-metal bonding, chemists in China have assembled 36 gold atoms into a crownlike ring, creating the largest member of the gold ring family reported to date (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200801001). Read more
April 21, 2008
Chemistry Gumbo A La New Orleans
ACS Meeting News: Highlights include antimicrobials from alligators, mimicking switchability of sea cucumber skin, and more.
Multilayer Metal-Organic Films Go 3-D
Metal-ligand coordination and π–π interactions provide unprecedented structure to layered molecular assemblies.
C&EN Talks With: Robert Cech
In relinquishing the helm at HHMI, Nobel prize-winning biochemist will return to research and teaching roots.
New Products
New and notable in the chemical industry.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Peptide Nanostructure Kills Cancer Cells — By adding crown ether moieties to a polypeptide, chemists in Canada have created a nanoscale chemotherapeutic compound that can selectively and efficiently kill prostate cancer cells (Chem. Commun., DOI: 10.1039/b800528a). Read more
- Ocean Calcification Varies As CO2 Rises — High levels of atmospheric CO2 are making the ocean more acidic, and scientists have predicted that those acidic conditions could reduce all marine organisms' ability to produce calcium carbonate structures. Read more
- Nanocomposite Strategy Eliminates Matrix — The narrow spectral width and high quantum efficiency of lanthanide spectral emission make rare-earth-doped nanocrystals good candidates for optical materials. Read more
- Air Pollution Foils Pollinators — Floral fragrances waft far and wide in clean air, but polluted air is another story. Emissions from sources such as cars and power plants are disrupting the perfumed chemical trails that direct pollinators to flowers. Read more
- Patterning Through Evaporation — Researchers developing a new one-step method of lithographic patterning through evaporation of colloidal films have discovered that changing the colloid concentration in organic solution affects whether particles are deposited in exposed or covered regions of the mask (Langmuir 2008, 24, 3681). Read more
- Catalyst Shape Matters — When it comes to catalyzing certain reactions, new research shows that the shape of a nanoparticle catalyst may be more important than its size. Read more
- Patterning Through Evaporation — Researchers developing a new one-step method of lithographic patterning through evaporation of colloidal films have discovered that changing the colloid concentration in organic solution affects whether particles are deposited in exposed or covered regions of the mask (Langmuir 2008, 24, 3681). Read more
- System Grows Cells In 3-D — For mimicking the physiological context of cells, three-dimensional laboratory microenvironments are often better than flat ones. Read more
- Two Xenons In One Small Molecule — To date, most molecules involving noble gases, such as KrF2 or HXeCl, contain just one of the inert atoms and frequently some halide atoms. Now, Leonid Khriachtchev of the University of Helsinki and colleagues have synthesized what they believe is the smallest neutral molecule with two noble-gas atoms, HXeOXeH (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja077835v). Read more
April 14, 2008
Bacteria In Clouds
Microbial meteorologists investigate how airborne microbes might influence weather.
What's That Stuff? Dryer Sheets
The science that gives clothing a soft feel and fresh scent as it prevents static cling.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Plant Pathogen Guides Cancer Research — The bacterium Pseudomonas syringae is infamous for the brown rot spots it leaves on apples, pears, and many other crops. Read more
- Fungal Enzyme Deconstructed — The antibiotic erythromycin and other products of a ubiquitous family of enzymes known as polyketide synthases are produced in a fundamentally different way in fungi than they are in bacteria. Read more
- Catalyst Architecture Revealed — Researchers have assembled the first three-dimensional experimental images of cobalt-based catalysts used in Fischer-Tropsch processes to convert synthesis gas to hydrocarbon fuels and feedstocks (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja710299h). Read more
- Yeast Gets A Protective Coating — Chinese researchers have devised a way to protect yeast cells with a mineral coating similar to an eggshell (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200704718). Read more
- Simple Synthesis Of Chiral #947;-Amino Acids —Efficient routes to chiral, monosubstituted #947;-amino acids—a long-standing synthetic challenge—have been developed independently by two groups. Read more
April 7, 2008
C&EN Talks With: Angela Belcher
The MacArthur Fellow talks about tackling science from all sides.
