In the world of advanced materials, the ultimate goal is to create a substance that possesses the adaptability of biological tissue: it must be strong enough to maintain its shape, yet fluid enough to be molded. The research team at National Taiwan University (NTU) has achieved this balance by developing a sophisticated CGB hydrogel system, with their findings recently published in the journal Carbohydrate Polymers.
"Methane reforming" is a process that turns methane (CH4) into hydrogen—which can be utilized as an environmentally friendly source of energy. The biggest downside is that methane reforming, in its current state, is not quite so gentle on the environment.
Everyone's idea of the perfect cup of coffee is different. Whether you have yours black, with a splash of milk or extra sweet, you like it your way. But is there a universal law that governs how that flavor gets into your cup? According to new research published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, part of the answer lies in the permeability of the puck, the name for the bed of tightly packed coffee grains through which water passes under high pressure.
The 19th-century science fiction novel Frankenstein explores the idea of combining artificial materials with human body components, purely as a matter of imagination. Two centuries later, such concepts have become integral to our medical science. Synthetic materials and devices can interface with the body's electrical and chemical systems to restore function—from regulating neural activity in neurodegenerative disorders to managing heart rhythm in cardiovascular diseases.
A research team at the University of Tokyo has developed a new microscopy platform that can observe a previously hidden layer of biomolecular chemistry linked to weak magnetic fields. The work, led by Project Researcher Noboru Ikeya and Professor Jonathan R. Woodward at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, addresses a long-standing technical gap in life-science measurement: Many important intermediates in spin-dependent reactions are "dark" molecules that do not emit light directly and therefore escape conventional fluorescence imaging.
Creating artificial systems that mimic the functioning of cells is one of the goals of what is known as synthetic biology. These models, known as synthetic or biomimetic cells, allow some of the basic processes of life to be reproduced in the laboratory to better understand how natural cells work and develop new technologies. In this context, a study involving a team of researchers from the Center for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials (CiQUS) of the University of Santiago (USC) proposes a more flexible chemical strategy to create this type of system.
A new review from Osaka Metropolitan University (OMU) summarizes the biocatalysts involved in semi-artificial photosynthesis, an exciting research field that combines natural photosynthesis with artificial technology to efficiently generate fuels and useful substances from sunlight. The review is published in Chemical Reviews.
Researchers at Cedars-Sinai have developed a fast, new technique for analyzing cells, described in the journal Angewandte Chemie. The approach, called single-injection multi-omics analysis by direct infusion (SMAD), can detect more than 1,300 proteins and more than 9,000 molecular features from a single sample in less than five minutes.
In a discovery recently published in Nature, MIT chemists led by Professor Alison Wendlandt have developed a precision technique that allows scientists to seamlessly relocate alcohol functional groups from one spot on a molecule to a neighboring site. The paper is titled "Alcohol group migration by proximity-enhanced H atom abstraction."
Researchers at Koç University have developed a light-driven method to produce porous semiconducting polymers under ambient conditions without the need for metal catalysts. The study, led by Prof. Dr. Önder Metin from the Department of Chemistry, in collaboration with Dr. Melek Sermin Özer, Dr. Zafer Eroğlu, and Prof. Dr. Sermet Koyuncu, was published in Nature Communications.
An extract of turmeric and ginger helps bone implants bond strongly while killing bacteria and cancer cells, according to new research from Washington State University with implications for millions of patients with joint replacements and bone cancer. In early tests, the extract roughly doubled bone bonding within six weeks around the implant site, killed more than 90% of bacteria on implant surfaces, and sharply reduced cancer-causing cells. The findings marry elements of a naturopathic approach drawing on traditional medicine with current medical technologies. Turmeric, a golden-orange spice, and ginger root have been used for food and medicinal purposes in China and India for thousands of years.
In a high-end fashion store or luxury car showroom, the term "vegan leather" sends a strong message of quality. For many shoppers, it promises the look and feel of real leather without using animal skins. As brands move away from animal leather, "vegan" has come to suggest something that is both kinder to animals and better for the planet.
When chemists design drug candidates, shape matters enormously. Many active pharmaceutical ingredients contain branched carbon structures—points where the molecular chain forks in a specific direction—that are critical to whether a molecule will bind to its biological target and whether it will be safe. The challenge is that the branched building blocks used to create these structures are not very abundant or commercially available. Now, scientists at Scripps Research have devised a new approach to building these branched molecular structures found in many medicines and materials: one that could make the early stages of drug discovery faster and more efficient.
Taking inspiration from how mussels and mistletoe plants build natural fibers and adhesives, researchers at McGill University have developed a new way to manufacture complex materials that could offer a more environmentally sustainable alternative to conventional plastics and glues. The findings are published in the journal Advanced Materials.
A trio of researchers from the University of São Paulo (USP) and São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Brazil has developed a method to obtain an enzyme from a fungus cultivated in agricultural waste that promotes cellulose pulp bleaching, an important paper production process. Their study is published in the journal BioResources.
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