X-rays allow professionals to diagnose injuries or ailments and peer inside suitcases at the airport, along with a variety of other applications. A team reporting in ACS Energy Letters has improved the glass screen that “translates” between X-rays and visible light, creating an X-ray system that produces high-resolution images with less radiation — it even works underwater. The screen can be molded into curved shapes, a feature that could one day lead to more comfortable mammograms. 

Pet owners love their dogs but may not always love the smell of their breath. Because this bad odor can signal oral disease, veterinary clinics will prescribe daily tooth brushing, antibiotics or chemical rinses as treatment. Now, researchers reporting in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry propose an alternative: polyphenols from molasses. They developed a spray that reduced stinky breath and harmful oral bacteria in dogs. 

After the success of Artemis II, longer space journeys are expected, raising new health and nutritional challenges for astronauts. Current space foods rely on dried, shelf-stable items. A study published in ACS Food Science & Technology suggests fortified beverages could help fill nutrient gaps and add variety to astronauts’ diets. Researchers created drinks using emulsions that are stable in Earth’s gravity and microgravity. Their recipes deliver omega-3 fatty acids with customizable sweetness levels and flavors.

Medications are designed to treat diseased tissues while sparing healthy ones, often by attaching the drug to something that helps guide it directly to its target. But drugs also need time to work, which means they need to stay near the diseased tissues long enough. Now, scientists reporting in ACS Central Science have developed a drug carrier that physically anchors itself to cancer cell membranes, improving drug retention and thereby effectiveness in animal trials.