Virginia Tech chemistry researchers have made a discovery about how ozone degrades organic surfaces such as biological surfactants and polymeric coatings.
The research will be presented at the 231st American Chemical Society (ACS) national meeting being held in Atlanta on March 26-30.
John Morris’ group is studying the reactions of small molecules found in pollution of surfaces. Morris, associate professor of chemistry in the College of Science, and his student
Using probes originally designed to detect and image topographical features on surfaces, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have demonstrated the ability to initiate and spatially localize chemical reactions on the submicron scale. They have been able to reliably manipulate chemistry on a very, very small scale in contrast to normal beaker-type reactions carried out in bulk. Such “site-selective” chemistry, taken down to the molecule-by-molecule level,
In research that could help control contamination from the radioactive element uranium, scientists have discovered that some bacteria found in the soil and subsurface can release phosphate that converts uranium contamination into an insoluble and immobile form.
Based on laboratory studies, Georgia Institute of Technology researchers report promising results using bacterial species from three genera isolated from subsurface soils collected at a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
A novel enzyme in corn helps the plants defend themselves from voracious caterpillars by disrupting the insects’ ability to digest food, and ultimately killing them, according to researchers. The enzyme could be used in tandem with other biological pesticides such as the Bt toxin to prevent the pests from developing resistance and making the toxin more effective.
“The enzyme is found in insect-resistant strains of corn, and it breaks down proteins and peptides in the inse
Michigan State University scientists have identified the genetic mutation that reduces grain shattering during rice domestication research that will improve production of the crop that feeds more than half of the world’s population.
In an article on the cover of the March 31 edition of Science Magazine, MSU scientists, led by Tao Sang, associate professor of plant biology, identify for the first time the genetic mutation for the reduction of shattering, a key step in the do
Findings point to possible novel ways to fight AIDS, immune disorders, sepsis
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine discovered that an HIV-1 accessory protein called Vpr destroys the host cell’s ability to survive by binding to a host receptor. This, in turn, keeps an important enzyme from activating the cell’s immune system. These findings refine an earlier understanding of Vpr HIV pathogenesis and imply new approaches to treating AIDS, inflamm
The simplest bacteria need almost twice as many genes to survive than scientists first believed, according to new research published in Nature (30 March 2006).
Bacteria are some of the simplest forms of life and have been studied by scientists trying to identify the smallest collection of genes – or minimal genome – that is needed for maintaining life.
Traditionally scientists have done this by removing, or ‘knocking out’, a series of individual genes from a bacterial g
An analysis of new data by a leading cancer researcher has revealed specific cancers that are most likely to affect teenagers and young adults, and it points to infections, adolescent growth spurts, and hormones as being among the possible causes. Now, international collaborative research is needed to find out more.
Professor Jillian Birch told a news briefing at the 4th International Conference on Teenage and Young Adult Cancer Medicine, organised by the charity Teenage Cancer Trust, that
Research News from the Journal of Pathology
While newly published research confirms that under laboratory circumstances prion-protein can be absorbed across the gut, it also shows that this is unlikely to occur in real life. In addition, the results show that the places in the gut that do take up these disease-associated proteins are different from the locations where infectivity is known to be amplified. The findings will be published in the Journal of Pathology.
Si
Scientists at the University of Liverpool have identified a new gene that causes the spread of cancer.
Professor Philip Rudland, Dr Guozheng Wang and Dr Roger Barraclough from the University’s Cancer and Polio Research Fund Laboratories have discovered an additional member of the S100 family of protein genes – S100P – that causes the spread of cancerous cells from an original tumour to other parts of the body.
If present in the primary tumour, metastagenes such as S100P tr
Antibiotic resistance is a major problem worldwide and there is an urgent need for new antibiotics to be developed. Potential new drugs are usually made in the lab which is complicated and time-consuming. An international team of scientists are using bacteria found naturally in the soil to produce new antibiotics in the fight against drug-resistant “Super-bugs” such as MRSA.
Led by Professor Tony Maxwell of the John Innes Centre (Norwich, UK) [1] and Professor Lutz Heide of the Pharm
PowderMed, the immunotherapeutics company focused on the development and manufacture of DNA-based vaccines for viral diseases and cancer, has announced that its dual-antigen encoding immunotherapeutic for Hepatitis B (HBV) has received US IND approval together with approval from the Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwanese Regulatory Authorities and has entered Phase I Clinical Trials. The study will primarily evaluate the safety and tolerability of the HBV immunotherapeutic, pdpSC18, administered by P
The sweetgum tree grows widely throughout the country and is known for its mace-like green fruit, which are sometimes called “gumballs.” Now, this spiny fruit may become an important source of a chemical needed to make a lifesaving drug against bird flu — a drug that is currently in short supply worldwide, researchers say.
Chemists have found that the seeds of the sweetgum fruit contain significant amounts of shikimic acid, the starting material used to produce the main antiviral agen
Chemists have developed a powerful household water purification system that puts the cleansing power of an industrial water treatment plant into a container the size of a ketchup packet. The researchers have shown that the tiny packet, which acts as a chemical filter, can be added to highly contaminated water to dramatically reduce pathogen-induced diarrhea — the top killer of children in much of the developing world.
The packets also show promise for boosting water safety during emer
A Duke University engineering group is doing pioneering work at very diminutive dimensions. Their basic studies could lead to genetically engineered proteins that can form erasable chemical detectors; self-grown forests of molecular “bottlebrushes” that keep themselves contamination-free; and auto-assembled DNA “towers” that could become anchors for the tiniest of devices.
Professor of biomedical engineering Ashutosh Chilkoti of Duke’s Pratt School of Engineering will describe such a
Finding may also shed light on cause of autism
Researchers from the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and the Clinic for Special Children (CSC) in Strasburg, PA, have described a new childhood-onset disorder characterized by severe epilepsy and autistic traits, and identified its genetic basis.
Epilepsies are a biologically complex group of disorders comprising many discrete genetic entities, and the majority of recurrent seizure syndromes remain unexplained. M
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