A tiny methyl group (one carbon bound to three hydrogen atoms) can be a big marker for disease.
Category: Analytical
Looking for Viruses in Wild Bats
Cataloguing viruses in bats and other animals may help predict or trace viral transmission to humans in the future.
Antibiotics in our food?
Antibiotics are all something we have all taken at one point or another – but how many of us wonder about what happens to those antibiotics next? When we stop and think about it, we might start to realise how our actions are unintentionally impacting the environment around us.
Science of Soot
A new look on the chemistry occurring inside a flame!
Molecular tweezers pick viral membranes apart
While most scientists search for specific treatments for viruses like Ebola, Zika and SARS-Cov-2, non-specific methods can have broad impact. Researchers from the United States and Germany joined forces to make non-specific molecular “tweezers” that pluck pieces out of its membrane, leading to disintegrating and dead viruses.
Boiling mulberry juice increases its anti-cancer properties
Black mulberry juice is a known antioxidant – compounds that can consume free radicals before they can harm your cells. Researchers at Guangdong University also show that boiling mulberries increases its ability to treat colon cancer in cell culture, but not through antioxidant mechanisms.
#BlackInChem: Creating Support and Community for Black Women in STEM
Devin Swiner, one of the founders for #BlackInChem, shares what’s she’s learned, the hard-won wisdom she has earned as a Black woman in analytical chemistry.
Biochemical Circuits: Modular Systems for Disease Detection
Instead of the wires, batteries, and light bulbs used in electric circuits, biochemical circuits use DNA and enzymes to get the job done.
Monitoring Vital Signs with Temporary Tattoos
Skin-conforming, ultra-thin wearable medical sensors could make going to the doctor less invasive than ever before. This newly developed, “tattooable” sensor uses a newly developed material to create one of the thinnest yet.
Monitoring plant maturation with a Wack reaction
When the authors’ blurb about their own work is “Okay, bloomer,” you know you have to read it.
Catching it Early: New Ways of Detecting Coronavirus
Coronavirus has affected every one of us directly or indirectly. Early detection can lower the spread of the disease. Let’s learn about a new technique for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19.
From Lead Pipes to Contaminated Drinking Water: Lead’s Chemical Accomplices
Lead pipes still exist in older infrastructure, but chemical water treatment can prevent (or increase!) the release of lead from the pipes to drinking water.
Road Salt Impacts the Atmosphere
A surprising new source of chlorine to the atmosphere: road salt!
Discovery of a New Ozone Depleting Substance in the Atmosphere
The first complete iodine measurements in the middle atmosphere detected higher levels than expected.
Vanilla substitute loosens up cell membranes to increase drug uptake
Could vanillin, the flavoring molecule extracted from vanilla bean, increase our body’s ability to absorb ingested drugs?
Chemistry of Photography: How Veiled Photographs are Made
Mordançage is a photography technique that has been used by artists for decades, but only recently have researchers discovered the chemistry behind the process.
Development of Sensors for Amino Acids
Researchers develop an easy to use method to identify the chirality of the amino acids, amines and alcohols.
Light me up: can visible light impact forensic luminol reactions?
Crime scene techs use luminol to reveal latent bloodstains – can normal, visible light increase the reaction’s sensitivity?
Smelling chemicals with an artificial nose
Nothing compares to a well-trained dog’s nose for smelling out faint odors. But a new artificial nose made with living cells may come close!
Is that molecule moving?
Scientists can now observe molecules vibrating
Fishing for bacteria with gold and DNA
What happens when you bring DNA strands, gold nanoparticles, conformation-induced color changes, and a highly-intrusive bacterium together? A field-portable, inexpensive test for the world’s greatest bacterial threats.
New Materials to Recover Gold from Recycled Electronics
Gold is one of the most important metals since it’s used in electronics. Let’s learn from Charlie about a new material than can help recycle gold from discarded devices!
Skeletons tell Stories– Chemistry of the burned bones!
Happy Halloween Everyone! In this article, we are going to honor the dead and discuss their stories and also learn to communicate with them using analytical chemistry techniques. Explore with me the power of infrared spectroscopy and walk down the memory lane with the skeletons!
What can you do with a glucose meter?
More than you might think! Researchers have “hacked” glucose meters to detect enzymes, bacteria, and viruses using a device millions of people already use every day.
Chemistry, archaeology and the ergot fungi: solving the mystery of the past
During thousands of years of burial, cereals from ancient artifacts are degraded and consumed, but ergot fungi produce a fingerprint of lipids that we can use to trace them.