Iridium-catalyzed Z-retentive asymmetric allylic substitution reactions
In synthetic organic chemistry, Z-olefins are a challenging synthetic target to produce in the lab due to their relative thermodynamic instability. The Z-olefins form an unsaturated compound with a CnH2n formula that can be readily isomerized. Analog.....»»
For a fungus, the right "accessories" can make or break a relationship with a plant
Plants interact with a diversity of organisms over the course of their lifetime, but even very similar microbes can cause opposite reactions. Two strains of the fungus Fusarium oxysporum (Fo) share a core genome, but one is a beneficial endophyte whi.....»»
Novel, inexpensive catalysts enabling noble metal chemistry
Alkynes have many uses in industry. Until now, it was assumed that gold- or platinum-based catalysts were absolutely necessary for certain chemical reactions with alkynes. Chemists at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) have now succeeded.....»»
Advanced microscopes help scientists understand how cells break down proteins
Proteins are the building blocks of all living things. A vast amount research takes place on how these proteins are made and what they do, from enzymes that carry out chemical reactions to messengers that transmit signals between cells. In 2004, Aaro.....»»
Researchers directly measure electrostatic interactions in protein structures in cells
Electrostatic interaction plays a vital role in many important biological reactions, such as enzyme catalysis, protein-protein interaction, protein-DNA/RNA interaction, and H+ transfer......»»
Catalyst material exhibits baffling surface state
Sometimes chemical reactions in the lab work the way you imagine them to, and sometimes they don't. Neither is unusual. What is highly unusual, however, is what a research team at TU Wien has now observed when studying hydrogen oxidation on a rhodium.....»»
This light-powered catalyst mimics photosynthesis
By mimicking photosynthesis, the light-driven process that plants use to produce sugars, MIT researchers have designed a new type of photocatalyst that can absorb light and use it to drive a variety of chemical reactions......»»
Simple silicon coating solves long-standing optical challenge
Quick bursts of laser light, lasting less than a trillionth of a second, are used in a range of applications today. These ultrashort laser pulses have allowed scientists to observe chemical reactions in real-time, image delicate biological samples, b.....»»
Researchers at the brink of fusion ignition at National Ignition Facility
After decades of inertial confinement fusion research, a record yield of more than 1.3 megajoules (MJ) from fusion reactions was achieved in the laboratory for the first time during an experiment at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL) Nat.....»»
Lighting up chemical reactions for sustainable drug production
Researchers have discovered a new approach for using visible-light to structurally modify bioactive molecules in chemical reactions, providing a possible sustainable alternative to traditional methods that could be used in the design and production o.....»»
Scientists discover how mitochondria import antioxidants
Many of the processes that keep us alive also put us at risk. The energy-producing chemical reactions in our cells, for example, also produce free radicals—unstable molecules that steal electrons from other molecules. When generated in surplus, fre.....»»
Researchers invent chemical reaction that could accelerate drug discovery
Medicines come from chemical reactions, and better chemical reactions lead to better medicines......»»
A big leap forward in using iron catalysts for pharmaceuticals
If there were a classroom full of all the transition metals that could be used as catalysts for complex pharmaceutical reactions, iron would be the most promising but most unruly member......»»
Chemists discover mechanism in controlled growth of tetrahedron-shaped nanoparticles
Nature clearly likes symmetry. Look at your own hands, for example. But sometimes nature produces asymmetric things, and the reasons aren't always clear......»»
New technique gets the drop on enzyme reactions
As part of an international collaboration, researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), the Diamond Light Source synchrotron facility, and Oxford and Bristol Universities in England have developed a novel sample delivery syste.....»»
Supernova: A glowing DNA enzyme
Once thought to function primarily as a storage molecule for genetic information, it is now known that DNA can also catalyze chemical reactions. Although such DNA enzymes (deoxyribozymes) have not been identified in nature, they can be isolated in th.....»»
AI is helping to quantify enzyme activity
Without enzymes, an organism would not be able to survive. It is these biocatalysts that facilitate a whole range of chemical reactions, producing the building blocks of the cells. Enzymes are also used widely in biotechnology and in our households,.....»»
Cross-coupling reactions: Semiheterogeneous PCN-Cu based metallaphotocatalysis
Recently, photoredox catalysis has emerged as an appealing coupling partner for transition metal catalysis, termed metallaphotocatalysis, to develop new synthetic methodologies as well as improve the efficiency of established transformations. Convers.....»»
Rule-following molecules provide the first direct confirmation of a half-century-old theory
In 1965, scientists Robert Burns Woodward and Roald Hoffmann devised a set of rules to predict the outcome of electrocyclic reactions, an important class of reactions in organic chemistry. The Woodward-Hoffmann rules explain why certain compounds fai.....»»
Professor uncovers surprising results from nuclear reactions inside stars
Where do our elements come from? And how are they made? Michael Famiano's new research is flipping the script on those age-old nuclear astrophysics questions. The truth is out there—several light years away among the stars, to be exact......»»
Earth"s natural carbon sinks hold vital power in climate fight
Earth's vast habitats from the poles to the equator have robust capacity to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere due to previously undiscovered rock nitrogen weathering reactions that distribute natural fertilizers around the world. .....»»