Chemical reaction

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A chemical reaction is a process that always results in the interconversion of chemical substances. The substance or substances initially involved in a chemical reaction are called reactants. Chemical reactions are usually characterized by a chemical change, and they yield one or more products, which usually have properties different from the reactants. Classically, chemical reactions encompass changes that strictly involve the motion of electrons in the forming and breaking of chemical bonds, although the general concept of a chemical reaction, in particular the notion of a chemical equation, is applicable to transformations of elementary particles, as well as nuclear reactions. Different chemical reactions are used in combination in chemical synthesis in order to get a desired product. In biochemistry, series of chemical reactions catalyzed by enzymes form metabolic pathways, by which syntheses and decompositions ordinarily impossible in conditions within a cell are performed.

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News tagged with chemical

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Sponges against cancer

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Nov 20, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Deep under the sea, there's a battle of life and death going on, with no holds barred. Sponges and other marine animals which cannot move around might seem to be defenceless against predators. Yet nothing is further from ...


Biologists discover bacterial defense mechanism against aggressive oxygen

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Nov 20, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Bacteria possess an ingenious mechanism for preventing oxygen from harming the building blocks of the cell. This is the new finding of a team of biologists that includes Joris Messens of VIB, a life sciences research institute ...


Just like old times: Generating RNA molecules in water

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 20, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (3) | comments 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 ...


Rich Ore Deposits Linked to Ancient Atmosphere

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (3) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Much of our planet's mineral wealth was deposited billions of years ago when Earth's chemical cycles were different from today's. Using geochemical clues from rocks nearly 3 billion years old, a group of ...


Researchers Begin to Decipher Metabolism of Sexual Assault Drug

Researchers Begin to Decipher Metabolism of Sexual Assault Drug

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- It’s a naturally occurring brain chemical with an unwieldy name: 4-hydroxybutyrate (4-HB). Taken by mouth, it can be abused or used as a date-rape drug.


An atomic-level look at an HIV accomplice

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 1 / 5 (1) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Since the discovery in 2007 that a component of human semen called SEVI boosts infectivity of the virus that causes AIDS, researchers have been trying to learn more about SEVI and how it works, in hopes of ...


New on-off 'switch' triggers and reverses paralysis in animals with a beam of light

New on-off 'switch' triggers and reverses paralysis in animals with a beam of light (w/ Video)

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 3

In an advance with overtones of Star Trek phasers and other sci-fi ray guns, scientists in Canada are reporting development of an internal on-off "switch" that paralyzes animals when exposed to a beam of ultraviolet ...


New research provides blueprint for molecular basis of global warming

New research provides blueprint for molecular basis of global warming

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Nov 17, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (4) | comments 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.


Nanoparticles used in common household items caused genetic damage in mice

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (22) | comments 11

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles, found in everything from cosmetics to sunscreen to paint to vitamins, caused systemic genetic damage in mice, according to a comprehensive study conducted by researchers at UCLA's Jonsson ...


Scientists guide immune cells with light and microparticles

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

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 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 ...


Accidental discovery produces durable new blue pigment for multiple applications

Accidental discovery produces durable new blue pigment for multiple applications

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (30) | comments 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 ...


Diesel fuel

Genome Engineering Could Provide New Method of Creating Diesel

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity 3.3 / 5 (6) | comments 1

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


New chemical reaction offers opportunities for drug development

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 12, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at University College Dublin have solved a chemistry problem which has stumped researchers worldwide for more than a decade. The results have earned the group the cover story of the leading scientific ...


Research gives new insights into 4 billion year-old meteorites

Research gives new insights into 4 billion year-old meteorites

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 12, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have gained new insight into the makeup of ancient meteorites called Carbonaceous Chondrites, in research published in the October edition of the journal Earth Science and Planetary Le ...


Dopamine enhances expectation of pleasure in humans

Dopamine enhances expectation of pleasure in humans

Medicine & Health / Neuroscience

created Nov 12, 2009 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (10) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Enhancing the effects of the brain chemical dopamine influences how people make life choices by affecting expectations of pleasure, according to new research from the UCL Institute of Neurology.