Artists impression of young Earth. Credit: NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab

In the search for the chemical origins of life, researchers have found a possible alternative path for the emergence of the characteristic DNA pattern: According to the experiments, the characteristic DNA base pairs can form by dry heating, without water or other solvents. The team led by Ivan Halasz from the Ruer Bokovi Institute and Ernest Metrovi from the pharmaceutical company Xellia presents its observations from DESYs X-ray source PETRA III in the journal Chemical Communications.

One of the most intriguing questions in the search for the origin of life is how the chemical selection occurred and how the first biomolecules formed, says Tomislav Stolar from the Ruer Bokovi Institute in Zagreb, the first author on the paper. While living cells control the production of biomolecules with their sophisticated machinery, the first molecular and supramolecular building blocks of life were likely created by pure chemistry and without enzyme catalysis. For their study, the scientists investigated the formation of nucleobase pairs that act as molecular recognition units in the Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA).

From the mixture of all four nucleobases, A:T pairs emerged at about 100 degrees Celsius and G:C pairs formed at 200 degrees Celsius. Credit: Ruer Bokovi Institute, Ivan Halasz

Our genetic code is stored in the DNA as a specific sequence spelled by the nucleobases adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G) and thymine (T). The code is arranged in two long, complementary strands wound in a double-helix structure. In the strands, each nucleobase pairs with a complementary partner in the other strand: adenine with thymine and cytosine with guanine.

Only specific pairing combinations occur in the DNA, but when nucleobases are isolated they do not like to bind to each other at all. So why did nature choose these base pairs? says Stolar. Investigations of pairing of nucleobases surged after the discovery of the DNA double helix structure by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953. However, it was quite surprising that there has been little success in achieving specific nucleobase pairing in conditions that could be considered as prebiotically plausible.

Nucleobase powder and steel balls in a milling jar. Credit: Ruer-Bokovi-Institut, Tomislav Stolar

We have explored a different path, reports co-author Martin Etter from DESY. We have tried to find out whether the base pairs can be generated by mechanical energy or simply by heating. To this end, the team studied methylated nucleobases. Having a methyl group (-CH3) attached to the respective nucleobases in principle allows them to form hydrogen bonds at the Watson-Crick side of the molecule. Methylated nucleobases occur naturally in many living organisms where they fulfil a variety of biological functions.

In the lab, the scientists tried to produce nucleobase pairs by grinding. Powders of two nucleobases were loaded into a milling jar along with steel balls, which served as the grinding media, while the jars were shaken in a controlled manner. The experiment produced A:T pairs which had also been observed by other scientists before. Grinding however, could not achieve formation of G:C pairs.

In a second step, the researchers heated the ground cytosine and guanine powders. At about 200 degrees Celsius, we could indeed observe the formation of cytosine-guanine pairs, reports Stolar. In order to test whether the bases only form the known pairs under thermal conditions, the team repeated the experiments with mixtures of three and four nucleobases at the P02.1 measuring station of DESYs X-ray source PETRA III. Here, the detailed crystal structure of the mixtures could be monitored during heating and formation of new phases could be observed.

At about 100 degrees Celsius, we were able to observe the formation of the adenine-thymine pairs, and at about 200 degrees Celsius the formation of Watson-Crick pairs of guanine and cytosine, says Etter, head of the measuring station. Any other base pair did not form even when heated further until melting. This proves that the thermal reaction of nucleobase pairing has the same selectivity as in the DNA.

Our results show a possible alternative route as to how the molecular recognition patterns that we observe in the DNA could have been formed, adds Stolar. The conditions of the experiment are plausible for the young Earth that was a hot, seething cauldron with volcanoes, earthquakes, meteorite impacts and all sorts of other events. Our results open up many new paths in the search for the chemical origins of life. The team plans to investigate this route further with follow-up experiments at P02.1.

Reference: DNA-specific selectivity in pairing of model nucleobases in the solid state by Tomislav Stolar, Stipe Lukin, Martin Etter, Maa Raji Linari, Krunoslav Uarevi, Ernest Metrovi and Ivan Halasz, 9 September 2020, Chemical Communications.DOI: 10.1039/D0CC03491F

Original post:
Searching for the Chemistry of Life: Possible New Way to Create DNA Base Pairs Discovered - SciTechDaily

Zurich-based cleantech startup UniSieve, which has sustainability at its core, has landed around 3.9 million in a round led by Wingman Ventures, the GREEN DEAL Grant (from the European Innovation Council), and the EIT Climate-KIC initiative (from the European Institute of Innovation and Technology).

Founded in 2018, UniSieve supports companies from the chemical and energy industry in conserving energy and reducing waste. The high energy demand of state-of-the-art separation used purify chemical products is responsible for over 10% of global energy use. By challenging state-of-the-art separation technology.

The proprietary UniSieve membrane solution facilitates saving up to 90% of the energy required to purify the worlds most frequent chemical feedstocks. Customers can therefore significantly reduce greenhouse gas pollution, recover valuable chemicals, and save operational costs. In addition, highly efficient separation technologies are enabling technologies to increase the economic attractiveness andsustainability of the growing renewable chemicals market.

The fresh funds raised will allow UniSieve to establish pilot production and co-finance industrial testing at customers chemical sites. It is expected that the investment will sustain the startup until the closure of sales agreements for full-scale separation units

Lukas Weder from Wingman Ventures, who will be joining the board of UniSieve, explains the firms decision to invest: With UniSieve, we back a highly innovative platform technology which optimizes the production process of the worlds largest chemical feedstocks by significantly reducing the amount of energy used in the process. We truly believe the UniSieve team can significantly contribute to the net zero economy.

Originally posted here:
Swiss cleantech UniSieve lands 3.9 million to help the chemical and energy industry conserve energy and reduce waste - EU-Startups

Diversity. Its a simple concept people from different cultures and with different life experiences bring different viewpoints to problems. Drawing on a broader range of viewpoints should allow teams to identify and solve problems in ways that benefit everyone, not just the comfortable majority.

But our industries and organisations do not (yet) represent that diversity very well. Women and members of under-represented populations are overwhelmingly concentrated in lower-paid, lower-prestige roles, and often all but absent from boardrooms and leadership teams.

While this is changing, progress is slow. Partly that slow progress can be attributed to deeply ingrained systemic inequalities. There can be no doubt that these exist, even if they are invisible to those whose privilege of birth has meant they have never encountered them. Breaking down those barriers requires uncomfortable cultural changes, and a level of sustained effort that is often emotionally and professionally exhausting to those who take up the struggle. It shouldnt have to be this way.

There is, of course, a logistical element companies with tens of thousands of employees cannot radically change their demographic makeup overnight. But at the leadership level, the numbers are much smaller boards and executive teams might be 1015 people, even at large firms. Press releases can make grand-sounding claims about increasing board representation of various groups, but when that corresponds to hiring just one or two people, it sounds significantly less impressive.

It is all too easy for executive recruiters to claim that suitable candidates from diverse groups dont exist, or are too difficult to find. They absolutely do exist, albeit in small numbers. And the benefits of their perspective surely outweighs the extra effort in finding them. Without the same opportunities for training and advancement, the leaks in the pipeline will never be plugged, and the flow of diverse candidates will remain a trickle, overwhelmed by those who look and sound the same as were used to.

If inclusion and diversity is really as important as all the strategy documents claim, then it is the responsibility of every company to examine its structures and actively break down those barriers and stereotypes. While ensuring under-represented groups have opportunities to advance throughout the company is important, providing mentorship and training to help prepare promising candidates for leadership positions is crucial (and, thankfully, increasingly recognised across the industry).

But the final problem is a little more insidious. History tells us that promises are easy to make, and just as easy to break when there are no repercussions. Grand strategies are all very well, but when they dont translate into action and results, they are more part of the problem than the solution. Its up to all of us not to continue to allow that to happen.

Go here to read the rest:
Improving executive diversity is a priority | Opinion - Chemistry World

When the coronavirus pandemic forced Wittenberg University to abruptly switch to online classes last spring, Professor and Chair of Chemistry Justin Houseknecht seized the opportunity to investigate how the transition to remote instruction would impact learning in an organic chemistry class. With the help of biochemistry and molecular biology major Lucy Bates, class of 2022, the pair co-authored a manuscript presenting the results. The study was recently published online in a special issue of the Journal of Chemical Education.

A proponent of active, hands-on learning, Houseknecht regularly collects data on the effectiveness of the Just-in-Time Teaching (JiTT) and collaborative learning methods he uses in his organic chemistry classes. He often engages students in the research process; Bates was scheduled to spend the summer in-person helping Houseknecht analyze data related to metacognitive and self-efficacy skills.

However, the pivot from in-person teaching to remote instruction presented an opportunity to add a unique component to Bates summer research project: to study if student learning and behavior changed during the spring semester.

The first part of this project was the transition to remote learning and assessment where student scores in Organic II were compared before and after the switch to learning completely online during quarantine, said Bates, who received funding from the chemistry departments Virginia Ellis Franta Fund to support her summer research. There was no significant difference in students' ability to master course material even with a different mode of learning and assessment.

Wittenberg students are fantastic, said Houseknecht, referencing the results. They roll with the punches.

Houseknecht and Bates co-authored article, Transition to Remote Instruction Using Hybrid Just-in-Time Teaching, Collaborative Learning, and Specifications Grading for Organic Chemistry 2, was published as part of the Special Issue: Insights Gained While Teaching Chemistry in the Time of COVID-19.

