Chemistry News Archives Page 9

Biologists Identify Key Protein in Cell's 'Self-Eating' Function (3/13/2008)

Molecular biologists at the University of California, San Diego have found one piece of the complex puzzle of autophagy, the process of "self-eating" performed by all eukaryotic cells -- cells with a nucleus -- to keep themselves healthy. ...> Full Article

Invention Promises Major Advance in BioFuel Production (3/12/2008)

Research that started with bacteria from the Chesapeake Bay has led to a process that may be able to convert large volumes of all kinds of plant products, from leftover brewer's mash to paper trash, into ethanol and other biofuel alternatives to gasoline. ...> Full Article

Researchers crack code of 3-D structure in key metabolic protein (3/12/2008)

Using X-ray crystallography, researchers have become the first to decipher the three-dimensional structure of a membrane-bound enzyme that plays a crucial role in glycerol metabolism - a discovery that could lead to important advances against obesity, diabetes and a potential host of other diseases ...> Full Article

Efficient Catalysts for Making Oxygen for 'Artificial Photosynthesis' (3/11/2008)

Research could lead to more efficient, cleaner hydrogen production ...> Full Article

Nanoscale tool allows scientists to study membrane proteins one at a time (3/11/2008)

In biology, as in construction, it's all about having tools that fit the job. Researchers at Rockefeller University have now created a tiny tool, more than 10,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair, capable of encasing single membrane proteins from living cells. The new system, which resembles a nanoscale sushi roll, will allow investigators to individually stimulate these key proteins with specific molecules and signals in order to precisely define the biological reactions that result. ...> Full Article

New crystallization method to ease study of protein structures (3/10/2008)

Researchers have developed a new technique for crystallizing proteins that will ease experimentation into protein structures. ...> Full Article

Rock: Electrons run through it (3/10/2008)

Mineral surfaces linked by electrons traveling through mineral's bulk ...> Full Article

Researchers visualize complex pigment mixtures in living cells (3/9/2008)

In a technical advance that could allow researchers to watch cells as they act during the process of photosynthesis, scientists have developed a method that extends the power of fluorescence-mediated bio-imaging to see discrete pigments inside live cells of bacteria. ...> Full Article

Stratospheric ozone chemistry plays an important role for atmospheric airflow patterns (3/9/2008)

Interactions between the stratospheric ozone chemistry and atmospheric air flow lead to significant changes of airflow patterns from the ground up to the stratosphere. This is the result of climate simulations, which have just been published in the journal „Geophysical Research Letters" (Brand et al, Geophys. Res. Lett.). Scientists at the Research Unit Potsdam of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, which is a member of the Helmholtz Association, have investigated a fundamental process for climate interactions in the Arctic. So far it is not known what causes natural variations of atmospheric air flow patterns which have been playing an important role for climate changes in the last decades. This basic knowledge is necessary to improve climate models that still hold much uncertainty. ...> Full Article

Newly defined signaling pathway could mean better biofuel sources (3/8/2008)

A newly defined biochemical pathway in plants may provide the scientific tools to design plants that will yield larger quantities of alternative transportation fuels than currently can be produced ...> Full Article

Scientists uncover a novel mechanism that regulates carbon dioxide fixation in plants (3/8/2008)

A team of Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) funded scientists at the University of Essex has discovered a new mechanism that slows the process of carbon dioxide fixation in plants. ...> Full Article

Scientists Mimic Sea Cucumber Skin to Create Material That Rapidly Changes Rigidity (3/7/2008)

Scientists have long been amazed by the skin of a sea cucumber, which can switch from stiff to floppy, or vice versa, in mere seconds in order to help the animal defend itself against predators. ...> Full Article

Researchers identify key cellular signal that builds endurance in muscles (3/6/2008)

Everyone knows that exercise improves endurance - now Brigham Young University scientists have discovered one reason why, pinpointing the enzyme that kickstarts the process. The finding will be important to future efforts to enhance the beneficial effects of exercise, and to possibly extend those benefits to people suffering from ailments such as diabetes and heart disease. ...> Full Article

Key To Life Before Its Origin On Earth May Have Been Discovered (3/5/2008)

An important discovery has been made with respect to the mystery of "handedness" in biomolecules. Researchers led by Sandra Pizzarello, a research professor at Arizona State University, found that some of the possible abiotic precursors to the origin of life on Earth have been shown to carry "handedness" in a larger number than previously thought. ...> Full Article

