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Gabor A. Somorjai, Ph.D., has been chosen to receive the 2008 Priestley Medal by the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world's largest scientific society, for his contributions to the fields of surface science and catalysis for more than 40 years. A professor of chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley, Somorjai has been a pioneer in the study of surfaces and surface phenomena, which has in turn impacted various other disciplines.

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The spiraling use of corn for food and fuel is creating heightened concerns about contamination of this staple crop with deadly aflatoxin. Produced by certain fungi that grow on corn, this contaminant is a known human carcinogen that especially threatens food safety in the developing world and can potentially cause the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in the United States each year.

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Fifteen hundred years ago, tribes people from the central Amazon basin mixed their soil with charcoal derived from animal bone and tree bark. Today, at the site of this charcoal deposit, scientists have found some of the richest, most fertile soil in the world. Now this ancient, remarkably simple farming technique seems far ahead of the curve, holding promise as a carbon-negative strategy to rein in world hunger as well as greenhouse gases.

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Scientists presented evidence today that desert heat, a little water, and meteorite impacts may have been enough to cook up one of the first prerequisites for life: The dominance of "left-handed" amino acids, the building blocks of life on this planet. In a report at the 235th national meeting of the ACS, Ronald Breslow, Ph.D., University Professor, Columbia University, and former ACS President, described how our amino acid signature came from outer space.

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Chemists in Colorado now are reporting solutions to two major problems with bamboo fabrics that may speed adoption of this amazing plant — which grows like Jack's beanstalk without special care — in garments and other consumer products.

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Valued for its antibacterial and odor-fighting properties, nanoparticle silver is becoming the star attraction in a range of products from socks to bandages to washing machines. But as silver's benefits propel it to the forefront of consumer nanomaterials, scientists are recommending a closer examination of the unforeseen environmental and health consequences of nanosilver.

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The American Chemical Society (ACS) Office of Communications is offering the news media the opportunity to join press briefings whether covering the meeting onsite or from a remote location. This new updated format during ACS's 235th national meeting April 6-10 in New Orleans will provide access to the increasing number of journalists who cover scientific meetings from their home base.

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The American Chemical Society's workshop, Cooks with Chemistry "” The Elements of Chocolate, provided reporters with an assortment of new information on one of the world's favorite treats. With chocolate consumption nearing an annual peak as the holidays approach, the ACS is providing the content from this event to news media unable to attend the workshop.

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Applications are being accepted now through March 1, 2008, for the 2008 - 2009 ACS Scholars Program. Applicants should be African American, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian students who are high school seniors, or college freshmen, sophomores or juniors. They must plan to major in or already be majoring in chemistry, biochemistry, chemical engineering or a chemically-related science.

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The American Chemical Society's workshop, Cooks with Chemistry "” The Elements of Chocolate, provided reporters with an assortment of new information on one of the world's favorite treats. With chocolate consumption nearing an annual peak as the holidays approach, the ACS is providing the content from this event to news media unable to attend the workshop.

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Catherine T. ("Katie") Hunt, Ph.D., president of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society, comments on today's award of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Gerhard Ertl. Surface science, the topic of the prize, was fundamental to Hunt's initial scientific research.

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Researchers in California are reporting development of a fast, inexpensive test suitable for home use that could help millions of people avoid those "˜out of the blue' headaches that may follow consumption of certain red wines, cheese, chocolate, and other aged or fermented foods. The test is designed to detect the presence of so-called biogenic amines, naturally occurring toxins that can trigger a wide range of symptoms in sensitive individuals.

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Consuming large amounts of caffeine while taking acetaminophen, a widely used painkiller, could potentially cause liver damage, according to a preliminary laboratory study. The toxic interaction could occur not only from drinking caffeinated beverages while taking the painkiller but also from using large amounts of medications that intentionally combine caffeine and acetaminophen, the researchers say.

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Scientists in California are reporting an advance toward rapid testing for pre-natal detection of Down syndrome and other birth defects that involve an abnormal number of chromosomes.

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Plastic pipes, which are increasingly being used in place of copper water pipes, can significantly affect the odor and taste of drinking water, according to a pioneering study on the subject. The study will be presented in August at the American Chemical Society national meeting in Boston.

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Researchers have found new evidence that soft drinks sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup may contribute to the development of diabetes, particularly in children. Drinks containing the syrup had high levels of reactive compounds that have been shown by others to have the potential to trigger cell and tissue damage that could cause the diabetes, a growing epidemic.