This research is useful for chemical education and the large potential for online learning during a world pandemic, said Bates, who hails from Brownsburg, Indiana.

Bates also spent part of the summer analyzing data collected from Organic Chemistry I.

We looked at the potential growth in metacognitive and self-efficacy skills by using the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire at the beginning and end of the semester, she said. We concluded that to find significant growth, we would need more data and a larger sample population. Further research could be done.

Bates learned some valuable skills during her summer of research, including a new programming language for statistical computing.

I learned how to code using RStudio, do computational work, write professional and publishable papers, and I learned how to work efficiently by myself on a large research project.

Houseknecht offered high praise of Bates work ethic, particularly her ability to learn RStudio on her own when training courses werent available because of COVID-19.

She is an incredibly motivated, enthusiastic student, very detail-focused, he said. She sees a goal and goes after it. She took a lot of initiative to figure out how to do the work. She definitely earned her authorship.

Wittenberg has helped me prepare for my future by giving me research opportunities and professors that care about the success of all students, said Bates, who serves as treasurer of the Marine Science Club and is a member of the fishing club and Outdoors Club. She hopes to pursue a masters in molecular biology after graduating from Wittenberg.

Read the original:
Chemistry in the Time of COVID-19 - Wittenberg University

It's probably fair to say that nobody expressly set out to devise a sunscreen to bleach coral reefs or a yoga mat to emit carcinogens. Yet toxic substances circulate in waterways and bloodstreams, leached out from all the consumables of everyday life.

Shortsightedness and paltry data in the cycles of product design and engineering are partly to blame for this collateral damage of modern chemistry. Most product designers are unlettered in chemistry, and the practice of green chemistry remains in its early years. Even a basic count of all the industrial chemicals in use is scarce somewhere over 80,000, according to the U.S. Toxic Substances Control Act Inventory, although the EPA total for recent output is less than 9,000.

It's simply asking too much of most people formulating a consumer product only to include ingredients that are proven not to harm living systems.

But what if design teams seeking safer ingredients didn't have to know much about the molecules that comprise the stuff they're making? What if they had a handy menu that graded each chemical? In theory, picking a less-toxic choice could be as simple as shunning an "F" or "C" ingredient for an "A" or a "B" on the list.

We really saw this as a key to unlock in order to improve safe and circular chemistry.

That's the vision being advanced by ChemFORWARD, a mission-driven nonprofit backed by leading corporations with serious ambitions to accelerate safer chemistry. The effort is attracting pioneers in green chemistry, design and data to build a first-of-its-kind clearinghouse to help design teams and supply chains ditch hazardous chemicals for good.

"We really saw this as a key to unlock in order to improve safe and circular chemistry," said Mike Werner, circular economy lead at Google, who serves on the nonprofit's advisory board. The search giant pushes for safer chemistry and a circular economy on myriad levels, including within its office spaces, at its data centers and inside the devices it sells. "ChemFORWARD fits [into] this really big important puzzle toward making materials healthy and safe."

Google is among ChemFORWARD's roster of "co-design" partners that includes Sephora, Target, Levi's, HP, Levi Strauss, H&M, Nike, Steelcase and Method, each recognized for various leadership efforts toward safer chemistry. Last year, for example, Sephora became the first major cosmetics retailer to broadcast its policy on chemicals. Target's Sustainable Product Standard came on the scene in 2013. Nike has its own Chemistry Playbook. Levi's innovations include its recyclable Wellthread denim line. Other ChemFORWARD partners include the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals.

ChemFORWARD's technical advisory board is led by Art Fong, Apple's green chemistry lead. Corporate scientists and chemists also come together via ChemFORWARDfor regular meetings and peer reviews with third-party toxicology firms. The nonprofit isbetting that teaming up with such pathfinders will help spark lasting industry innovation via its tool, in the processlowering the cost for even small companies to find safer chemical alternatives fortheir products.

"Our intention is to reverse decades of negative impacts from the inundation of toxic chemicals that we find in our products, our economy, our environment and our bodies," said ChemFORWARD Executive Director Stacy Glass, who has led the effort from a project within theCradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute to its current iteration, housed within the Washington, D.C.-based Healthy Building Network, a nonprofit that advocates for sustainable building materials. "We need new solutions, new ways of thinking about things to have safe, circular products."

We are fundamentally changing the way that chemical hazard data is created, maintained, distributed and financed.

ChemFORWARD seeks not only to display what chemicals not to use, but also what's available instead. This aim progresses away from the longtime industry reliance on restricted substances lists that can leave product makers empty-handed, while liberating data that until recently has been trapped in various PDF reports or proprietary databases.

ChemFORWARD seeks to stand apart from other data plays by building bridges in the supply chain with its "collaborative, harmonized" approach. "We are fundamentally changing the way that chemical hazard data is created, maintained, distributed and financed," Glass said.

However, ChemFORWARD is entering an area that's already seeing a lot of activity. Multiple hazards assessment standards are available in increasingly usable formats to help companies identify problematic chemicals. The for-profit firm Scivera, launched in 2008 in Charlottesville, Virginia, offers a subscription database SciveraLENS, with color-coded grades for chemicals based on their inherent hazards.

ChemFORWARD's web-based software pools together data from some of the best-known chemicals assessment methodologies. A color-coded letter grade rolls up information from the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification, Cradle to Cradle (on material health) and the EPA SaferChoice Safer Chemical Ingredients List. That results in offering users more than 50 pieces of interpretation and over 20 human and environmental endpoints, such as around neurotoxicity or aquatic toxicity, for each chemical.

"The work that ChemFORWARD is doing and proposes to do will provide important additional information to a community of organizations seeking real-world data to better understand the safety implications of their materials choices," said green chemistry trailblazer John C. Warner, a distinguished research fellow at synthetic biology startup Zymergen.

Think of nearly any consumer-product chemical villain that's dominated recent headlines for disrupting ecosystems or being linked to cancer or hormonal havoc. Chances are ChemFORWARD is building a collection of alternatives to it. These include ortho-phthalate plasticizers found in flexible toys, UV-blocking oxybenzone in sunscreens and halogenated flame retardants in electronics. ChemFORWARD has portfolios of alternative cleaning solvents, cosmetics preservatives and fragrance fixatives. The goal is for ChemFORWARD to scale up from about 200 to 2,000 safer chemicals in 2021.

"The more technical person can see the technical data they need," Glass said. "But most companies need, Can I use it [or] can I not use it? for an answer."

ChemFORWARD is building clearinghouses for electronics and food packaging, but one of its earliest repositories coalesces data in beauty and personal care, with hundreds of safer alternatives. Someone shopping around to include a safer surfactant in a skin cleanser or an emollient in a moisturizing lotion can consult the tool for the green "A" or "B" options.

Sephora, which is mindful of its many eco-conscious young customers and became a co-design partner with ChemFORWARD in March, recently took steps to advance beyond its restricted substances list. The company says 94 percent of all the products it sells eliminate potentially negative "high-priority" chemicals. The Clean at Sephora label for sustainable beauty care products in its catalog features goods from more than five dozen smaller companies, including BeautyCounter.

"We knew the importance of creating a baseline expectation for all brands in terms of safety and the environment," Carley Klekas, Sephora's senior manager of product sustainability, said. "Sephora already had rigorous requirements in place, specifically with our in-house brand, Sephora Collection, that goes beyond EU regulations, but we also wanted to expand this even more across the brands we carry."

It teamed up with ChemFORWARD and EDF on a research project that prioritized four chemical categories c
ommon within beauty and personal care: preservatives; benzophenones; silicones; and ethanolamines. Sephora then sponsored chemical hazard assessments for the alternative ingredients named in the research. As a result of the partnership, safer alternatives have been assessed for 73 percent of Sephoras high-priority chemicals and made available to industry via ChemFORWARD.

"We needed a credible and innovative resource to help us assess alternatives to chemicals within our policy, to ensure they were safe, and that we were avoiding regrettable substitution," Klekas said. "We know this is important work to be done and will ultimately help showcase that there are safer alternatives to the high-priority chemicals we seek to reduce in our assortment, while also help the industry identify gaps where more innovation is needed."

Glass sees ChemFORWARDs highest mission as its potential for furthering innovation. But that requires buy-in not only from retailers and product manufacturers, but also from the chemical producers themselves. The process of making chemical substitutions is only one step along the path to optimizing shiny, new, safer chemicals, which Glass hopes to help propel.

Enter Pat Harmon, industry manager at chemicals powerhouse BASF. Hes been involved with ChemFORWARD for many years after meeting Lauren Heine through a Green Chemistry & Commerce Council (G3C) event. Heine was then executive director of the nonprofit Northwest Green Chemistry and had just joined MaterialWise, the early iteration of ChemFORWARD, where she's now director of safer materials and data integrity.

BASFs sustainability strategy hinges upon developing chemicals that advance sustainability, called "accelerators," which account for more than 25 percent of its sales. Ninety-five percent of BASF's products have been evaluated for potential sustainability contributions. BASF has a history of involvement in collaborative assessments, and it quantifies the sustainability benefits of its products through life-cycle assessments and its Sustainable Solutions Steering methodology.

It's really powerful in terms of thinking about moving to green chemistry.

Harmon aligned with Heine on the need for better third-party assessments for alternatives to troublesome ortho-phthalates, which are tied to multiple health problems. He also liked what she described of how the fledgling nonprofit chemical clearinghouse might lower the cost to companies of chemical assessments while moving away from "negative lists." ChemFORWARD's involvement with leadership brands and retailers, which are ultimately BASFs downstream customers, also helped to elevate the case for BASF getting involved.