Cover Story: Surface Science's Sage
Priestley Medalist Gabor A. Somorjai has been advancing surface chemistry for nearly five decades
Accepting The Medal In His Own Words
Molecular Chemistry And Catalysis By Surfaces
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Step-By-Step Tooth Enamel — Tooth enamel, made from tightly packed hydroxyapatite nanorods, is one of the hardest and most durable biomaterials known. Read more
- The Subsurface Counts In Catalysis — Catalysis is generally thought of as a surface phenomenon, yet a new study demonstrates that what happens several atomic layers below the catalyst surface can have a big impact on catalytic reactions. Read more
- Manganese Ions Do An Enzyme's Job — To guard against reactive superoxide radicals (O2•-), many organisms rely on superoxide dismutases (SODs), which are enzymes that convert superoxide into O2 and H2O2. Read more
- Defluorinating Bioaccumulative PFOS — Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) has been used as an ingredient in many industrial and consumer products such as surfactants and fire-fighting foams. Read more
- Silica And Ice Template Creates Holey Microfibers — With a "brick and mortar" assembly approach, researchers have made porous, hollow carbon/metal oxide microfibers with well-controlled pore structures (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja800376t). Read more
- Oceanographers Gain A Tracer Compound — Oceanographers have traditionally injected kilogram amounts of sulfur hexafluoride gas into the ocean and followed the evolution of these spikes by gas chromatography of water samples to study mixing processes. Read more
- Graphene's Electronic Limits Revealed — Physicists at the University of Maryland have thoroughly probed the conductivity of graphene—a single-atom-thick sheet of graphite—and measured key parameters that for the first time give a complete picture of the current limitations and future promise of the recently discovered electronic material (Nat. Nanotechnol., DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2008.58). Read more
- Alternative Route To Dehydroalanine — Dehydroalanine (Dha), which can be formed by oxidative elimination of alkylated derivatives of cysteine (Cys) or selenocysteine, provides a chemical handle for selectively modifying proteins and thereby studying the process of posttranslational modifications. Read more
March 31, 2008
Fertilizing The Ocean With Iron
Large-scale experiments will determine whether plankton can battle climate change.
Digital Briefs
New software and websites for the chemical enterprise.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- A Squishy Squid And Its Tough Beak: Mystery Resolved — How the Humboldt squid avoids harming its own soft, gelatinous body when it wields its tough beak to attack and eat prey is now known. Read more
- Minimizing Halogenated Mutagens In Water — Halogenated furanones can be produced in drinking water by the reaction of naturally occurring organic matter and bromide with the disinfectant chlorine. Read more
- Novel Fenestranes Stitched Together — Using a one-pot procedure, chemists in France have developed a simple synthesis of complex [4.6.4.6]fenestradienes and [4.6.4.6]fenestrenes (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja800691c). Read more
- Humans Make Up For Vitamin C Shortfall — More than 4,000 mammals can make vitamin C from glucose, but the human version of the necessary enzyme is out of order. To make up for our species' incompetence, humans have evolved a way to efficiently utilize the vitamin C we consume. Read more
- Control System With An Enzyme PIN — A security system with a personal identification number (PIN) made of enzymes rather than numbers or letters has been devised by Evgeny Katz and coworkers at Clarkson University, Potsdam, N.Y. Read more
- Oceanographers Gain A Tracer Compound — Oceanographers have traditionally injected kilogram amounts of sulfur hexafluoride gas into the ocean and followed the evolution of these spikes by gas chromatography of water samples to study mixing processes. Read more
- Graphene's Electronic Limits Revealed — Physicists at the University of Maryland have thoroughly probed the conductivity of graphene—a single-atom-thick sheet of graphite—and measured key parameters that for the first time give a complete picture of the current limitations and future promise of the recently discovered electronic material (Nat. Nanotechnol., DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2008.58). Read more
- Alternative Route To Dehydroalanine — Dehydroalanine (Dha), which can be formed by oxidative elimination of alkylated derivatives of cysteine (Cys) or selenocysteine, provides a chemical handle for selectively modifying proteins and thereby studying the process of posttranslational modifications. Read more
March 24, 2008
Switches For The Body Electric
Double-bond isomerization makes new ways to control nerve impulses available. With Videos
Heparin Unveiled
Complex polysaccharide facilitates more than just blood thinning.
