Chemistry news

GE Scientists Developing Wearable RFID Sensors to Detect Airborne Chemical Agents

Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry

21 minutes ago | not rated yet | 0

GE Global Research, the technology development arm for the General Electric, today announced a $2 million award from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to develop wearable RFID sensors ...

Just like old times: Generating RNA molecules in water

Chemistry / Biochemistry

3 hours ago | 4 / 5 (1) | 0

A key question in the origin of biological molecules like RNA and DNA is how they first came together billions of years ago from simple precursors. Now, in a study appearing in this week's Journal of Biological Chemistry, resear ...

Microbes to Take Over Ethanol Production?

Chemistry / Biochemistry

4 hours ago | 4 / 5 (2) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Not too long ago, it seemed that ethanol production was the wave of the future. The use of trash, wood chips or different types of plants -- usually grass or corn -- to make ethanol was considered ...

Researchers create 'fly paper' to capture circulating cancer cells

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 18, 2009 | 4 / 5 (5) | 1

Just as fly paper captures insects, an innovative new device with nano-sized features developed by researchers at UCLA is able to grab cancer cells in the blood that have broken off from a tumor.

Saliva proteins change as women age

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 18, 2009 | 4 / 5 (1) | 0

In a step toward using human saliva to tell whether those stiff joints, memory lapses, and other telltale signs of aging are normal or red flags for disease, scientists are describing how the protein content ...

'No muss, no fuss' miniaturized analysis for complex samples developed

Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry

Nov 18, 2009 | 4.7 / 5 (3) | 0

The goal of an integrated, miniaturized laboratory analysis system, also known as a "lab-on-a-chip," is simple: sample in, answer out. However, researchers wanting to use these microfluidic devices to analyze ...

NASA Develops Algae Bioreactor as a Sustainable Energy Source

Chemistry / Other

Nov 18, 2009 | 4.6 / 5 (5) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- As a clean energy alternative, NASA invented an algae photo-bioreactor that grows algae in municipal wastewater to produce biofuel and a variety of other products.

Toward explaining why hepatitis B hits men harder than women

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 18, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Scientists in China are reporting discovery of unusual liver proteins, found only in males, that may help explain the long-standing mystery of why the hepatitis B virus (HBV) sexually discriminates -- hitting ...

The protein Srebp2 drives cholesterol formation in prion-infected neuronal cells

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 18, 2009 | 4 / 5 (1) | 0

Prions are causing fatal and infectious diseases of the nervous system, such as the mad cow disease (BSE), scrapie in sheep or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. Scientists of Helmholtz Zentrum München and Technische Universität ...

One word: bioplastics

Chemistry / Materials Science

Nov 17, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (10) | 4

(PhysOrg.com) -- Every year, more than 250 billion pounds of plastic are produced worldwide. Much of it ends up in the world's oceans, a fact that troubles MIT biology professor Anthony Sinskey.

New research provides blueprint for molecular basis of global warming

Chemistry / Materials Science

Nov 17, 2009 | 4 / 5 (4) | 3

A new study indicates that major chemicals most often cited as leading causes of climate change, such as carbon dioxide and methane, are outclassed in their warming potential by compounds receiving less attention.

Stem cells alleviate tumor treatment side effects

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 17, 2009 | 3 / 5 (2) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Human embryonic stem cells could help people with learning and memory deficits after radiation treatment for brain tumors, suggests a new UC Irvine study.

Research describes connections between Circadian and metabolic systems

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 17, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A paper by University of Notre Dame biologist Giles Duffield and a team of researchers offers new insights into a gene that plays a key role in modulating the body’s Circadian system and may ...

Fungi May Hold Key to Reducing Grapefruit Juice Interactions with Medications

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 17, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- A fungus may help solve a problem of a grapefruit compound that interacts negatively with certain prescription drugs, according to studies by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists.

Accidental discovery produces durable new blue pigment for multiple applications

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 16, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (28) | 6

An accidental discovery in a laboratory at Oregon State University has apparently solved a quest that over thousands of years has absorbed the energies of ancient Egyptians, the Han dynasty in China, Mayan ...

Genome Engineering Could Provide New Method of Creating Diesel

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 16, 2009 | 3.3 / 5 (6) | 0

When we think of genetic engineering, our minds often jump to giant tomatoes and animal cloning. However, this is not always the case.

Scientists guide immune cells with light and microparticles (w/ Video)

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 16, 2009 | 5 / 5 (3) | 0

A team led by Yale University scientists has developed a new approach to studying how immune cells chase down bacteria in our bodies. Their findings are described in the November 15 issue of Nature Methods Advanc ...

Tiny bubbles clean oil from water

Chemistry / Materials Science

Nov 16, 2009 | 4 / 5 (3) | 0

Small amounts of oil leave a fluorescent sheen on polluted water. Oil sheen is hard to remove, even when the water is aerated with ozone or filtered through sand. Now, a University of Utah engineer has developed ...