Eventually, BASF shared details for ChemFORWARD about several of its plasticizer accelerators, including its ortho-phthalate alternatives Hexamoll DINCH and Palatinol DOTP. These are used in flexible PVC and in a broad range of applications including childrens toys, yoga mats, wiring cable, vinyl flooring and automotive interiors.

"Now, chemical suppliers have the option to market their safer alternatives and to validate their low-hazard claims through an independent, trusted platform," Glass said. "In this way, we create a bridge between chemical suppliers, their customers and prospective customers with data that has been traditionally hard to come by, difficult to interpret and sometimes hard to trust."

Harmon sees ChemFORWARD as a useful tool for companies that ultimately use BASFs chemicals as well as a resource that can help move safer chemistry forward in industry, demonstrating for BASF's customers the value of the safer decisions behind their product formulations. And the involvement with CHEMForward may help BASF to identify potential market gaps in areas where the number of attractive chemical alternatives is slim.

"This is why the ChemFORWARD project is so important," Harmon said. "Its one of the ways to help understand that you're making the right decisions to move to new substances. I would really like to see this approach be used more and more." For example, what if ChemFORWARD could grow to include the broader area of plastics additives in addition to plasticizers, such as flame retardants and light stabilizers? That could bring more of the plastic industry onboard, he added.

"If you make it broader for the whole plastics industry, then you have a lot of people who would have interest in using this type of tool," Harmon said, optimistic that ChemFORWARD may help to advance plastics circularity longer term. For example, if it identifies safer plastics used, say, in medical equipment that's currently discarded, then more IV bags or other consumables finally might be recycled without the possibility of circulating harmful chemicals into the marketplace and the environment, Harmon said.

ChemFORWARD's small team hopes to encourage more chemical suppliers to get involved by providing them a means to bring forth their safer chemicals in a way thats trustworthy, verified and peer-reviewed by a third party, also broadening the availability of their chemicals for certifications and reporting. Companies can use this information for marketing purposes, including for consumer labels, but it's also critical for risk management and verifying internal claims about a product.

"As we get more and more eyes on our platform, we'll be able to make that case even more strongly that: 'Hey, chemical suppliers, if you have good stuff and you want to verify those claims, this is a great place to do it,'" Glass said. "We feel a tremendous sense of urgency to not only stop unknowing toxic chemical exposure, but to empower those who are working to create a safe and circular future for all."

Glass spent a decade in green building, serving as VP for the built environment at the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, which shaped in 2016 the earliest version of ChemFORWARD. Research across industries, up and down supply chains, found that companies lacked information to use better chemistry. Good attempts by other nonprofits had failed to gain traction. Recognizing a larger industry need, the institute spun out the effort, which currently counts less than 10 staff members distributed across the U.S. and a network of toxicologists.

I realized this was a data organization problem, our not knowing what was in our stuff and what were exposed to.

"I realized this was a data organization problem, our not knowing what was in our stuff and what were exposed to, and the incredible tax this exposure is causing to society," Glass said. "Im not a chemist, Im not a toxicologist I said, we can fix this. I see the solution clearly. Ill take any data solution, any scalable solution, that will get this information into the hands of designers and formulators so (they) can make safer decisions."

It's possible ChemFORWARD ultimately could feed data into life-cycle analysis or supply chain management tools. It can't hurt to have Google as a partner, and it's worth noting that the advisory board's latest addition is Kimberly Shenk, co-founder of the AI-driven supply chain transparency startup Novi.

The movement, however, has a long road ahead. It's still relatively cheap for companies to crank out new molecules, and the chemicals industry is a powerful economic engine and lobbying force.

Nevertheless, ChemFORWARD and others pivoting away from the conventional focus in managing chemical risksand instead toward making decisions based on inherent toxicity is a huge paradigm shift, said Mark Rossi, executive director of Clean Production Action, who also created the GreenScreen for Safer Chemicals hazard assessment method with Heine.

"It's really powerful in terms of thinking about moving to green chemistry," he said. "All chemistry should be green chemistry, and how do you get there? This is all part of that movement toward making choices based on hazards."

More here:
Why Google, BASF and Sephora are coming together on safer chemistry - GreenBiz

At a time when calls for racial equality and inclusion from the Black Lives Matter movement in the US are reverberating worldwide, major pharmaceutical companies are stepping up efforts to increase the diversity of their workforce, supply chains, executive leadership and boards of directors.

In August, for example, US firm Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) committed to investing $300 million (229 million) in efforts to address health disparities experienced by minority populations, increase the companys clinical trial diversity, boost its support of diverse suppliers, and continue to increase African American and Latinx representation at all levels of the company.

By 2022, BMS aims to achieve gender parity at the executive level globally. It will also double executive representation of Black and African American, as well as Hispanic and Latinx employees in the US. More broadly, the company has pledged to spend $1 billion globally with Black- and other diverse-owned suppliers by 2025.

BMS will release updated demographic information on its workforce and leadership early 2021. In the interim, its most recent data from July 2018 shows that just over 50% of its overall workforce are women, but only about 38% of executives. And while around 29% of its overall workforce come from minority populations, such groups represent just under 20% at the executive level.

Systemic racism is as real as any disease. Our industry is not immune

Stephen Ubl, president of PhRMA

To reach its diversity goals, BMS is adapting its recruitment process, among other things. The company will require diverse interview panels for all executive roles in the US, and will work with women- and minority-owned recruitment firms that specialise in diverse executive talent. BMS says that it is aggressively managing succession plans, and implementing mentoring, sponsorship and development programmes to increase the diversity and readiness of employees seeking executive positions.

Similarly, US-based Merck & Co recently committed an additional $10 million to address disparities highlighted as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, Merck reports spending more than $2 billion with diverse suppliers in 2019, defined as those inclusive of women, disabled people and military veterans.

The company, which says it works with 15,000 such diverse suppliers globally, is also a member of the Billion Dollar Roundtable, a group that recognises firms that spend at least $1 billion annually with minority- and women-owned suppliers.

Currently, three of Mercks 10 executive leaders are African American, including chief executive Kenneth Frazier the first African American man to lead a major pharmaceutical company. A further two of the companys 12 board members (excluding Frazier) are African American (16%), and six are women. Mercks latest data from 20192020 indicate that 25% of its board, 26% of its executives and 29% of its overall workforce come from underrepresented ethnic groups, while 49% of its overall workforce and 50% of new hires were women.

Different companies are at different stages in their efforts to embrace diversity. A survey by the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) which represents biotechnology firms, research universities, state biotechnology centres and related associations confirms that diversity is lacking at the top management levels within its sector.

On average, 45% of all US employees at responding companies are women, but only 30% of the executive-level workforce, 18% of board members and 16% of chief executives. In addition, 20% of responding organisations had no women at executive level, and 32% had none on the board.

The situation appears even grimmer when it comes to minority populations representation. On average, 32% of all employees at responding companies are people of colour including Black, Latinx, Asian and Native American. However, they comprise only 15% of executive teams, 14% of board members and 12% of chief executives. 56% of responding organisations had no people of colour at executive level, and 64% had none on their boards.

But while the biopharma industry is increasingly welcoming diversity, US president Donald Trumps administration is moving in the other direction. In September, Trump issued an executive order prohibiting federal contractors and grantees from teaching what it calls divisive concepts like white privilege, unconscious bias, and systemic racism in their diversity and inclusion training efforts.

Stephen Ubl, president of the trade body Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) criticised the presidential directive, arguing that diversity is essential to a robust innovation ecosystem that generates new medicines. In August, PhRMA had issued an open letter on equity, declaring that Systemic racism is as real as any disease. Our industry is not immune, and calling on its members to actively stand up to racism and injustice.

Nevertheless, as it stands, the White House has effectively halted all diversity training efforts at federal agencies while it reviews their programmes and works to implement the new policy.

The issue will likely be a moot point should Trump lose his bid for re-election to Democratic rival Joe Biden on 3 November. If elected, Biden would be expected to rescind the executive order, given he has criticised Trump for attacking diversity training and emphasised that racial insensitivity is a real problem that needs to be addressed in all workplaces.

The chemicals industry is likewise moving to become more diverse. For example, DuPont spinoff Chemours launched a diversity action plan in June that includes expanded employee training and education on eliminating bias and driving diversity.

We are holding ourselves accountable to advancing inclusion and diversity, and are measuring our progress against the goals laid out in our corporate responsibility commitments, which include [getting to] 50% women in our global workforce, says corporate communications leader Alvenia Scarborough.

Women currently make up 22% of Chemours global workforce, Scarborough tells Chemistry World. She describes this figure as solid for the chemicals industry, and says the company is making good progress but still has a way to go. Chemours goal for ethnic minority representation among its US workforce is 20%, and Scarborough notes that the current figure isvery close at 19%.

Read more:
Stepping towards diversity in industry | Business - Chemistry World

Noted organic chemist Seth Marder has been named the new director of the Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute (RASEI), one of several affiliated with CU Boulder, effective July 2021.

RASEI (pronounced RAY-see) is a joint institute between CU Boulder and the U.S. Department of Energys National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). NREL works to transform energy by advancing renewable energy science, engineering and analysis through research, education and industry partnerships.

Seth Marder

Former RASEI Director Robert McGrath retired. At present, Carrie Eckert and Gregor Henze are serving as interim co-directors.

We are excited that Seth has agreed to take on this new challenge, said Terri Fiez, vice chancellor for Research and Innovation at CU Boulder. He brings unique expertise that will help us create a vital bridge between the sciences and engineering on our campus, and between CU Boulder and NREL on the partnership side.