Water On Fire Makes Scientists Burn
Radio-wave-induced water dissociation isn't a miracle, they say
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Core-Shell Catalyst Clears CO — A catalyst composed of a 3-nm-diameter ruthenium core coated with a platinum shell just one or two atomic layers thick converts CO to CO2 in the presence of hydrogen more selectively and at more than 50 °C lower than other common catalysts that mediate the same oxidation (Nat. Mat., DOI: 10.1038/nmat2156). Read more
- Depression Biomarker Identified — Imagine a blood test that could diagnose depression and also indicate whether a particular antidepressant therapy is working. That could be the eventual outcome of a recent study by Mark M. Rasenick of the University of Illinois, Chicago, and colleagues (J. Neurosci. 2008, 28, 3042). Read more
- Mercury Down The Dental Drain — A team led by Karl J. Rockne and James L. Drummond of the University of Illinois, Chicago, has investigated how much mercury and methylmercury, a bioaccumlative neurotoxin, is released from dentists' offices (Environ. Sci. Technol., DOI: 10.1021/es7027058). Read more
- Cyclization In Close Quarters — The Diels-Alder reaction, a widely used transformation in organic synthesis, forms six-membered rings from a conjugated diene and a dienophile-frequently an alkene. Read more
- A Spring-Loaded Monomer — By incorporating a trans double bond into an eight-carbon annulene, chemists have made a strained ring structure that snaps open, paving the way for a ring-opening metathesis polymerization reaction that produces a new type of polymer (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200704355). Read more
- Analyzing Batteries One Slice At A Time — Researchers in France and Japan have demonstrated a procedure for preparing nanometer-thick cross sections of solid-state lithium-ion batteries and analyzing the thin slices in a transmission electron microscope (Chem. Mater., DOI: 10.1021/cm7033933). Read more
- Chloride Deposits Found On Mars — NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft has detected fields of chloride deposits, an elusive mineral formation associated with water evaporation, on the red planet. Read more
- Double Duty For Eggshell Protein — Eggshells are chemical fortresses for developing animals—they protect against mechanical stress and bacterial invaders. Now, an international team led by Suresh Valiyaveettil of the National University of Singapore demonstrates how a key protein in turtle eggshells helps perform those tasks (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja075659k). Read more
March 17, 2008
NMR Method Downsizes
Royalty payouts from university-held patents have power to transform chemistry departments.
What's That Stuff? Contact Lenses
From Plexiglas to silicone hydrogels—the materials that let you see through to the other side.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Molecular Target Discovered For Deet Bug Repellent — Since World War II, people worldwide have liberally applied N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide, better known as DEET, to ward off blood-feeding insects that can transmit malaria and other diseases. Read more
- Methane Activation Site Revealed For Zeolite Catalyst — By coupling materials synthesis and catalytic activity studies with a powerful NMR spectroscopy method, a team of researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and China's Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics has identified the active species in a molybdenum-based zeolite (aluminosilicate) catalyst that converts methane to benzene: It's an Al-O-Mo linkage (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008, 130, 3722). Read more
- Revised Amination Skips Olefin Tether — Last year, M. Christina White's group at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, developed the first catalytic amination method for transforming an allylic C–H bond to a C–N bond, bypassing an oxygenation step formerly needed for such conversions. Read more
- New Worm Weapons For Grazing Livestock — When sheep and cattle graze, they sometimes devour far more than a square meal. Increasingly, the grazers are becoming infected with drug-resistant parasitic worms that cause life-threatening anemia. Read more
- Sugar Arrays Gauge Malaria Response — Arrays of synthetic glycan toxins derived from the malaria parasite may aid the design of an efficient carbohydrate-based vaccine for the disease (Nat. Chem. Biol., DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.75). Read more
- Organics Observed Around Sunlike Star — Comets and meteorites carry traces of water and organic molecules originating from the earliest days of our solar system. Read more
- Chemical Abstracts To Check on Wikipedia — The American Chemical Society's Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) has agreed to help Wikipedia, the online user-generated encyclopedia, make sure that entries on chemical substances of widespread general public interest include complete and accurate CAS Registry Numbers. Read more
- Frustration Begets Dihydrogen Cleavage — Phosphines and boranes very much like to form Lewis acid-base adducts, but bulky substituent groups can sometimes get in the way and prevent close encounters. Read more
- Frustration Begets Dihydrogen Cleavage — Phosphines and boranes very much like to form Lewis acid-base adducts, but bulky substituent groups can sometimes get in the way and prevent close encounters. Read more
March 10, 2008
Financial Windfall From Lyrica
Royalty payouts from university-held patents have power to transform chemistry departments.
Helping Biology Catch Up
PhosPhoProteomics needs to progress from cataloguing sites to understanding their biology.