Technology uses live cells to detect food-borne pathogens, toxins (3/5/2008)

Researchers have developed a new technology that can simultaneously screen thousands of samples of food or water for several dangerous food-borne pathogens in one to two hours. ...> Full Article

Researchers discover key for converting waste to electricity (3/4/2008)

Researchers studying bacteria capable of generating electricity have discovered that riboflavin (commonly known as vitamin B-2) is responsible for much of the energy produced by these organisms. ...> Full Article

BioBlower Closer to Protecting Soldiers from Biological Attack (3/3/2008)

Patent to issue on technology, which has passed Department of Defense tests ...> Full Article

New Research Suggests Biofuel Blending is Often Inaccurate (3/2/2008)

Study of Retail Biofuel Samples Suggests National Standards May Be Needed ...> Full Article

Mystery of Glowing Antibody Solved by Scientists (3/1/2008)

A chance discovery of a uniquely luminescent monoclonal antibody nearly ten years ago has proven to be far more interesting-and far more tenacious-than anyone might have suspected. ...> Full Article

Mechanism Discovered in Worm Digestion Identifies Potentially Widespread Cell-to-Cell Communication Process (2/29/2008)

The focus of two recent Nobel prizes, a species of roundworm has made possible another advance in the understanding of how cells talk to one another, according to a study published online today in the journal Current Biology. ...> Full Article

Uncharged organic molecule can bind negatively charged ions (2/28/2008)

Chemists have designed an organic molecule that binds negatively charged ions, a feat they hope will lead to the development of a whole new molecular toolbox for biologists, chemists and medical researchers who want to remove chlorine, fluorine and other negatively charged ions from their solutions. ...> Full Article

Researchers Developing a More Efficient Ethanol Production Method (2/27/2008)

A University of Wyoming professor has received a $485,000 grant to explore a more economical way to produce ethanol. ...> Full Article

Research Pushes the Right Buttons - Mushrooms are the New Fat (2/26/2008)

Scientists have discovered a new method to replace fat in food products. ...> Full Article

Solar cell directly splits water for hydrogen (2/20/2008)

Plants trees and algae do it. Even some bacteria and moss do it, but scientists have had a difficult time developing methods to turn sunlight into useful fuel. Now, Penn State researchers have a proof-of-concept device that can split water and produce recoverable hydrogen. ...> Full Article

Coal Gasification Could Fuel Clean Coal: Myths, Challenges And Opportunities (2/19/2008)

There is a growing consensus that increased demand for electricity will cement coal's place in the energy portfolio for years to come. In fact, more than half of the electricity produced in the United States comes from coal. With demand for electricity expected to double by 2050 and renewable resources still years away from offsetting increased demand, it is clear -- coal is here to stay. ...> Full Article

Researchers developing equipment to get double duty out of biofuels (2/15/2008)

Researchers are developing equipment that would allow farmers to have their biofuels and let their animals eat it, too. A project led by Paul Aakre, assistant professor in agriculture, examines opportunities for individual farmers or farm groups to produce their own biodiesel from crops like canola and sunflowers and use the byproduct of that biodiesel production to feed their animals. ...> Full Article

Moss protein plays role in Alzheimer's Disease (2/9/2008)

Preventing Alzheimer's disease is a goal of Raphael Kopan, Ph.D., professor of molecular biology and pharmacology at the Washington University School of Medicine. The moss plant Physcomitrella patens studied in the laboratory of Ralph S. Quatrano, Ph.D., the Spencer T. Olin Professor and chair of the biology department on WUSTL's Danforth Campus, might inch Kopan toward that goal. Here's how. ...> Full Article

Breakthrough may revolutionize ethylene production (2/6/2008)

Scientists create environmentally friendly technology to produce commonly used compound ...> Full Article

The eyes have it (2/5/2008)

Researchers can now determine when a human was born by looking into the eyes of the dead ...> Full Article

Study of Energy Crops Finds Miscanthus More Productive than Switchgrass (2/4/2008)

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Plant Biologists in Chicago (July 7-11, 2007), scientists presented findings on how to economically and efficiently produce plant crops suitable for sustainable bioenergy. Improving the production of such biomass is important because it should significantly ease and eventually replace dependence on petroleum-based fuels. Biomass is plant material, vegetation or agricultural waste used as fuel. ...> Full Article