Marder will have joint appointments in chemical and biological engineering within the College of Engineering and Applied Science and in chemistry in the College of Arts and Sciences. He will also be named a RASEI fellow and have a joint appointment at NREL.

Marder is presently the Georgia Power Chair of Energy Efficiency and Regents Professor in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and a professor of materials science and engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He also directs Georgia Techs Center for the Science and Technology of Advanced Materials and Interfaces.

NREL is proud to welcome Seth to RASEI and we look forward toeven deeper collaborative interactions leading to continued, and highly impactful, solutions for our energy future, said Peter Green, deputy laboratory director for science and technology at NREL. Research partnerships like this one with CU-Boulder on RASEI are critical to the development and deployment of new energy technologies at speed and scale, and Sethsuniqueexperience and expertise enhancesour capability to accomplish our mission.

He received his BA in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After completing his postdoctoral work at the University of Oxford, he moved to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at California Institute of Technology.

Marder has served on numerous advisory boards for journals and is the founding chair of the editorial board for the Royal Society of Chemistry materials journal Materials Horizons.

He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, the American Physical Society, the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Materials Research Society, the Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE), the Optical Society of America and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is also a member of the World Cultural Council.

Original post:
Noted chemist to focus on renewable energy research, education as new RASEI head - CU Boulder Today

School of Chemistry

Location:LincolnSalary:From 33,797 per annumThis is a full time permanent post of 1 FTEClosing Date:Sunday 28 February 2021Interview Date:Wednesday 24 March 2021Reference:COS016A

Senior Lecturer salary from 39,152

Lecturer salary from 33,797

The School of Chemistry at the University of Lincoln has quickly established a strong position by developing an ambitions research agenda alongside its successful Employer-Engaged teaching programmes. We are seeking to substantially enhance our position across its key strategic areas of Chemistry and Forensic Science. Substantial investment has been realised in new research and teaching facilities and specialist support to create a dynamic and modern working environment for the School.

For these lectureships, we are targeting individuals with the ability to develop our programme in cutting-edge science and support our future research ambitions. Research in the School promotes inter-disciplinarity and aligns to three research groups: Advanced Functional Materials (e.g. energy capture and storage, electronic and optical materials, supramolecular and reticular materials, solid state materials and catalysis, formulation science), Innovative Analytical Methodologies (e.g. analytical and forensic chemistry, sensors, 2D- and 3D-imaging) and the Chemistry-Biology interface (e.g. green chemistry, drug discovery and development, forensic bioanalysis and toxicology, omic sciences). These research groups map to the Universitys interdisciplinary research themes, particularly Sustainability, Health and Wellbeing, Rurality Heritage and Digitalisation

A commitment to working within multidisciplinary teams and an enthusiasm for developing research-integrated teaching will be strong attributes in the successful candidates.

We are seeking applicants with significant research track record and the potential for strong engagement with the Schools research groups, particularly Innovative Analytical Methods. In addition, an ability to contribute to the School's accredited programmes across chemistry and forensic science will be an advantage. Early career candidates will be able to demonstrate the ability to teach in specialist areas in chemistry and have an enthusiasm for broadening their experience across the chemical sciences.

We strongly encourage applications from under-represented groups. The School of Chemistry is an Athena SWAN Bronze Award holder and the University of Lincoln is an equal-opportunities employer and an Athena SWAN Bronze Institution and rated Gold in the recent Teaching Excellence Framework. For informal enquiries, please contactchemistry@lincoln.ac.ukfor the attention of Professor Ian Scowen, Head of School.

Read more from the original source:
Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Analytical Chemistry/Forensic Science job with UNIVERSITY OF LINCOLN | 243062 - Times Higher Education (THE)

Paul Crutzen, the Dutch atmospheric chemist who was a co-recipient of the 1995 Nobel prize for chemistry for his work on stratospheric ozone destruction, died on 28 January at the age of 87 following several years of illness. His passing means that all three chemists who won that pivotal award for atmospheric chemistry are gone now. One of the other two co-recipients of the award, Mexican chemist Mario Molina, died just this past October, and the other joint winner, American chemist Sherwood Rowland, passed away in 2012.

Crutzen, who demonstrated that nitrogen oxides accelerate the depletion of the Earths ozone layer, popularised the term Anthropocene in 2000 to define the current geological era in which human activity is influencing the planet. He was also one of the early adopters of proton transfer mass spectrometry in atmospheric research.

Paul J Crutzen was a pioneer in many ways, saidMartin Stratmann, president of the Max Planck Society (MPG), whose Institute for Chemistrys atmospheric chemistry department was directed by Crutzen from 1980 until his formal retirement in 2000. He was the first to show how human activities damage the ozone layer, Stratmann added. This knowledge about the causes of ozone depletion was the basis for the worldwide ban on ozone-depleting substances a hitherto unique example of how Nobel prize-winning basic research can directly lead to a global political decision.

Crutzen continued his scientific activities for many years after retiring. Chlorofluorocarbon gases were banned and today the ozone layer is slowly repairing itself, thanks to his joint work with Molina and Rowland, the official Nobel prize Twitter handle stated.

Born in Amsterdam in 1933, Crutzen started elementary school just a few months after Germany invaded the Netherlands. His path to becoming an atmospheric scientist was not a straight one.

Crutzen began his career as a civil engineer and then was a computer programmer at Stockholm Universitys meteorology department. After earning a PhD in meteorology in 1968, Crutzen went on to become a professor and researcher at various prominent universities across the world, including Oxford, Chicago and California. He published more than 360 peer-reviewed scientific articles and 15 books, becoming one of the most highly cited scientists in the world, according to MPG.

In the past few years, he grew increasingly concerned about the timely societal recognition of the extent and severity of climate change, the organisation said in its 28 January statement, calling him a dedicated mediator between science, politics, and society.

Crutzen is survived by his wife of more than six decades, two daughters and three grandchildren.

Read more from the original source:
Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen, who coined the term Anthropocene, dies - Chemistry World

Newswise OMAHA, Neb. (Oct. 30, 2020) Kayode Oshin, PhD, associate professor of chemistry in the College of Arts and Sciences, has been selected as a 2020 Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar, an award honoring young faculty in the chemical sciences.

Oshin is among eight college and university faculty members honored by the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation for creating an outstanding independent body of scholarship and for being deeply committed to education with undergraduates. Each awardee receives an unrestricted research grant of $75,000.

His research cited in the award, Developing New Catalyst Systems for Atom Transfer Radical Addition Reactions, seeks to develop new compounds (intermediates) used by pharmaceutical and chemical industries. These intermediates can serve as essential building blocks in the production of drug molecules, therapeutics and household chemicals, Oshin said.

Oshin said he was delighted with the news of the award because it will bring some national attention to all the amazing work performed by my colleagues within the Chemistry Department and Creighton University as a whole.

He plans to use the grant to provide summer research stipends to Creighton undergraduates and support student travel to regional and national conferences to present research results.

Oshin, who is in his fifth year as a faculty-researcher at Creighton, is also the director of the Haddix STEM Corridor Program.

Since its inception in 1970, the Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar program has awarded more than $52 milion to support emerging young leaders in the chemical sciences. The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation is a nonprofit organization with a mission to advance the science of chemistry, chemical engineering, and related sciences as a means of improving human relations and circumstances around the world."

Learn more about the program and the Dreyfus Foundation here.

See the original post:
Chemistry Professor Honored with National Teacher-Scholar Award - Newswise

Scientists have made a heteronuclear complex containing a ruthenium atom that takes part in two different aromatic systems. This exotic molecule is surprisingly stable. In fact, its so stable that it can be bottled and stored.

Aromaticity is a phenomenon where electrons are shared across multiple atoms within a molecule. August Kekul proposed the structure of the earliest and most famous aromatic molecule, benzene, in 1865. Benzene contains -aromaticity, where a series of overlapping p-orbitals can share electron density. Since then, chemists have found and made countless structures to test and explore the boundaries of aromaticity in its various different guises.

The latest instalment in the storied tale of aromaticity comes from a team led by Alexander Boldyrev of Utah State University in the US. Working with colleagues in Chile and Italy, his team has created the second doubly aromatic molecule that is also considered stable. It takes the form of a heterobimetallic [Pd2Ru]+ cation, whose metal centres are decorated with phosphines, thiols and a para-cymene ligand. Other researchers have made similar trimetallic cores before, but this is the first to contain two different metals that are not adjacent on the periodic table.

Computational studies, and the surprisingly short metalmetal bond lengths, indicate that the all-metal triangular core has two electrons delocalised over the three metal centres in a -aromatic network. The para-cymene ligand is a common -aromatic ligand. Calculations by the researchers revealed that the ruthenium atom of the metal core actually gets involved in the aromaticity, resulting in a -aromatic system with two electrons delocalised over seven different atoms.

The complex is the first example of ruthenium simultaneously taking part in two types of aromaticity a concept called spiroaromaticity. The researchers note, however, that as ruthenium is not in the plane of the all-carbon -aromatic ring, a new term may be necessary.

Visit link:
Trinuclear complex is a rare example of bottled double aromaticity - Chemistry World

Related news: State issues new violation notice to Chemours over PFAS water treatment system.

In the closingdays of the Trump administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rejected a petition by North Carolina environmental groups to force the Chemours Co. to fund studies on the long-term health and environmental impacts of the forever chemicals that it had released into the Cape Fear River for decades.