New Products
New and notable in the chemical industry.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Aromatic Chloride Catcher — To grab hold of an anion, an organic host molecule usually uses strong hydrogen-bond donors, such as N–H bonds or C–H bonds adjacent to a cationic center. Read more
- Onionlike hydrogels — Interruptions in a gelation process have yielded the first hydrogel with a membrane architecture that resembles the distinct layers of an onion (Nature 2008, 452, 76). Read more
- Treating Nuclear Waste With Sulfides — Metal sulfides may make it easier to remove radioactive strontium-90 from nuclear waste (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0711528105). Read more
- Rocks Conduct Chemically — To determine the efficiency of treatments that remove iron(III) oxide rust, researchers typically measure the amount of water-soluble iron(II) that the treatments release. Read more
- Chlorine Binds Gold Covalently — Although all halogens are thought to bind to metal surfaces through ionic interactions, new theoretical evidence indicates that chlorine breaks this rule when interacting with a gold surface (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja7109234). Read more
March 3, 2008
'Breaking Bad'
Novel TV show features chemist making crystal meth.
More Than Just Pores
Ion channels can also act as enzymes and communication links.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Water Leaves Trail In Hair — Be careful where you drink. A University of Utah team led by geochemist Thure E. Cerling and ecologist James R. Ehleringer reports that the isotope ratios of human hair correlate with the isotope ratios of local tap water and can be used to track where people have been (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2008, 105, 2788). Read more
- Trap for Sugar-Protein Partners — Carbohydrate-protein interactions occur in the immune system and throughout biology, but details about these contacts are poorly understood. Read more
- Antibody-Stilbene Interactions Illuminated — When the antibody EP2-19G2 hooks up with the molecule trans-stilbene, the resulting complex produces a bright blue luminescence, a feature that has been exploited to create biosensors. Read more
- Drug Design Strategy Aims For Disorder — Drug designers should set their sights on small molecules that induce conformational disorder in their protein targets, according to Ariel Fernández and Alejandro Crespo of Rice University (Mol. Pharmaceutics, DOI: 10.1021/mp700148h). Read more
- Peroxides Facilitate Direct Methylations — By using peroxides to deliver methyl groups, a team led by Chao-Jun Li of McGill University, in Montreal, has devised an alternative strategy for the palladium-catalyzed methylation of aryl C–H bonds (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008, 130, 2900). Read more
February 25, 2008
Mysterious Attraction
New explanation for hydrocarbon stability invokes 'protobranching'.
Insights: Teething Lessons
Fantastic chemistry is never far away, especially when you're in the dentist's chair.
Inside Instrumentation
Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Gecko Feet Inspire Medical Adhesive — Geckos can stick to walls and zip across ceilings thanks to the adhesive properties of tiny nanoscale projections on their feet. Read more
- Superslippery Surfaces — Repulsive van der Waals forces are one of the keys to sliding without friction, according to researchers at the Swedish Royal Institute of Technology, in Stockholm (Langmuir, DOI: 10.1021/la7036907). Read more
- Acetyl On Demand — Covalent addition of acetyl groups to lysine's side-chain nitrogen is a reversible process that regulates essential events such as DNA replication and repair. Read more
- New Pain Process Revealed — Chronic pain caused by nerve damage is tough to treat because its underlying mechanisms aren't well-understood. Read more
- Visual DNA test — A new method could make it easier to test for the DNA base changes known as single-nucleotide polymorphisms, or SNPs, in a point-of-care setting without the instrumentation that is currently required. Read more
February 18, 2008
A Massive Case Of Fraud
Journal editors are left reeling as publishers move to rid their archives of scientist's falsified research.
Comment on scientific fraud.
Messenger From Mercury
Exploration of the sun's closest neighbor begins anew after 20 years.
What's That Stuff? Lava Lamps
A density lesson inspired the Woodstock generation.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Cause Of Muscle Fatigue Identified — New evidence indicates that calcium contributes to muscle fatigue (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2008, 105, 2198). Read more
- Instrument-Based Coffee Taster Developed — Coffee scientists have long wanted to develop an instrument as good as trained panelists at evaluating sensory characteristics of coffee. Read more
- Stripping Staph Of its 'Golden Armor' — More people die from drug-resistant staph infections in the U.S. than from HIV/AIDS, so finding new antistaph strategies is an important research goal. Read more
- Extra Electron Key To Forming Ammonium Salt — Students in freshman chemistry learn that NH3 and HCl react in solution to form NH4+Cl-. Read more
- Oxygen Dissociates Unevenly On Surface — Titanium dioxide catalyzes a range of reactions involving O2, including organic pollutant degradation and hydrogen production. Read more
February 11, 2008
Is Peer Review Honest?
