Chemistry World Blog

14 February 2011: Have something to say about an article you’ve read on Chemistry World this week? Leave your comments below…

This week’s stories:

Insect antennae inspire responsive nanopores
US researchers look to nature to create nanopores that can predictably capture and process nanoscale objects

Designer foods
Fatty foods could be engineered to prevent weight gain before ingestion

Identifying the cause of pregnancy loss
A protein found in the blood could be responsible for recurring pregnancy loss

Speed dating for pharmaceuticals
Pairing up drugs with cocrystals could improve their properties and delivery

To thicken up runny liquids, add fluid
Adding a small amount of fluid to a runny liquid can thicken it, say researchers in Germany

Sanofi to buy Genzyme in $20 billion deal
It’s taken a while, but Genzyme and Sanofi-Aventis have finally reached an agreement

Standardising nanomaterials
Europe launches a central repository offering reference samples of different types of nanomaterials

Remote powered lab on a chip
A wireless device to manipulate nanoparticles that’s as simple to use as a microscope slide

Worms’ diet the key to coloured silk
Researchers in Singapore discover which dye molecules alter the colour of the core silk fibre

Eco-credentials of nanomaterials in question
New criteria for the EU’s Ecolabel scheme allow products containing ‘nanoforms’ to be included

Building up a natural product toolkit
Isolation of compounds from natural product mixtures simplified

Small and sensitive nanoparticles
Putting individual nanoparticles inside micelles could make improved contrast agents for imaging in the body

New hepatitis C drug
A step closer to developing improved oral drugs for hepatitis C treatment