Now that President Joe Biden has selectedNorth Carolinas Michael Regan, the states secretaryof the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, to be the new EPA administrator, the groups plan to resubmit theirrequest.

They also hope Regans move to be the countrys top environmental steward assuming hes confirmedby the U.S. Senate will bring more national attention to the dangers posed byper- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, to people and the environment."We look forward to working with him, appreciate the work hes done here, and the knowledge he has on PFAS is a huge step forward," said Dana Sargent, executive director of Cape Fear River Watch, one of the groups that submitted the petition.

For decades Chemours and its predecessor, DuPont, dumped manmade chemicals into the Cape Fearfrom the sprawling Fayetteville Works plant, which sits roughly 70miles upstream from Wilmington on the Bladen-Cumberland county line just south of Fayetteville. The Cape Fear River is the primary drinking water source for an estimated 350,000downstream residents, including in and around the fast-growing Wilmington area.

The discovery of the mystery compounds in public water supplies, most famously GenX, was first reported by the Wilmington StarNews in 2017. State regulators led by Regan forced Chemours to stop the discharges later that year. Contaminants also were found in the groundwater around the Fayetteville Works plant, prompting the company to provide bottled water and other remediesto nearby residents who relyon wells for their drinking water.

Little is known about the long-term health consequences of prolonged exposure to PFAS. The chemicalsare used in many consumer and commercial goods,such as cosmetics, firefighting foam, food packaging and nonstick cookware. But what researchers have determinedis that the forever chemicals dont break down easily in the environment,and they accumulate in the body.

Learn more: EPA administrator saysChemours should make newer, safer PFAS chemicals

Study: GenX chemical in 70 of 84 wells tested near Chemours Fayetteville Works plant

In their October petition to the Trump administrations EPA, the environmental groupsnoted their request would mirror the health testing that was done in the Parkersburg, West Virginia, area, where high levels of forever chemicals were contaminating water supplies around another DuPont plant that made Teflon. Thattesting, which wrapped up in 2013, linked exposure to the manmade chemicals to six diseases: ulcerative colitis, pregnancy-induced hypertension, thyroid disease, testicular cancer, and kidney cancer.

But the EPA, while stating that its denial is not based on lack of concern with PFAS, said the testing for the 54 manmade chemicals that the environmental groups said were manufactured at Fayetteville Works wasnt necessary because many of the chemicals were already being studied.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other government agencies also are already undertaking a large-scale, multi-site epidemiologic study of communities where PFAS contamination has been found, the EPA noted.

In a statement released after the EPA's decision, Chemours said the company agreed that environmental groups had failed to provide justification that the Toxic Substances Control Act compels the requested tests. It also noted the efforts it had already made to reduce PFAS dischargesfrom the plant.

River Watchs Sargent said the EPAs decision to not force Chemours to pay for the studies wasnt in line withits missionto protect public health and the environment.

Were not asking them to conduct this work, and this is not a big ask," she said. Much of the PFAS research currently underway is being done by academic institutions and other government agencies, Sargentsaid, and they are paying for it, not the polluting companies.

The ask of EPA in this case is to ask the EPA to do itsjob, she said.

Regans selection by Biden to head the EPA received strong support from the environmental community when it was announced in late December.

Gov. Roy Cooper, who hired Regan in 2017, called him a consensus builder and a fierce protector of the environment.

Regans widely acclaimed achievements while head of DEQ include the coal ash cleanup agreement with Duke Energy and the creation of the states Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory Board.

Getting Chemours to stop discharging PFAS into the states air, groundwater and surface waters also is seen by many as a feather in his cap.

Geoff Gisler, a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center who worked with state regulators and environmentalists to end Chemours' PFAS discharges, said he believed Regan is a strongchoice to lead the EPA.

"When all existing consent order requirements are met, PFAS from Chemours site will nearly be eliminated," he said on Tuesday."If that can be replicated nationwide, we can make significant advances in cleaning up our streams and rivers."

But the nomination of Regan for the nations top environmental job hasn't pleased everyone.

Mike Watters lives less than a mile from theFayetteville Works plant, and hes been experiencing health problems since he moved into his house in 2012.

He said Regan hasnt used all the legal and other tools available to him to force Chemours to change its ways and clean up the PFAS contamination in a timely manner.

On Tuesday, DEQ issued a new violation notice to Chemours for design and operational issueslast fall associated with the treatment system at an outfall on the Cape Fear River at Fayetteville Works. The problems allowed wastewatercontaminated with PFAS to flow into the river in violation of Chemours discharge permit and the consent order between the company and the state.

DEQ is committed to holding Chemours accountable, and ensuring they meet the requirements of the Consent Order and their permit conditions at all times, Regan stated in the release. DEQ will continue to take all appropriate actions, from increased oversight to enforcement, to ensure the company meets its obligations to prevent PFAS from entering the Cape Fear River.

But Watters said the lack of a fine or penalty associated with the new violations isanother missed opportunity. According to the release, state regulators said they would "evaluate the responses and additional information provided by Chemours in determining the civil penalties for all of the violations cited above, as well as the assessment of the stipulated penalties under the Consent Order."

"Theres no repercussions," Watters said on Tuesday. "Why will that change if he goes to Washington?"

Reporter Gareth McGrath can be reached at GMcGrath@Gannett.com or @GarethMcGrathSN on Twitter.

Read more from the original source:
Denied by Trump EPA, NC activists hope Biden EPA will force forever chemical study - The Fayetteville Observer

TCF Financial Corp. CEO Craig Dahl will retire Tuesday, the Detroit-based bank said, following the completion of the integration as one brand of TCF and Chemical Bank, which merged last year to create one of the largest banks in the Midwest.

Dahl has led TCF from outside Minneapolis since 2016 before the tie-up. His duties will be split between David Provost, who will take over as CEO of the company, and Thomas Shafer, who will be CEO of its subsidiary, TCF National Bank.

Provost and Shafer came from the Michigan-based Chemical Bank side of the merger.

TCF Financial Corp. CEO Craig Dahl is retiring.(Photo: TCF)

TCF Financial Corp.'s board of directors has named David Provost as the company's new CEO.(Photo: Courtesy of TCF Financial Corp.)

Craigs leadership has been instrumental in getting TCF to the point we are today," said TCF Executive Chairman Gary Torgow in a statement."He has guided TCF through a successful integration program and has worked tirelessly with our teams to build many of our businesses from the ground up over the past 20 years."

Dahl, 66, said the mergerhas created momentum for growth in the future: "These leaders are ready to assume their roles and run the business."

Provost, 66, has been TCF's vice chairman since the merger closed in August 2019. Prior to that, he was president and CEO of Chemical Financial Corp. since June 2017. The board also elected Shafer, TCF Bank chief operating officer and president,to the board as vice chairman.

Schafer, 62, previously served as vice chairman and a director of Chemical Financial Corp. and president and CEO of Chemical Bank.

Daves and Toms commitment to our team members, customers and communities sets us on a trajectory for monumental success in the years ahead, Torgow added.

TCF Financial Corp.'s board of directors has appointed Thomas Shafer as the company's vice chairman and TCF National Bank CEO.(Photo: Courtesy of TCF Financial Corp.)

MichaelJones, currently executive vice president of regional banking, will become president and chief operating officer of TCF Bank and reportto Shafer.

The succession announcement came as TCF reported net income in the third quarterincreased almost 152% year-over-year to $55.7 million. The quarter marked the conclusion of the full integration of activities related to the merger. Shares were falling slightly in after-hours trading.

bnoble@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @BreanaCNoble

Read or Share this story: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/2020/10/26/tcf-ceo-craig-dahl-retire-having-completed-merger-chemical-bank/6046361002/

See the article here:
TCF CEO to retire having completed merger with Chemical Bank - The Detroit News

By Matthew Geagan, CBS Boston

BOSTON (CBS) Julian Edelman spent the first 10 years of his career with the Patriots making big catch after big catch. Now in his 11th season, hes just looking to make any catch.

From 2013 until last season, Edelman had been New Englands most reliable receiver, a shoo-in for 7-12 catches every game. He was one of Tom Bradys many security blankets, a safe bet to move the chains whenever the Patriots needed to keep the offense moving. If the Patriots needed to pick up eight yards to keep a drive alive, Edelman would fight tooth and nail for nine. Most of the time, there was no denying him in his quest to keep the Patriots going toward the end zone.

He was Mr. Reliable. But Edelmans transition from having Brady as his quarterback to Cam Newton has gone as smoothly as a trip down Route 24. Newton made it sound like hed be taking Highway 11 quite a bit when he first arrived in New England, but his GPS is making him throw the football every which way but Edelmans over the last month.

In Sundays 33-6 blowout loss to the 49ers at Gillette Stadium, Edelman was targeted by Newton just once, resulting in an interception when the QB threw behind his intended target. Edelmans only reception of the game came after Newton was benched, when Jarrett Stidham hit him for a 13-yard gain in the fourth quarter.

While its become clear that Edelman, now 34, has lost a step or two in the last few years, and his tendency to drop a few passes has increased, hes still better than one catch off three targets. Hes still getting open, hes still in a good spot to make one of those patented Edelman catch-and-runs, but the connection just isnt there.

That all starts with the quarterback.

We got to figure it out. Our Wi-Fi is definitely off, Newton said after Sundays loss. And its frustrating because knowing the person Julian is and knowing the body of work that he puts in each and every week and day, from preparation to biometrically with his body, you fall in love with a person like that.

