Low-pressure ammonia production could cut fertiliser energy cost
Lanthanum–cobalt catalyst that breaks nitrogen triple bond under mild conditions could revolutionise small-scale ammonia synthesis Source: © Macmillan Publishers Ltd Structure of the lanthanum–cobalt–silicon catalyst Rather than relying on ammonia made by the energy-hungry Haber–Bosch process, local fertiliser synthesis could soon be possible with a catalyst that can break the nitrogen–nitrogen triple bond at ambient […]
Certain bacteria produce tiny gold nuggets by digesting toxic metals
Summary: High concentrations of heavy metals, like copper and gold, are toxic for most living creatures. This is not the case for the bacterium C. metallidurans, which has found a way to extract valuable trace elements from a compound of heavy metals without poisoning itself. One interesting side-effect: the formation of tiny gold nuggets. […]
Researchers achieve 'Olympic ring' molecule breakthrough just in time for Winter Games
In the FSU team’s new technique, an additional hexagonal ring of carbon atoms is fused to the zigzag edge of an existing carbon-rich molecule in two quick steps. Think plodding cross-country skier versus agile speed skater. Credit: Igor Alabugin As the world’s premier winter athletes were preparing to take to the slopes, rinks and tracks […]
Ozone still declining in the lower stratosphere
An unexplained decrease in stratospheric ozone – revealed by satellite measurements – appears to have been offsetting the ozone layer’s overall recovery over the past 20 years. The finding flies in the face of atmospheric models, which predict ozone levels in all parts of the atmosphere should be recovering in the years following the Montreal […]
Printed paper-based device could drug testing more efficient and affordable
Chemical engineer Todd Hoare and Rabia Mateen, PhD candidate, in their lab at McMaster University. Credit: Jin Lee McMaster University engineers have devised a way to make testing for new drugs more efficient and affordable, and reduce the time for helpful medications to reach the public. Chemical Engineering Associate Professor Todd Hoare and Rabia Mateen, […]
Memristors power quick-learning neural network
Summary: A new type of neural network made with memristors can dramatically improve the efficiency of teaching machines to think like humans. The network, called a reservoir computing system, could predict words before they are said during conversation, and help predict future outcomes based on the present. The memristor chip that powers the new reservoir […]
Sildenafil (Viagra)
Kat Arney investigates one of the fastest selling drugs of all time The picturesque town of Sandwich on the Kent coast may seem an unlikely setting for the discovery of what is arguably the world’s most famous drug but it was here, in the labs of pharma company Pfizer, that the story started. Back in […]
Engineers hack cell biology to create 3-D shapes from living tissue
Summary: Many of the complex folded shapes that form mammalian tissues can be explained with very simple instructions, bioengineers report. By patterning mechanically active mouse or human cells to thin layers of extracellular fibers, the researchers could create bowls, coils, and ripples out of living tissue. The cells collaborated mechanically through a web of these […]
An integrated assessment of vascular plants species of the Americas
Summary: Botanists have compiled a comprehensive, searchable checklist of 124,993 species, 6,227 genera and 355 families of vascular plants of the Americas. This represents one third of all known vascular plants worldwide. Tropical forest. Credit: © Galyna Andrushko / Fotolia Missouri Botanical Garden researcher Dr. Carmen Ulloa is the lead author of “An Integrated Assessment […]
Origins of photosynthesis in plants dated to 1.25 billion years ago
Summary: The world’s oldest algae fossils are a billion years old, according to a new analysis by earth scientists. Based on this finding, the researchers also estimate that the basis for photosynthesis in today’s plants was set in place 1.25 billion years ago. The Angmaat Formation above Tremblay Sound on the Baffin Island coast. Bangiomorpha […]
Plants reveal decision-making abilities under competition February 07, 2018
Summary: Plants can choose between alternative competitive responses according to the stature and densities of their opponents, biologists have discovered. A new study reveals that plants can evaluate the competitive ability of their neighbors and optimally match their responses to them. The plant Potentilla reptans growing under simulated sparse vegetation. Credit: Udi Segev Biologists from […]
[:pb]Anti-Mycobacterial Evaluation of 7-Chloro-4-Aminoquinolines and Hologram Quantitative Structure–Activity Relationship (HQSAR) Modeling of Amino–Imino Tautomers[:]
[:pb]Authors: Bispo, M. L. F.; Lima, C. H. S.; Cardoso, L. N. F.; Candéa, A. L. P.; Bezerra, F. A. F. M.; Lourenço, M. C. S.; Henriques, M. G. M. O.; Alencastro, R. B.; Kaiser, C. R.; De Souza, M. V. N.; Albuquerque, M. G. Source: Pharmaceuticals, v. 10, p. 52-68, 2017 Publisher: MDPI Abstract […]
