RSC - Advancing the Chemical Sciences


Chemistry World

 

News February 2008


Methanol injected into a fuel cell

Modified nanotubes catalyse fuel cell

29 February 2008

Platinum nanoparticles boost methanol oxidation


Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between two fluorophores on a biosensor

Looking at the inner workings of a cell

29 February 2008

A genetically encoded biosensor is letting researchers watch enzymes in action.


macrocycle

Chloride ions in a bind

28 February 2008

Donut-shaped molecule takes a surprisingly tight grip on chloride


Orange polymer spiral

Shapely polymers get the green light

28 February 2008

Determining the transition temperature of shape-memory polymers is now much easier, thanks to work by US materials chemists


Glass-coated microchannel

Glass-coated microchannels

28 February 2008

Scientists in the US have developed a simple method of coating the channels of microfluidic devices to make them more resistant to chemicals.


EU flag

European Institute of Technology to open in 2010

27 February 2008

Bold vision for MIT's rival now pared down to a 3-million-euro administrative centre


pills

Q and A: Do antidepressants work?

26 February 2008

Study questions whether drugs such as Prozac are any better than placebos


Red hair

Your hair knows where you've been

26 February 2008

Heavy isotopes in your tresses reveal where you live


ice on tarpaulin

Getting to the truth of falling ice chunks

26 February 2008

Hazardous ice chunks that fall from the sky are the result of complex atmospheric processes, say a team of Spanish scientists


Oospores

Mouldy old mystery solved

25 February 2008

Chemists find the final piece to a 70-year-old puzzle


Muscle cells

Anti-cholesterol drugs may damage cellular power station

25 February 2008

Survey of 2500 compounds uncovers surprising effects on mitochondria


Quencher-free molecular beacons

Instant insight: A fluorescent future

25 February 2008

B. H. Kim, Y. J. Seo and N. Venkatesan explain why quencher-free molecular beacons mean a brighter outlook for medicine.


A fingernail

The information at your fingertips

22 February 2008

Fingernail clippings could be used in forensic studies and diagnostics, say scientists in Singapore.


A lactone

Rhodium fast tracks route to lactones

22 February 2008

Canadian scientists have pioneered an efficient rhodium-catalysed way to make lactones


Biomonitoring system

Toxin test in a lunchbox

22 February 2008

Magnetic nanoparticles key to detecting heavy metals in minutes


Nautilus shell

Seashells inspire space age material

21 February 2008

Spacecraft could be made from strong and flexible materials based on mother of pearl


Modified AFM tip

Taking the measure of atomic friction

21 February 2008

Researchers have determined how much force is needed to drag a single atom across a surface


Chiral ligand

Esters made easy with indium

21 February 2008

New indium-based catalyst makes useful chiral chemicals


Single cells

Instant insight: Sensing NO in single cells

21 February 2008

Xiaoying Ye, Stanislav Rubakhin and Jonathan Sweedler describe fluorescent separation and electrochemical methods for detecting a crucial, but tiny, biomolecule


dental work

Instant insight: Smart dental implants

20 February 2008

Henning Schliephake discusses the state-of-the-art dental implants making their way to a dentist's surgery near you


Self-healing rubber

Rubber that heals itself

20 February 2008

A rubber-like material can mend itself when cut or broken


Acetaldehyde

Chemists tame acetaldehyde

20 February 2008

Acetaldehyde prevented from running amok in the Mannich reaction, opening up new avenues in drug discovery


many people in camp accommodation after a natural disaster

Instant insight: Beyond the catastrophe

20 February 2008

Angus Cook and Phil Weinstein consider the long term care needed by communities struck by earthquakes and other natural disasters


Pernod bottle

Pernod baffles chemists

19 February 2008

Pernod's super-stable emulsion defies chemists' predictions


Eugenio Coronado

Interview: A material world

19 February 2008

Eugenio Coronado talks to Gavin Armstrong about the molecular design of magnetic materials and current challenges in the field.


Gecko

Nanofibre tape is sticky stuff

18 February 2008

Surgeons and climbers could benefit from new materials inspired by gecko's feet


Acetyllysine

Flicking the acetyl switch

18 February 2008

Proteins containing acetylated amino acids may clarify how key cellular processes are controlled


Ruedi Aebersold

Interview: Putting peptides on the map

18 February 2008

Ruedi Aebersold talks to Kathleen Too about proteomics, the PeptideAtlas project and the Trans-Proteomic Pipeline.


Ear of corn

Initiating biodegradable polymers

18 February 2008

A new breed of initiators that aid the formation of biodegradable polymers without the need for solvents has been developed


Los Alamos lab

Security of US nuclear research facilities in doubt

15 February 2008

Lax security at university research reactors and Los Alamos criticised by congressional watchdog


Stock market graph

Industry reports a year of mixed fortune

15 February 2008

Solid growth for chemicals sector contrasts with pharmaceutical woes


metal organic framework

Catalytic cavities

15 February 2008

Chiral porous solids converted into catalysts could provide a versatile new way to trigger reactions, say chemists in the UK


Zeolytes

Molecular sponges mop up carbon dioxide

14 February 2008

US researchers have made zeolite-like materials using a new technique that speedily screens thousands of compounds


Howard Alper

Testing time for Canadian science advisers

14 February 2008

Chemist Howard Alpert on what lies ahead for Canada's new science council


Tablet making

Big impact for small reactors

14 February 2008

Microreactors show their potential as a tool for industry in a fast and efficient amide synthesis.


