Feature Channels: Chemistry

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Scientists have discovered a molecular assistant called Spy that helps bacteria excel at producing proteins for medical and industrial purposes.

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AUTM President Ashley Stevens, D. Phil. (Oxon), CLP is the lead author of The Role of Public Sector Research in the Discovery of Drugs and Vaccines, a paper published in the Feb. 10 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

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With cholera on the rampage in Haiti and almost 40 other countries, scientists are reporting the development of a key advance that could provide a fast, simple test to detect the toxin that causes the disease.

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The enzyme that makes fireflies glow is lighting up the scientific path toward a long-sought new medical imaging agent to better monitor treatment with heparin, the blood thinner that millions of people take to prevent or treat blood clots, scientists are reporting.

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Scientists are reporting discovery of an environmentally friendly way to make a key industrial material — used in products ranging from paints to diapers — from a renewable raw material without touching the traditional pricey and increasingly scarce petroleum-based starting material.

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In time for the chocolate-giving and chocolate-eating fest on Valentine’s Day, scientists are reporting discovery of how this treat boosts the body’s production of the “good” form of cholesterol that protects against heart disease. Polyphenols in chocolate rev up the activity of certain proteins, including proteins that attach to the genetic material DNA in ways that boost “good” cholesterol levels. Their report appears in the American Chemical Society’s Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

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Danish scientists, in a study published in American Chemical Society’s journal, Chemical Research in Toxicology, found that the invisible particles inhaled into the lungs from breathing wood smoke from fireplaces have multiple adverse effects.

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A pair of studies published Feb. 3 in Nature, detail a new method developed to determine structures of biomolecules based on diffraction from protein nanocrystals. The international team of nearly 90 researchers included 10 from Arizona State University, whose contributions included a protein beam injector and nanocrystals.

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Scientists have found that specific changes in cell membrane voltage and ion flow are key in determining if an organism regenerates a head or a tail. It was known that bioelectric signals can trigger the regeneration process, but no one had shown that these signals determine which part regenerates. This technique uses pharmacology to change voltage and does not rely on gene therapy.

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DNA, that marvelous, twisty molecule of life, has an alter ego, research at the University of Michigan and the University of California, Irvine reveals.

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To combat last year’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill, nearly 800,000 gallons of chemical dispersant were injected directly into the oil and gas flow coming out of the wellhead nearly one mile deep in the Gulf of Mexico. Now, as scientists begin to assess how well the strategy worked at breaking up oil droplets, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) chemist Elizabeth B. Kujawinski and her colleagues report that a major component of the dispersant itself was contained within an oil-gas-laden plume in the deep ocean and had still not degraded some three months after it was applied.

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The American Chemical Society (ACS) entertainingly explores this unsettling premise of a world without chemistry in a new high-definition video released before the official launch of the International Year of Chemistry (IYC). A Day without Chemistry follows a person who sees more and more of his everyday necessities and conveniences disappear.

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The American Chemical Society (ACS) is offering students, teachers and others the chance to win monthly cash cards and grand prizes of an iPad, iPod Touch or iPod Nano in its “365: Chemistry for Life Contest,” celebrating the International Year of Chemistry (IYC).

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At the Weizmann Institute, an interdisciplinary team of scientists have used “natural selection” in a test tube to modify the PON1 enzyme so that it provides protection against nerve agents. This ability to tailor enzymes could be used to develop defensive treatments against all known nerve agents.

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Researchers from UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School have discovered a novel peptide that can act as a potent inducer of cancer cell death, which may have significant implications for therapeutic agents used to treat cancer. Their study indicates that the amphipathic tail-anchoring peptide, or ATAP, may provide more successful outcomes in cancer treatment than the BH3 peptide-based therapy currently used. The study was released online December 28, 2010, as a Paper of the Week in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

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The latest episode in the American Chemical Society’s (ACS) award-winning podcast series, “Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions,” focuses on development of a new ultra-light biodegradable foam plastic material made from two unlikely ingredients: The protein in milk and ordinary clay.

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UNC researchers have created synthetic particles that closely mirror some of the key properties of red blood cells. The particles, which mimic the size, shape and flexibility of natural red blood cells, could potentially help pave the way for the development of synthetic blood and lead to more effective treatments for diseases such as cancer.

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News media now can apply for registration for the American Chemical Society’s (ACS’) 241st National Meeting & Exposition March 27-31, 2011, in Anaheim, Calif., one of the largest scientific conferences of the New Year. The meeting, held during the International Year of Chemistry, will take place at the Anaheim Convention and Exhibition Center and at area hotels.

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Artistry from science: Cornell University researchers have unveiled striking, atomic-resolution details of what graphene “quilts” look like at the boundaries between patches, and have uncovered key insights into graphene’s electrical and mechanical properties.

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The American Chemical Society (ACS) today launched the International Year of Chemistry’s IYC 365: Chemistry for Life, a vibrant science calendar for 2011 highlighting the great intellects and epic events that have shaped modern society through the magic of chemistry.