The connectionshould work, as we saw in Week 2 when Edelman exploded for 11 receptions for a career-high 179 yards. It was vintage Edelman and then some against the Seattle Seahawks, and the New England offense scored a season-high 30 points in the losing effort. The Newton-Edelman connectioncan be a good one.

But since that career day for Edelman, he has caught just five passes that Newton has sent his way. We use that phrase lightly because many of Newtons throws to the receiver have hopped, skipped or jumped on their way there, or in many cases, been too far behind Edelman for him to do anything but get a finger tip on the ball.

Newton said that Edelman did exactly what he was supposed to do on his route that led to Sundays interception, but he wasnt on the same page with his receiver. That falls squarely on Newtons shoulders, and the QB knows it.

Many are wondering if Newtons lack of chemistry with Edelman is because Newton is basically refusing to throw to his right since the start of the month. Newton continues to say hes healthy, but if hes ignoring one side of the field, there has to be some kind of explanation for it. If thats the case, it is likely health-related.

But the bottom line is that the Patriots offense has been putrid, and the quarterback has lost any and all chemistry he had with his top receiver.

The New England offense has a lot of work to do if they want to start winning games or at least giving the team a chance to win games. Rebuilding the chemistry between the quarterback and his No. 1 receiver is a great place to start.

Read more:
Rebuilding Chemistry With Julian Edelman Should Be Near Top Of Cam Newtons To-Do List - CBS Boston

Young scientists from a Kinross-shire school have demonstrated that teamwork knows no boundaries after collaborating on chemistry projects with pupils from across the globe.

Senior pupils from Kinross High School were able to take part in an innovative link-up thanks to impressive exam results which secured a grant of 32,000 from the Wolfson Foundation.

The science department used the funds to create four state-of-the-art laboratory rooms, which includes a microscopic classroom, a digital laboratory, an analytical laboratory and a microbiology room.

But the pupils were inspired to go one step further with their new high-tech equipment as they spanned the Atlantic virtually to connect with students from Vanguard High School in Marion County, Florida.

Kinross pupils were put into teams of two and paired with their American peers where they performed the same experiments in real time and compared notes.

The chemists have also planned longer term collaborations which will investigate the contrast in water quality of two local beauty spots to learn how Loch Leven compared to Sulphur Springs in Florida.

The pupils may not be able to meet their new friends in person, but the contemporary equipment has enabled them to build a science community despite the distance and differing time zones.

Science has no boundaries and neither should the education for young people.

Dr Graham Armstrong

Both schools used digital learning during the coronavirus lockdown and it allowed teachers and pupils to explore the different ways of learning with others even almost 4,500 miles away.

Kinross pupils said the opportunity has allowed them to make lifelong friendships while working on their studies.

Chemistry student Olivia Kuijpers said: Its so much fun and a really incredible chance we have been given to make friends with people from across the world from us and being able to work with them is really incredible.

Isla Morris added: Weve never done anything like this before and its really interesting to have new friends so far away. Weve managed to connect really well through social media.

Dr Graham Armstrong, Kinross Highs principal teacher in chemistry said the team work shows the subject is a universal topic.

He said: Science has no boundaries and neither should the education for young people.

I think the fact that our classes can work together 4,500 miles apart and enjoy the experience really adds to the interest level.

The Wolfson Foundation is an independent charity that provides funding to organisations across the UK.

The organisation awards funding to high-achieving state schools to enable them to improve teaching in STEM subjects such as science, maths, engineering and technology.

Headteacher Sarah Brown said: This is a very exciting project for young people at Kinross High School. It helps to deepen their knowledge of chemistry, provides an opportunity to collaborate with other students who are enthusiastic about science and to develop international friendships with other young people.

Read more from the original source:
Kinross chemistry class team up with American pupils thanks to 32k funding boost - The Courier

Some of you screwballs out there have been complaining that I'm not giving enough chemistry lessons. No accounting for taste. If you'd asked me a few years ago when I first started writing these miserable thingsI would have doubted thatmy own family would bother to read them, but it turns out that they've become strangely popular.

So, let's do another.

THE MORE OR LESS SORDID HISTORY OF HEROIN

Here's the first journal articleon the synthesis of heroin. It is long and complex, despite the fact that the conversion of morphine to heroin is (now) a trivial reaction that can be done in minutes.

The title of the first reported synthesis of heroin. Wright, C. R. A.: On the action of organic acids and their anhydrides on the natural alkaloids, Journal of Chemical Society, 1874, 12, 1031. The paper contains no chemical structures, only molecular formulas. Does anyone know why? (1)

Source: Journal of the Chemical Society

OK, it's time...

Making Heroin is Easy Peasy. But it wasn't in 1874

Our progress in fightingpain hasn't progressed much since 1874, but organic chemistry has. It took four pages of experimental details for Wright to describe the procedure for the synthesis, purification, and analysis of the heroin he made. All of this for one very simple reaction...

Acetylation of morphine: Two hydroxyl groups react with acetic anhydride to form two acetateesters (red boxes) (heroin).

By contrast, the synthesis of aspirin from salicylic acid an almost identicalchemical reaction takes10 minutes(plus a little purification time) in an experiment suitedfor high schoolor organic 101 students.

Salicylic acid contains one hydroxyl group, which is easily acetylated to form aspirin. The acetyl group is shown in the red box.

See how similar the two reactions are?

ASPIRIN VS. HEROIN

In the 1890s Felix Hoffman, a German chemist working for Bayerwas acetylating everything in sightto examine the change in properties ofchemicals/drugs when hydroxyl groups are converted to acetate esters. Although Hoffman wasn't the first person to synthesize either aspirin or heroin, he did make both for Bayer, which sold both of them...at the same time... and in the same ad(!).

A Bayer ad, date unknown, selling both aspirin and heroin. Image: Bomb Magazine

You've withstood theDCLFHTM so what is your reward?

A BIOCHEMISTRY LESSON FROM HELL!

Why do the acetyl groups found inheroin and aspirin give the drugs enhanced properties compared to the hydroxylversions, morphine, and salicylic acid, respectively? The acetyl groups make a very big difference in the potency of the drugs in each case, but for different reasons.

ASPIRIN

Figure1: The inhibition of COX by aspirin. Aspirin forms a covalentbond to a serine group near the active site, which prevents the normal substrate from entering the channel to the catalytic (active) site ofthe enzyme.Source: Tulane University

Aspirin and other NSAIDs work by inhibiting a critical enzyme called cyclooxygenase (COX), which catalyzes the conversion ofa ubiquitous biomolecule,arachidonic acid (AA) into prostaglandinsand thromboxanesextremely potent hormones that have multiplefunctions throughout the body, including, pain and inflammation. As seen in Figure1, aspirin (4) fits into the channel in COX that leads to the catalytic (active) site (black dot).

Once there, the acetyl group, whichis chemically reactive,reacts irreversiblywith the serine another way of saying that aspirin transfersthe acetyl group to COX forming a covalent bond.Once theserine group of the enzyme has been acetylated things grind to a halt; the enzyme is inactivated.Arachidonic acid can no longer reach the catalytic site on COX so it cannot be convertedtoprostaglandins and thromboaxnes.This explains why aspirin, ibuprofen, etc.treatpain, fever, and inflammation (and also why they screw up your stomach.)

MAKING SENSE OF MORPHINE AND HEROIN

The function of the acetyl groups in heroin is completely different than thatin aspirin. In this case, they aremerely delivery devices -sort of molecular UPS trucks.

The two hydroxyl groups in morphine make themolecule hydrophilic (water-loving the opposite of lipophilic fat-loving). Lipophilic molecules are usually better at penetrating cells (and also getting into the brain) because they can pass more easily through cell membranes. Lipophilicityis measured or calculated(2) and expressed by a unit called logP, the higher the value the more lipophilic the molecule. (P is called the partition coefficient.Don't ask.) All you need to know is this:

A drug targeting the central nervous system (CNS) should ideally have a logP value around 2

Source: ACD Labs

Now, let's look at the logP values for morphine, heroin, and its primarymetabolite, 6-monoacetylmorphine. It should not be surprising that each time anacetyl group replaces a hydroxyl groupthe molecule becomesmore lipophilic. (For the chemical structure of these drugs see Figure 2 below.)

Morphine (two hydroxyl group)- 0.8

6-Monoacetylmorphine (one hydroxy group) -1.3

Heroin (no hydroxyl groups) -1.5

Sorry to interrupt your coma, but there is a bit more information you need to know in order to understand why heroin behaves like heroin metabolism.

Although heroin's logPis closeto 2 the ideal value for CNS drugs the difference between it and morphine, 0.7 doesn't seem like a big deal. But keep in mind thata 0.7 log10 unit difference means that heroin is6.5-timesmore lipophilic than morphine, so it gets to the brain more easily (this explains the "heroin rush").

Heroin's two acetyl groups are metabolized at different rates and atdifferent places in the body. This what makes heroin such an effective and deadly drug.

Figure 2. Metabolism of heroin. Original Source: Science Direct

Step 1. The acetyl group at the 3 position of heroin(3) (red box) is very reactive. It is cleaved by esterase enzymesin the blood in a few minutes, forming 6-monoacetylmorphine (6-MAM). This reaction occurs so quickly that heroin doesn't even reach the brain. And if it did, it wouldn't matter because heroin itself is not an opioid agonist.

Step 2. 6-MAM is also deacetylatedin the blood, formingmorphine, but not so fastthat it cannot reach the brain. It does so very quickly. In fact,6-MAM itselfis a mu-opioid agonist and this is probablywhy heroin packs more of a punch than morphine. Additionally, 6-MAM isdeacetylatedby the brain to give morphine.