Although hard evidence of reviewer impropriety is scarce, suspicions plague junior faculty.
In Search of Concrete Evidence
Materials scientist suggests parts of the Egyptian pyramids were made from reconstituted limestone.
Flu Virus Proton Channel Analyzed
Structures of key surface protein suggest different drug mechanisms.
Anticancer Agent Created, Corrected
Two neopeltolide total syntheses lead to its structural reassignment.
Digital Briefs
New software and websites for the chemical enterprise.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Patterning With Fluorophores — In a new approach to patterning surfaces on micrometer scales, researchers have linked inert fluorescent molecules to an insulating surface by using copper-catalyzed "click" chemistry (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja078183d). Read more
- Protein-Dependent Memory Modification — Protein synthesis in neurons in the brain is critical for stabilizing a recalled memory and storing it away again. Read more
- Expanding C–P Bond Chemistry — The first lanthanide-metal complex featuring a phosphinidene functional group has been reported by a team led by Jaqueline L. Kiplinger of Los Alamos National Laboratory (J. Am. Chem. Soc., DOI: 10.1021/ja7105306). Read more
- Hypertension Drugs Unexpectedly Fight Lysosomal Disorders — In studies on patient-derived cells, two FDA-approved hypertension drugs have proven to be effective at ameliorating multiple characteristics of lysosomal storage diseases. Read more
- Crowding Improves Protein Factories — Modular enzymes called nonribosomal peptide synthetases manufacture many antibiotics and immune suppressants in the biomolecule-packed environment of cells. Read more
February 4, 2008
It's All About Access
Collections of digital resources expand, enhancing current and ensuring future access to scientific data.
A Quantum Mechanical Tweak
Study combining experiment and theory demonstrates that electron-nucleus coupling has minor effect on reactions.
New Products
New and notable in the chemical industry.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Two-For-One Bioimaging Agent — A novel bimetallic complex could be used as a contrast agent for both luminescence microscopy and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Read more
- Tailoring More Active Titania Photocatalysts — By customizing the surface structure of titanium dioxide particles, researchers at Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, in China, have significantly boosted the semiconductor's catalytic activity in photochemical water-splitting reactions (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200704788). Read more
- Scientists Plumb Veggies' Secrets — If you're preparing broth to make chicken soup, be sure to toss in some celery. Its phthalides add pleasing complexity to the soup's flavor, according to Japanese researchers. Read more
- Abiogenic Hydrocarbons Born Under The Sea — Low-molecular-weight hydrocarbons found in fluid that gushes from undersea hydrothermal vents are thought to have abiogenic origins. Read more
- New Motions For Molecular Machinery — Macromolecules that can undergo a range of motions when stimulated by light or heat have been touted as potential components of tiny machines in nanoscale devices. Read more
January 28, 2008
Middle East Connections
Conference uses science to build bridges in the region.
Outreach
Workshops promote chemical bonding among young Middle Eastern scientists.Web Exclusive
Toward Greener Therapeutic Proteins
Pfizer researchers assess ways to improve biologics manufacturing.
Bottling Hydrogen In Solids
Basic research yields better hydrogen-storage materials, but the best is yet to come.
Treating Sewage For Drinking Water
New California plant cleanses water to replenish supply.
Insights: Feeding Africa
Ensuring a sustainable food supply in Africa may have little to do with science.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Antibiotics From The Deep — A veritable treasure trove of medicinally relevant compounds has once again been found by plumbing the oceans' depths. Read more
- STM Image Analysis Of Polymers Simplified — Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory have developed a simple procedure by which scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) can be used to record atomic-resolution images of polymers and other large molecules (Surf. Sci. 2008, 602, 3). Read more
- Little-Ring Metathesis — Ring-closing metathesis has been used to establish a new route to functionalized cyclobutenes, a surprising result given the generally accepted idea that ring strain precludes formation of small cyclic rings using this approach (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008, 130, 1562). Read more
- Drying Paint Delivers A Silver Bullet — About the simplest method one could imagine for endowing oil-based house paint with antibacterial properties-adding some reagents and watching the paint dry-has been developed by researchers at the City College of New York and Rice University (Nat. Mater., DOI: 10.1038/nmat2099). Read more
- Cautionary Tale On Amyloid Inhibitors — Amyloid inhibitors' tendency to aggregate may be the key to their ability to block amyloid polymerization, according to a new study (Nat. Chem. Biol., DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.65). Read more
January 21, 2008
Evolution Yes, Creationism No
Booklet says evolution, but not creationism, should be part of public school science curricula.