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Scientists are reporting an advance toward turning corn plants into natural factories for producing gelatin to replace animal-sourced gelatin widely used by the pharmaceutical industry for manufacturing capsules and tablets. The advance may lead to a safe, inexpensive source of this protein for manufacturers who now rely on material obtained as a by-product of meat production.

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It's yet another example of how a good thing can go bad: Researchers have found evidence in laboratory studies that "˜good' cholesterol, renowned for its ability to protect against heart disease, can undergo detrimental changes in protein composition that make it "˜bad' for the heart. The study could lead to new lab tests and treatments for heart disease, they say. It will be presented in August at the American Chemical Society national meeting in Boston.

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The multi-billion-dollar global cosmetics and skin-care-product industry sometimes is beset by a me-too mindset in which research and development focuses on matching the competition rather than applying sound science to improve products, a scientist who studies cosmetic ingredients said. As a result, it could be missing a golden opportunity to provide consumers with more effective products, he said.

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Researchers at an American Chemical Society meeting will report the development of an unusual biological detergent, called a Pepfactant ®, a surfactant made from peptides, protein subunits. Its potential applications range from a laundry detergent that hardly needs a rinse cycle to a non-irritating eye rinse to increasing the amount of oil that companies can extract from a well.

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Public health officials may soon be able to flush out more accurate estimates on illegal drug use in communities across the country thanks to a new screening test. The test doesn't screen people directly but instead seeks out evidence of illicit drug abuse in drug residues and metabolites excreted in urine and flushed toward municipal sewage treatment plants. It will be described in August during the national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston.

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Bitter taste can ruin a cup of coffee. Now, chemists in Germany and the United States say they have identified the chemicals that appear to be largely responsible for java's bitterness, a finding that could one day lead to a better tasting brew. Their study, one of the most detailed chemical analyses of coffee bitterness to date, will be presented in August at the American Chemical Society national meeting in Boston.

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Compounds in cranberries may help improve the effectiveness of platinum drugs that are used in chemotherapy to fight ovarian cancer, researchers have found in a controlled laboratory study. The scientists found that human ovarian cancer cells resistant to platinum drugs became up to 6 times more sensitized to the drugs after exposure to the cranberry compounds.

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Foods that contain acrylamide are unlikely to cause breast cancer in women, according to preliminary results of a new study involving 100,000 U.S. women. The finding is the largest epidemiological study to date exploring the possible link between acrylamide and cancer in humans. The study will be described in August at the American Chemical Society national meeting in Boston.

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A new analysis of by-products discharged to the environment during production of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) "” expected to become the basis of multibillion-dollar industries in the 21st Century "” has identified cancer-causing compounds, air pollutants, and other substances of concern. The data could help the nanotechnology industry avoid unanticipated health and environmental problems that have plagued other technologies, the researchers say. Their study will be described in August at the American Chemical Society national meeting in Boston.

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Research on the effects of the female sex hormone estrogen in the brain lend credence to what many women have suspected about the hormonal changes that accompany aging: Menopause can make you fat. In animal experiments, researchers showed how estrogen receptors in the brain serve as a master switch to control food intake, energy expenditure and body fat distribution.

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A common virus may cause obesity in some people, according to new evidence in a controlled laboratory study. Scientists showed that infection with human adenovirus-36 (Ad-36), long recognized as a cause of respiratory and eye infections in humans, transforms adult stem cells obtained from fat tissue into fat cells. The study, which might lead to new treatments for obesity, will be reported in August at the American Chemical Society national meeting in Boston.

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Computer analysis of existing drugs may be key to fighting new infectious agents and antibiotic-resistant pathogens like deadly tuberculosis strains and staph "˜superbugs.' Researchers in Canada say the use of such "emergency discovery" technology could save time, money and lives during a sudden outbreak or a bioterrorism attack.

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A mysterious epidemic of thyroid disease among pet cats in the United States may be linked to exposure to dust shed from flame retardants in household carpeting, furniture, fabrics and pet food, scientists are reporting in a study scheduled for publication the Aug. 15 online issue of Environmental Science & Technology, a semi-monthly journal from the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.

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Brian D. Crawford, Ph.D., has been selected as new President of the American Chemical Society's internationally renowned Publications Division, succeeding Robert Bovenschulte, who is retiring after 10 years in that position. The Division publishes or copublishes 36 premier chemistry journals and Chemical & Engineering News, as well as reference books and conference proceedings.

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The 234th national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston will take place on Aug. 19-23 in the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center and at numerous hotels across the city. It is expected to bring more than 15,000 scientists and include more than 9,500 presentations dealing with topics such as the environment, energy, nutrition and nanotechnology.

