News by Subject Chemistry & Physics

With their ability to treat a wide a variety of diseases, spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) are poised to revolutionize medicine. But before these digitally designed nanostructures can reach their full potential, researchers need to optimize their various components.

Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina discovered a new mechanism for a class of anti-cancer drugs known as E1 inhibitors. Their findings, published in Nature Communications on Dec. 4, 2018, reveal a novel binding site that will promote drug design of more efficient E1 inhibitors.

UCLA researchers and collaborators at eight other research institutions have created an extremely light, very durable ceramic aerogel. The material could be used for applications like insulating spacecraft because it can withstand the intense heat and severe temperature changes that space missions endure.

New therapeutic molecules developed at Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) show promise in reversing the memory loss linked to depression and aging. These molecules not only rapidly improve symptoms, but remarkably, also appear to renew the underlying brain impairments causing memory loss in preclinical models.

Researchers at University of Utah Health detailed the function of cone snail insulins, bringing them one step closer to developing a faster-acting insulin to treat diabetes.

A new one-step method discovered by synthetic organic chemists at Rice University allows nitrogen atoms to be added to precursor compounds used in the design and manufacture of drugs, pesticides, fertilizers and other products.