It is not completely clear whether the "heroin rush" is due to 6-MAM itself, the rapid delivery of 6-MAM to the brain where it is converted to morphine, or both. But it doesn't really matter. Heroin is a very effective pro-drug of morphine (and/or 6-MAM).

It's amazing, in a twisted sort of way, that heroin, the scourge of mankind (at least until fentanyl came along) is a quintessential example of the power of pro-drugs.

Chemistry lesson over. Biochemistry lesson over.

You can wake up now.

NOTES:

(1) At this time chemical structures were unknown. Chemists could not determine how the atoms of a molecule were connected, only the molecular formula of that molecule.

(2) Virtually all the numbers given for logP are calculated, not measured. To do this, itwould take an eternity and cause chemists to be hurling themselvesinto the Kilauea Volcano. I have no idea how this calculation is done and am perfectly content to keep it that way.

(3) Why is that called the 3-position? Although there are rules for assigning numbers tomolecules for the purpose of naming them I'd rather drink nitric acid than go back and relearn them. Nomenclature makes organic chemists (more) crazy.

(4) Aspirin is the only NSAID to inhibit COX by forming a covalent bond. The others do so by tightly (but reversibly) binding to the enzyme.

Read the original:
All the Chemistry You Never Wanted to Know About Heroin, and More - American Council on Science and Health

Thomas G. Griswold, ca. 1897 (Courtesy Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation)

Thomas G. Griswold, ca. 1897 (Courtesy Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation)

Thomas G. Griswold, ca. 1897 (Courtesy Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation)

Thomas G. Griswold, ca. 1897 (Courtesy Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation)

This was the first man employed by Dow Chemical Company

As Midlanders, we all know (or should know) that Herbert H. Dow started the Dow Chemical Company in 1897, but few still remember the name Thomas G. Griswold, Jr. who was the first man employed by the company.

Griswold helped nourish the development of the early company with his skills as a chemical engineer, land surveyor, inventor, machinist, photographer, and patent attorney. He also enriched the business, cultural and humanitarian part of our community as an early organizer of the Community Center, the Chemical State Savings Bank, the Midland Chapter of the American Chemical Society as well as sharing his talents in music, gardening, furniture design, and the devotion to his church.

Griswolds documentary skills in his 1973 autobiography, The Times of My Life, and other narratives also offer us some of the earliest and most quoted stories about Herbert Dow and Midlands 19th century history. Among many other insights, Griswold said that Herbert H. Dow, had a new idea every morning, and when he was faced with challenges, he didnt know he could be beaten.

Thomas Griswold was born Sept. 29, 1870, in Ashtabula, Ohio, east of Cleveland and later his parents moved to Cleveland, where Tom concurrently attended high school and the Cleveland Manual Training School to learn carpentry, woodturning, pattern-making, and blacksmithing. He learned to make blueprints as a boy working for his father, who was a surveyor and civil engineer. Tom worked as an apprentice for more than two years at Brown Hoisting and Conveying Machine Company in Ohio, and then enrolled at Case School of Applied Science (Case-Western University today) in 1892 at the age of 22. He was an outstanding student and achieved recognition as the business manager of The Accumulator annual and winner of the Reid Physics Prize.

It was at Case School that Griswold met Herbert Dow who, during his senior years, asked Griswold to work with him at his early company in Navarre, Ohio. But Griswold decided to stay in school until he graduated with a chemical engineering degree in 1896, and then rejoined the Brown Hoisting company for a year. After looking at his long-term options there, he approached Dow in 1897 about a job and joined the brand-new Dow Chemical Company in Midland on May 22 as an engineer for a salary of $1,000 ($31,000 a year in todays money), only two thirds of what he received from Brown Hoisting. Griswolds father was jubilant, but his mother wept because he was going to the frontier.

Griswold set up the Dow Chemical engineering department which was pivotal for the early company. During his first 29 years at Dow Chemical Company, Griswold laid out the original electric, water, and gas lines, streets, drains, and sewers and designed equipment, machinery, and buildings including the companys first manufacturing facility, a 40 x 90-foot building to house the electrolytic cells for the manufacture of bleaching power, the original focus of the Dow Chemical company. He also designed the small wooden office that was fitted with drafting tables, a home-made chest of drawers, wall shelves, and a solar blueprint outfit. Twelve-hour days were common for everyone, and since Herbert Dow had to answer to the company directors in Cleveland, economy was always on his mind.

Griswold reminisced about those very early days in his autobiography saying, A few days after starting on my drawings, Mr. Dow sat on a stool at the back side of my drafting table and explained to me his theories of design and manufacture. He gradually slowed down and finally burst out with the remark, Say I am important enough around here for you to listen to me when I talk. I had continued working on my drawings as he talked. I explained to him that I had been brought up by a superintendent who wouldnt talk to me unless I continued to work while he talked. Mr. Dow never did get used to my habit of working while he talked to me. They had a stormy relationship throughout their time together at the company, although as brothers-in-law, they would often spend time together including playing checkers or chess together on Sunday evenings.

Griswold had met Herbert Dows sister, Helen, previously while living in Cleveland, and it was love at first sight. On Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 25, 1897, Griswold returned to Cleveland to marry her with the Dows attending. Grace and Herbert held a reception for them at their home (the old Charles A. Andrus House on Main Street between St. Nicholas and Auburn) upon their return to Midland. The Griswolds lived initially in the old Mary Patrick House (where the Dows themselves had lived as newlyweds), between the Larkin Farm and the Dow Chemical Company. The Griswolds eventually had three children.

Even early on, Griswold was a trouble-shooter and innovator for Dow Chemical. Shortly after the company began full production, small explosions caused frequent shutdowns in chorine production. Tom Griswold and the companys first chemist, Jim Graves, were asked to fix the problem. Griswold bought some paraffin from the local drug store and dipped the carbon electrodes in the melted paraffin. When they put them back in the cells, the explosions stopped saving the process. Griswold was responsible for the beginnings of the calcium chloride business in 1905, after visiting Cleveland seeing an automobile garage man selling gallon jugs of the product to keep down dust and melt ice. It was a great match for the Midland brine stream and Dowflake and Peladow eventually became two of the companys very successful products.

In 1926, Griswold took 18 months leave of absence due to illness but after his recovery, he was asked to organize a patent department for Dow Chemical (his notes are at the Midland Area Archives) and later obtained a license as a patent attorney. At one point, he served on the advisory committee in the patent office of the U.S. Department of Commerce. He worked in patents until his retirement in 1936 (again due to illness) and after his recovery, he took on a third career as a consulting engineering. Griswold was issued 29 patents between 1911 and 1949, as either the inventor or co-inventor including patents for apparatus for the manufacture of carbon tetrachloride, chlorine, caustic alkali, and phenol. Longtime Dow Chemical Gulf Coast manager, Dr. Albert P. (Dutch) Beutel, who was recruited to Dow by Griswold, said of him, Tom had a lot of vision as an engineer and also had the ability to accomplish engineering and construction projects at a minimum of cost to the company.

Griswolds first wife, Helen, died in the spring in the flu pandemic of 1918, and he married Vera Ann Hadsall in Oct. 17, 1918. He was director of the St. Johns Episcopal Church choir for 10 years and served as a church vestryman for 40 years. He was recognized for his long-term devotion to his church when he as awarded the Bishops Cross in 1960, and the church further honored him by naming its new guild meeting facility the Griswold House.

Before his death on June 21, 1967, he held the double distinction of being the oldest living alumnus of the Case Institute of Technology and the oldest former employee of the Dow Chemical Company.

For more Midland County history or to begin your own research, visit the Midland Area Archives at the Doan History Center or call 989-631-5930.

See the original post:
This was the first man employed by Dow Chemical Company - Midland Daily News

The Flash #764 variant cover, via DC Comics.Ray 8/10

Ray: For his second story, fill-in Flash writer Kevin Shinick goes back to the earlier days of the Flashs rogues gallery and digs up an old enemy Dr. Alchemy, a rival chemist of Barry Allens who has gained the power of the Philosophers Stone. This is a good change of pace, as Barry seems to spend almost all his time battling gimmick crooks and evil speedsters. Alchemy has no powers on his own, but his mind combined with his weapon makes him one of the Flashs deadliest enemies and this issue shows that off well. After a brief prelude with Iris, Barrys first battle with Alchemy shows how the villain has no problem taking advantage of Barrys better nature as well as bending the laws of nature to turn concrete into liquid and bullets into toxic gas. While hes not as fast as Flash by any means, the way his powers work means he has a much easier time getting ahead of the hero than any other villain.

Shinick has obviously done a lot of thought into the way Dr. Alchemys powers work and how they tie into other forces in the DCU. This issue features a surprising tie-in to the Metal Men, and a look at the history of the Philosophers Stone going back decades is intriguing. Its also a bit of an infodump, making this issue veer wildly between action-packed storytelling and narration-driven backmatter. But after that digression, we head back to the rematch between Flash and Alchemy, and theres a surprising twist at the end as we discover that Alchemy has figured out how to affect his enemys biggest weapon his speed. This is part one of three before the title shifts to Endless Winter, and the threat here seems to be big enough to justify a whole arc. Its the kind of clever old-school story that shows what a hero does when a new villain (or old villain) sends them firmly out of their depths.

To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.

GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.

Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!

