Tag: chemistry

  • Inkjet Printing Process Devised for Graphene Circuits

    Materials scientists at Northwestern University in Illinois developed an ink made of a graphene solution that can print patterns for electronic circuits and maintain their conductivity even after folding. The team led by engineering professor Mark Hersam published its findings online in a recent issue of the Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters (paid subscription required).…

  • New Contrast Dyes Improve Medical Images, Reduce Prep Time

    Chemistry researchers at University of Copenhagen in Denmark, with colleagues from two Texas universities, developed a new type of contrast dye for medical imaging that the inventors say cuts the time and labor needed for preparation. Their discoveries are described in a series of publications over the past five months, the most recent appearing in…

  • Preclinical Test Shows Vaccine Stops Cocaine Reaching Brain

    Medical researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York tested in primates a vaccine candidate against cocaine addiction, which showed the vaccine prevented cocaine from reaching the brain and inducing a dopamine high. The findings from the team led by genetic medical researcher Ronald Crystal, with colleagues from Weill Cornell, Columbia University, and Scripps…

  • Quality Check Technique Devised for Lithium-Ion Batteries

    Engineers at Purdue University in Indiana developed a method that can detect flaws in lithium-ion battery electrodes during their manufacture. The team led by mechanical engineering professor Douglas Adams and chemical engineering faculty James Caruthers will discuss its technique next month at the annual meeting of the Society for Experimental Mechanics near Chicago. Arrays of…

  • Nimbus, Shire Partner on Rare Genetic Disease Drug Discovery

    Nimbus Discovery, a biotechnology company in Cambridge, Massachusetts will discover and develop new small-molecule drug candidates to treat a set of rare genetic disorders, for the specialty pharmaceutical company Shire plc based in Ireland. Under the deal, Shire will provide Nimbus with periodic milestone payments, and while financial details of the agreement were not disclosed,…

  • Silk, Cellulose Provide Useful Scaffold to Repair Cartilage

    Researchers at the universities of Bristol and Cambridge in the U.K. found natural silk and cellulose fibers effective as scaffolding to rebuild damaged cartilage with stem cells. The team led by Wa’el Kafienah in Bristol’s School of Cellular and Molecular Medicine published its findings in a recent issue of the journal Biomacromolecules (paid subscription required).…

  • Synthetic Biology Census Shows Company Growth, Consolidation

    A census of organizations, agencies, and companies involved in synthetic biology shows rapid growth of the field in the past four years, but also some retrenchment, particularly in the private sector. The study was conducted by the Synthetic Biology Project, an initiative of Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. The Wilson Center…

  • Technique Enhances MRI Images for Cartilage, Brain Tissue

    Radiologists and chemists at New York University devised a method to improve magnetic resonance images (MRIs) usually obscured by large molecular masses, when using a common method for chemically saturating certain molecules. The team led by NYU radiologist Ravinder Regatte and chemist Alexej Jerschow reported their findings last week in the online journal Scientific Reports.…

  • Shape-Changing Capability Developed for Mobile Devices

    Computer scientists at University of Bristol in the U.K. developed the ability for mobile devices made with flexible materials to change their shape to better fit their uses at the moment. The team from Bristol’s Interaction and Graphics lab is scheduled today to present a paper on what they call Morphees at the ACM SIGCHI…

  • New Type Battery Designed for Solar, Wind Grid Storage

    Engineers at Stanford University and Stanford’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory developed a lower-cost design for long term storage of wind and solar energy on the power grid. The team led by Yi Cui, a materials science and engineering professor at Stanford and part of a joint materials and energy science institute at SLAC, published its…