wheel-shaped plankton

Something 'fishy' in the air

14 February 2008

Humans and flatulent cows have been blamed for global warming, but plankton may also be guilty


Outspan Orange promotional vehicle

A fruity alternative to fossil fuels

14 February 2008

A naturally occurring fruit lactone could prove useful as a new type of biofuel, say Hungarian scientists


SEM image of two entangled microfibers that covered with piezoelectric ZnO nanowires

Clothes power up thanks to nanowires

13 February 2008

Nanowire-coated thread could be spun into clothes capable of powering a mobile phone or iPod


Crop sprayer

Tougher standards for Chinese pesticide makers

13 February 2008

Industry labs face closer scrutiny in a move that could drive smaller producers out of business


TEM image of magnetite nanoparticles

Nanoparticles feel the heat

13 February 2008

Nanothermometers that monitor temperature changes in cells could improve an anticancer heat treatment, say scientists in Puerto Rico.


Electron micrograph of niobium metal

Metals without the meltdown

13 February 2008

Scientists have found a practical, cheap and environmentally friendly way of producing the industrially important metal niobium.


Smog obscuring a factory in China

China to establish environment ministry this year

12 February 2008

More powers to curb worsening pollution


Stephen Klippenstein

Interview: Model behaviour

12 February 2008

Stephen Klippenstein tells Hilary Crichton how theoretical chemistry can help solve global warming


Catalyst pore

Oxidation goes green

11 February 2008

New catalysts to simplify and clean up routes to useful chemicals


Espresso

Machines get a taste for espresso

11 February 2008

Nestlé researchers have developed a robot that can predict the taste of coffee within minutes


imidazole ligated haem dimer

Ironing out fuel cells

11 February 2008

A simple iron complex could pave the way for new oxygen reduction catalysts with potential uses in low-temperature fuel cells


structure fighting cocaine

Instant insight: Speeding up cocaine

11 February 2008

Chang-Guo Zhan introduces the use of computational designs to develop promising therapeutics for treating cocaine addiction and overdoses


Yin Weidong

Profile: Vaccine trailblazer

07 February 2008

Yin Weidong, Sinovac Biotech's general manager, talks about a Chinese biotech success story


Opium poppy

Could Afghanistan's opium crop be legalised?

08 February 2008

Bumper opium harvest fires debate over licensed production


Molecular motor F1-ATPase

DNA detection with a twist

08 February 2008

US scientists have set DNA detection in a spin by exploiting one of nature's molecular motors.


Silver(I) hexacyanocobaltate(III)

Crystal shows colossal expansion

07 February 2008

Silver hexacyanocobaltate gets shorter and fatter than any other material on heating


Rainforest fire

Biofuel carbon debt may take centuries to repay

07 February 2008

Clearing land to plant biofuels boosts greenhouse gas emissions, two studies have concluded


Hologram of car

3D television a step closer to reality

07 February 2008

Unique polymer used to make updatable holographic display


A peptide coated viral capsid

Peptide coupling for potential cancer targeting

07 February 2008

Putting peptide coats on virus shells could lead to targeted medical imaging in cancer diagnostics, according to US chemists.


structure of inorganic capsule

Artificial cells mimic ion transport

07 February 2008

An inorganic capsule that could be used to study cell functions has been developed by a team of German and US scientists


FutureGen logo

Illinois lawmakers round on DOE over FutureGen

06 February 2008

Political row erupts after DOE decides to pull out of flagship clean coal plant


Section of mouse intestine showing nuclei where freshly synthesised DNA has undergone click chemistry to stain red

Better detection of DNA synthesis

06 February 2008

US researchers use click chemistry to measure cell proliferation


Water droplet

Water-based metathesis

06 February 2008

Polish chemists have demonstrated the unprecedented catalytic efficiency of olefin metathesis reactions in a water solution.


Eye

A keen eye for age prediction

05 February 2008

Forensic scientists may soon be able to pin down the age of unidentified bodies thanks to proteins found in the eye


White house

Bush budget proposal backs physical sciences

05 February 2008

After cuts in 2008, plans to double budget revived


Quinine

Quinine synthesis mystery solved

05 February 2008

US chemists have reproduced a 90-year old experiment to settle a 50-year old controversy


A G-quadruplex

Discriminating ligands select square DNA

05 February 2008

Why does DNA fold into squares? Pyridine ligands could help scientists trying to explain how these G-quadruplexes function.


Tetrahedron structure made of DNA

DNA cages change size on demand

04 February 2008

Dynamic structures could be drug-delivery vessels


EPA logo

EPA rolls out nanomaterials safety drive

04 February 2008

But critics say the voluntary programme lacks teeth


bone

Green chemistry aids bone repair

04 February 2008

Biodegradable scaffold made with supercritical solvents mends broken bones in mice


The energy-saving molecular sieve

Energy saving sieves

04 February 2008

Dutch scientists have made molecular sieves that are stable at high temperatures for over a year.


chemistry in front of sun

Triple action catalysts

04 February 2008

Trifunctional organocatalysts that closely mimic natural enzymes can significantly increase reaction rates, say chemists in Japan


A proteasome inhibitor with side-chains highlighted

Drugs cut back to their bare essentials

01 February 2008

A method to identify the biologically active sections of peptoids could simplify the drug development process.


x ray

Snapshots reveal bone mineral's strength secret

01 February 2008

Unravelling how calcium carbonate crystals grow could help build better implants


AFM

Genetic code read directly from RNA

01 February 2008

Sequencing DNA could become as simple as 'reading a barcode at the supermarket'