Related

Read the original here:
Review The Flash #764: Chemical Reactions - GeekDad

The Big Bang of the nationwide forever chemicals crisis was the revelation in 2001 that PFOA, a toxic compound used to make Teflon, had contaminated the drinking water for 70,000 people near a DuPont factory in West Virginia. Pressure from the Environmental Protection Agency forced DuPont and other companies to phase out PFOA, and they agreed not to use it after 2015.

So why are DuPont and its spinoff company Chemours still discharging PFOA from their facilities?

Last week, Rep. Harley Rouda (D-Calif.), who chairs the Environment Subcommittee of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, sent a letter to DuPont and Chemours asking why theyre still discharging a highly toxic substance they claim not to have used in years.

PFOA is the most notorious of the thousands of fluorinated chemicals known as PFAS, which have contaminated drinking water for an estimated 200 million-plus Americans. Very small doses of PFOA and some other PFAS have been linked to kidney and testicular cancer, thyroid issues, high cholesterol, reproductive and developmental harms and reduced effectiveness of vaccines. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says these chemicals pollute the bodies of virtually all Americans, including newborn babies.

PFOA and other PFAS are called forever chemicals because they never break down in the environment. PFAS discharged over the past 50 years by companies like DuPont and 3M which knew it was dangerous as early as the 1950s will stay in the environment until its actively remediated.

Roudas letter asks DuPont about its ongoing PFOA discharges at its Circleville Works plant, in Ohio, and Chemours about its Washington Works facility, in Parkersburg, W.V., the most notorious PFAS contamination site in the world.

The Parkersburg facility was owned by DuPont until it spun off its chemical division into Chemours, in 2015. For decades, DuPont dumped PFAS into the Ohio River in West Virginia, killing farm animals and poisoning the water of surrounding communities. The contamination in Parkersburg and subsequent lawsuit were the subject of an acclaimed feature film released last year.

There are no federally enforceable limits on any PFAS in drinking water, groundwater or soils, or any requirements to clean up PFAS under the federal Superfund law. Only five states have placed limits on a handful of PFAS, and the EPA has the ability to test for only 29 PFAS in drinking water.

Rouda asked about the discharges because both companies have said publicly they no longer use PFOA. Chemours claims it has never made or used PFOA. Yet data from the EPAs Enforcement and Compliance History Online database shows ongoing discharges from both the Circleville and Parkersburg facilities. For example, daily monitoring updates for the Parkersburg site reported 323.5 pounds of PFOA discharged in 2019.

The continued releases could be an indication that the two companies are still using PFOA, despite their assurances otherwise. If so, that would be a serious breach of public trust. But there are other possible explanations for these discharges. There could be PFOA in products or mixtures used at the facilities. Or legacy PFOA remaining in water used at the facilities could be showing up an alarming reminder of the chemicals persistence in the environment.

Even if DuPont and Chemours are being honest with regulators about their use of PFOA, we should be alarmed at its continued presence in discharges as legacy contamination, because it underscores how merely ending the use of a toxic substance like PFOA will not make the contamination disappear. History shows that even decades after being banned, some chemicals ongoing impact continues to be deeply harmful to health and the environment.

The ongoing cleanup of another group of forever chemicals, polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, underscores the gravity and longevity of the PFAS problem.

PCBs were manufactured by Monsanto beginning in 1929 and are linked to various health harms, including cancer, reproductive harms and immune effects. They were widely used for a myriad of industrial purposes, until they were banned as a class by Congress, in 1976.

But 44 years later, PCBs remain prevalent in the environment. Just this summer, Bayer, which acquired Monsanto in 2018, agreed to pay $650 million to 2,500 cities, counties and ports to clean up PCB contamination. And there may be still more contamination: A 2015 study found that PCBs could be leaching from building materials in nearly 26,000 schools.

The challenge of cleaning up PCBs pales in comparison to the coming PFAS crisis. The EPA has identified just over 200 PCBs, and there are far more PFAS chemicals. The EPAs most recent update of its CompTox database identified more than 9,000 different compounds related to PFAS. The EPA has reported that at least 600 PFAS are being used in commerce. A recent study identified over 200 categories of use for more than 1,400 individual PFAS chemicals.

And unlike PCBs, which were banned and subject to cleanup regulations, PFAS remain largely unregulated. Manufacturers have agreed to phaseouts of only a handful. And some companies that are not subject to those agreements have admitted they still use PFOA.

Even if the ongoing discharges in Ohio and West Virginia can be attributed to legacy discharges, thats little comfort. It underscores how even if industry stops using PFOA or other PFAS chemicals, they will be with us for a long time and that as we try to get rid of the PFOA in the environment, its being replaced with newer kinds of PFAS that are less studied and, research shows, potentially as dangerous, with many of the same toxicity concerns as old PFAS chemicals.

For example, regulators in New Jersey have found that the manufacturer Solvay has replaced PFNA, a PFAS chemical it phased out in 2010, with a new PFAS chemical that is toxic to the liver at potentially even lower doses than PFNA or PFOA. As reported last year by Sharon Lerner of The Intercept, the EPA has allowed more than 40 new PFAS chemicals on the market reported to pose substantial risk.

Congress must take decisive action to address the PFAS problem, including:

DuPont and Chemours must respond quickly to Roudas inquiry and account for their ongoing discharges of PFOA. If they have misled the public about ongoing use of this toxic chemical, they should be held accountable. Without aggressive action, PFAS chemicals will continue polluting people and the planet for centuries to come.

See the original post here:
Why Are DuPont and Chemours Still Discharging the Most Notorious 'Forever Chemical'? - Environmental Working Group

A new study led by scientists at IUPUI and Indiana University Bloomington is the first to describe a biochemical mechanism that increases the activity of a molecule whose presence is observed in many types of cancer.

The molecule, an enzyme called Pif1 helicase, plays a role in many important cellular processes in the body. Tightly regulating this protein is vital to genome stability because too little -- or too much -- activity can influence aging and age-related diseases, primarily cancer. A common cancer therapy, HDAC inhibitors, can also impact the mechanism that regulates this enzyme.

"We're currently giving people drugs that change the acetylation status of the cell without knowing how it affects many proteins that play a role in genome stability," said Lata Balakrishnan, an associate professor of biology in the School of Science at IUPUI, who is co-lead author on the study. "HDAC inhibitors upregulate certain tumor-suppression genes, and thus are used in combination therapies to treat specific cancers, but when it comes to their impact on other parts of the cell, we're basically operating in the dark."

The study's other lead author is Matthew Bochman, an associate professor in the IU Bloomington College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry. Other co-authors are Christopher Sausen and Onyekachi E. Ononye, Ph.D. students in Bochman's and Balakrishnan's labs, respectively, at the time of the study.

The effect of lysine acetylation on Pif1 is the mechanism described in the study. Lysine acetylation occurs when a small molecule called an acetyl group binds to lysine, an amino acid used to build common proteins in the body. This action transforms lysine from a positively charged molecule to a neutrally charged molecule. This neutralization can impact protein function, protein stability and protein-protein interaction in cells, among other things.

Helicases are known as the genetic "zippers" of cells because they pull apart DNA for the purpose of genetic replication and repair. They also help maintain telomeres, the structure at the end of chromosomes that shortens as people age.

In the new study, the researchers identified lysine acetylation on Pif1 helicase and showed the addition of the acetyl group increases the protein's activity -- as well as its "unzipping" function. They also found that lysine acetylation changes the shape -- or "conformation" -- of the Pif1 protein. They believe that this shape change increases the amount of Pif1 helicase.

"The dynamic interplay of the addition and removal of the acetyl group on lysine regulates a wide variety of proteins within the cell," Balakrishnan said. "Perturbations to this process can play a role in cancer, aging, inflammatory responses and even addiction-related behaviors."

"As a class, helicases are involved in a lot of processes necessary for genome integrity," Bochman added. "Any significant failure in these processes is generally carcinogenic."

The precise details of lysine acetylation in Pif1, its effect of the enzyme's shape and the resulting impact on helicase activity took nearly five years to observe and report. The study, carried out in parallel on two IU campuses, was made possible by the lead scientists' complementary expertise. As a biochemist who has previously studied lysine acetylation in other proteins, Balakrishnan was able to isolate Pif1 in vitro to observe its response to chemical reactions in a test tube. In contrast, as a geneticist working in yeast as a model organism to study Pif1, Bochman was able to modify cells in vivo to watch reactions play out in a living organism.

"The ability to observe these reactions in a living cell is often more relevant, but it's also a lot messier," Balakrishnan said. "Our experiments were constantly informing each other as to where to go next."

Looking to the future, Bochman said intricate knowledge of cellular processes -- such as lysine acetylation -- will increasingly play a role in personalized therapy.

"If you sequence a patient's tumor, you can fine-tune drugs to target very specific enzymes," he said. "Instead of a drug that broadly affects the whole cell, it will be possible to take a targeted approach that reduces potential side effects. This level of personalization is really the future of cancer biology and cancer medicine."

"Lysine Acetylation Regulates the Activity of Nuclear Pif1" is available online in advance of print in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. A perspective article on the work is also forthcoming in the journal Current Genetics.

This work was supported in part by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the American Cancer Society.

Indiana University's world-class researchers have driven innovation and creative initiatives that matter for 200 years. From curing testicular cancer to collaborating with NASA to search for life on Mars, IU has earned its reputation as a world-class research institution. Supported by $854 million last year from our partners, IU researchers are building collaborations and uncovering new solutions that improve lives in Indiana and around the globe.

View original post here:
Study reports chemical mechanism that boosts enzyme observed in cancer - IU Newsroom