Cellulosic Ethanol Deemed Feasible
Production from farmed switchgrass can surpass energy, environmental, and economic hurdles.
C&EN Talks With: Helmut Schwarz
Physical chemist takes presidency of Germany's Humboldt Foundation.
Inside Instrumentation
Technology and Business news for the laboratory world.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Boosting Prodrug Stability — To increase the oral availability of certain therapeutic compounds, chemists will sometimes tack an ester group onto the molecule. Read more
- First Four-Coordinate Iron(III) Porphyrin — Chemistry professor Kenneth S. Suslick, graduate student Ming Fang, and crystallographer Scott R. Wilson of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, report the first four-coordinate Fe(III) porphyrin complex, a rare example of isolating an extremely reactive electrophilic metal cation (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008, 130, 1134). Read more
- Huntington's Excess Neurotransmission — Huntington's disease is caused by an abnormal version of huntingtin protein. Read more
- Glycoconjugates Pinpoint Shiga Toxins — If the food-borne bacterium Escherichia coli O157:H7 introduces Shiga toxin 2 (Stx2) into a person's gut, that individual has a significant risk of developing hemolytic uremic syndrome, a cause of renal failure and death. Read more
- Nanotubes Create Darkest Dark Material — Materials science has a dark side. Researchers report that they have made the world's darkest material from a low-density, vertically aligned array of carbon nanotubes (Nano Lett., DOI: 10.1021/nl072369t). Read more
January 14, 2008
A Role For C-Peptide
Peptide formed during insulin production facilitates glucose clearance and may benefit diabetic patients.
Digital Briefs
New software and websites for the chemical enterprise.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Long Ago, Paris was a Jungle — Modern-day Paris may have a reputation as being something of an urban jungle, but according to some new chemical evidence, tens of millions of years ago Paris was quite literally a jungle. Read more
- Immunoassay Based on Optical Diffraction — Purdue University scientists have developed a rapid and sensitive immunoassay method based on the spontaneous assembly of analyte molecules into an optical diffraction grating (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200703222). Read more
- Conflicting Inorganic Aromaticity — Aromaticity and antiaromaticity, once purely the domain of organic chemistry, has expanded in recent years to include organometallic complexes, all-metal clusters, and main-group compounds. Read more
- Organic Red Goo Found Outside Solar System — Collections of large organic molecules that form a reddish goo, seen in our solar system in places such as the surface of Titan, have now been spotted in a planet-forming disk of dust surrounding a star 220 light-years away (Astrophys. J. Lett., DOI: 10.1086/527546). Read more
- New Chorismate Metabolic Pathway — At least six bacterial biosynthetic routes to key biomolecules—including several amino acids, the vitamin folate, and the coenzyme ubiquinone—begin with the key metabolic intermediate chorismate. Read more
January 7, 2008
Making Explosives In The Lab
Researchers impress on students the importance of safety.
Enzyme Opens For Business
Transglutaminase 2 structure may pave new route to developing treatments for celiac disease.
What's That Stuff? Excipients
Inactive ingredients in medicines serve multiple functions in drug delivery.
Science & Technology Concentrates
- Shortcut to Natural Products — A widespread strategy for synthesizing natural product molecules involves dearomatization of substituted phenols followed by a desymmetrization reaction. Read more
- Groping Your Way Out Of An Anesthetic Fog — One popular hypothesis holds that a patient emerges from an anesthetized state simply because the anesthetic drug is eliminated from the neurological site of action. Read more
- Value-added Methyl Esters From Biomass — As global demand and prices for petroleum-based feedstocks continue to rise, chemists are being challenged to devise processes that utilize biomass-derived feedstocks. Read more
- Alternative Pathway For Alcohol Biofuels — In an effort to advance biofuels, UCLA chemical engineers James C. Liao, Shota Atsumi, and Taizo Hanai have engineered Escherichia coli to produce C3–C5 alcohols from glucose using the bacteria's amino acid biosynthetic pathway (Nature 2008, 451, 86). 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