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American Chemical Society (ACS) President Catherine T. Hunt, Ph.D. today praised Congressional leaders for completing action on comprehensive legislation to support innovation in the United States as a way to bolster American competitiveness and passing the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science (COMPETES) Act (H.R. 2272).

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The American Chemical Society (ACS) has established a new Award for Affordable Green Chemistry. Supported by an endowment from the Rohm and Haas Company, it will recognize outstanding scientific discovery of new eco-friendly chemistries with the potential to yield products or manufacturing processes that are less expensive than existing alternatives.

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The American Chemical Society Office of Communications has launched a podcast, Science Elements, (http://chemistry.org/science_elements.html)to bring news of scientific advances from ACS's prestigious journals to a broad public audience.

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Chemists report that levels of flavonoids increase over time in crops grown in organically farmed fields. Studies have shown that consumption of flavonoids may help protect again cancer, heart disease and other age-related diseases.

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"Biotechnology for Health and Wellness" will be the central theme of the 234th national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston Aug. 19-23, where more than 9,500 presentations also will describe new discoveries in chemistry dealing with the environment, energy, nutrition and other topics.

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Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS), which is celebrating its 100th anniversary, will be designated a National Historic Chemical Landmark in a special ceremony in Columbus, Ohio, on June 14. CAS is a division of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society and sponsor of the Landmark program.

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Compounds derived from the blue agave, the fruit used to make tequila, show promise as a more effective way to deliver drugs to the colon than conventional drug-carriers. The discovery could lead to improved treatments for a variety of colon diseases, including ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel and cancer.

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New discoveries offer possibilities for developing drugs that improve on the therapeutic profile of niacin, the inexpensive, time-tested B-vitamin that boosts levels of HDL cholesterol with the potential to protect people against heart attacks and stroke.

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A new type of environmentally friendly plastic that degrades in seawater may make it safe and practical to toss plastic waste overboard, freeing valuable storage space for military, merchant and cruise ships generating large volumes of plastic waste that must be stored onboard until they reach port.

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Based on new evidence from experiments with laboratory rats, scientists report that high concentrations of nitrogen dioxide gas could cause serious lung damage, even when inhaled for brief periods following fires, explosions of military munitions, or detonations of terrorist devices.

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A pioneering "biofuel cell" that produces electricity from ordinary air spiked with small amounts of hydrogen offers significant potential as an inexpensive and renewable alternative to the costly platinum-based fuel cells that have dominated discussion about the "hydrogen economy" of the future, British scientists reported here today.

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Researchers have developed molecular-scale scissors that open and close in response to light. The tiny scissors are the first example of a molecular machine capable of mechanically manipulating molecules by using light. The scissors are small enough to deliver drugs into cells or manipulate genes and other biological molecules.

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Juicing up your cell phone or iPod may take on a whole new meaning, as researchers have developed a fuel cell that runs on virtually any sugar source, including soft drinks, and has the potential to operate three to four times longer on a single charge than conventional batteries.

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Students across the country are invited to participate in two nationwide contests in observance of Earth Day, April 22. The contests are sponsored by the world's largest scientific society, the American Chemical Society.

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Scientists say they have found evidence that the pulp of grapes appears just as heart-healthy in laboratory experiments as the skin. The study, which appeared last year in the American Chemical Society Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry, challenges the idea that red wine is more heart-healthy white wine.

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Pesticides haven't stopped them. Trapping hasn't worked, either. But now chemists and biologists at the University of California, Irvine, think they may have found a natural way to finally check the spread of environmentally destructive Argentine ants in California and elsewhere in the United States: Spark a family feud.

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You'd think in a river filled with anti-depressants, freshwater mussels would be, well, happy as clams. Far from it. In fact, a new laboratory study suggests that exposure to Prozac can disrupt the reproductive cycle of these mollusks, potentially increasing their risk of extinction.

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In the future, it might be perfectly normal to wear suits and dresses made of chicken feathers or rice straw. Scientists at the University of Nebraska"“Lincoln plan to develop these agricultural wastes into conventional-looking fabrics as a way to reduce the use of petroleum-based fabrics.

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Chemists in Japan have found that brown seaweed, a flavor component used in many Asian soups and salads, contains a compound that appears in animal studies to promote weight loss by reducing the accumulation of fat. The compound, fucoxanthin, could be developed into a natural extract or drug to help fight obesity, the researchers say. Their study will be described Sept. 11 at the national meeting of the ACS.