Chemistry news

Scientists Reproduce a Building Block of Life in Laboratory

Chemistry / Biochemistry

23 hours ago | 4.8 / 5 (20) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- NASA scientists studying the origin of life have reproduced uracil, a key component of our hereditary material, in the laboratory.

Computer predicts reactions between molecules and surfaces, with 'chemical precision'

Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry

22 hours ago | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Good news for heterogeneous catalysis and the hydrogen economy: computers can now be used to make accurate predictions of the reactions of (hydrogen) molecules with surfaces. An international team of researchers, headed by ...

Newly Discovered Fat Molecule: An Undersea Killer with an Upside

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 05, 2009 | 4.9 / 5 (8) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A chemical culprit responsible for the rapid, mysterious death of phytoplankton in the North Atlantic Ocean has been found by collaborating scientists at Rutgers University and the Woods Hole ...

Tapeworm Drug May Hold Promise For Colon Cancer, Future Research

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 04, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Duke University Medical Center researchers have discovered an already-FDA-approved compound that can effectively “silence” a cell receptor shown to interfere with chemotherapy.

New evidence supports 19th century idea on formation of oil and gas

Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry

Nov 04, 2009 | 4 / 5 (2) | 1

Scientists in Washington, D.C. are reporting laboratory evidence supporting the possibility that some of Earth's oil and natural gas may have formed in a way much different than the traditional process described ...

An inexpensive 'dipstick' test for pesticides in foods

Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry

Nov 04, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Scientists in Canada are reporting the development of a fast, inexpensive "dipstick" test to identify small amounts of pesticides that may exist in foods and beverages. Their paper-strip test is more practical ...

Hybrid molecules show promise for exploring, treating Alzheimer's

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 04, 2009 | 5 / 5 (2) | 0

One of the many mysteries of Alzheimer's disease is how protein-like snippets called amyloid-beta peptides, which clump together to form plaques in the brain, may cause cell death, leading to the disease's devastating symptoms ...

NIST quantifies low levels of 'heart attack risk' protein

Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry

Nov 04, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Searching for a needle in a haystack may seem futile, but it's worth it if the needle is a hard-to-detect protein that may identify a person at high risk of a heart attack circulating within a haystack of ...

Clean algae biofuel project leads world in productivity

Chemistry / Other

Nov 04, 2009 | 4 / 5 (4) | 0

Australian scientists are achieving the world's best production rates of oil from algae grown in open saline ponds, taking them a step closer to creating commercial quantities of clean biofuel for the future.

Curry-cure? Spicing up the effectiveness of a potential disease-fighter

Chemistry / Other

Nov 04, 2009 | 4 / 5 (2) | 0

Scientists are reporting development of a nano-size capsule that boosts the body's uptake of curcumin, an ingredient in yellow curry now being evaluated in clinical trials for treatment of several diseases. ...

New discoveries in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 04, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

Researchers at UAB in collaboration with the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa, have discovered the structure of the PPC descarboxilase (PPCDC) enzyme present in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a very important ...

Yeast in a shell: Coating individual living yeast cells with silicon dioxide

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 03, 2009 | 4.3 / 5 (3) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Our breakfast egg is a peculiarity of nature: a single cell protected by a thin mineral layer. Apart from a number of tiny radiolaria and diatoms, individual cells normally do not have a hard shell. Korean ...

Researchers reconstitute enzyme that synthesizes cholesterol drug lovastatin

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 03, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (2) | 0

Researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have for the first time successfully reconstituted in the laboratory the enzyme responsible for producing the blockbuster cholesterol-lowering ...

Researchers design new strategy to find drugs to treat neglected infection

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 03, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

Using an unconventional approach that they designed, University of Pittsburgh drug discoverers and their collaborators at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research have identified compounds that hold promise for treating leishmaniasis, ...

Hybrid composite for root canal treatment

Chemistry / Materials Science

Nov 03, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A dentist carrying out root canal treatment will need to use a variety of compounds. These do not always bond together properly and sometimes expensive follow-up treatment has to be performed. ...

Study reveals a 'missing link' in immune response to disease (w/ Video)

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 02, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

The immune system's T cells have the unique responsibilities of being both jury and executioner. They examine other cells for signs of disease, including cancers or infections, and, if such evidence is found, ...

New activity found for a potential anti-cancer agent

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 02, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

Pateamine A (PatA), a natural product first isolated from marine sponges, has attracted considerable attention as a potential anti-cancer agent, and now a new activity has been found for it, which may reveal yet another anti-cancer ...

The 'e-Nose': Scientists try to develop an electronic sniffer

Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry

Nov 02, 2009 | not rated yet | 1

Sniff, sniff, sniff -- Yum! Sniff, sniff, sniff -- Oh, yuck!!! For almost 25 years, chemists and other scientists have tried to build a machine that can do exactly that.