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Latest news from laboratory, environment, chemistry, life science and quality control

• Graphene blocks antibiotic resistant bacteria
  Technology often imitates nature. And to reduce the risk of infection during surgery, doctors may soon turn to surgical implements coated with graphene oxide, inspired by the typical rough texture ...
• Imaging proteins at the single molecule level
  Proteins are the tools of life. In future, scientists may be able to examine single molecules with an especially gentle method to determine how they are constructed, how they perform their function...
• Rare microbes have a key role in ecosystem functioning
  Even if a species is represented by very few individuals within an ecosystem, it can make a huge difference. This has long been recognized for animals and plants. Rare microbes like bacteria and mi...
• Treated carbon pulls radioactive elements from water
  Researchers at Rice University and Kazan Federal University in Russia have found a way to extract radioactivity from water and said their discovery could help purify the hundreds of millions of gal...
• Update: Dangerous Good Database
  The Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM) has now released the new version of the "Dangerous Goods Database" (Datenbank Gefahrgut, DGG). Version 11.0 incorporates all regulations t...
• Smartphone microscope offers cost-effective DNA sequencing and genetic mutation analysis
  Just like an alphabet is made up of individual letters, DNA is composed of chemical bases. And in the same way that letters must be placed in a specific order to form words and sentences, the seque...
• New type of adhesive has been shown as a potential non-toxic alternative
  "Adhesives releasing toxins including carcinogenic formaldehyde are almost everywhere in our homes and offices. The plywood in our walls, the chairs we sit on, and the carpet beneath our feet are a...
• Why snow collapses suddenly under pressure
  Materials scientists at FAU have demonstrated for the first time in an experiment that collapsing connections between ice crystals are responsible for snow giving way suddenly - and repeatedly - un...
• Making mercury measurements in food more reliable
  JRC scientists developed a new certified reference material (CRM) to improve the accuracy of methylmercury measurements in food. This CRM (ERM-AE671) consists of isotopically labelled methylmercury...
• Chromosome segregation in meiosis
  Once together, never apart - isn't that how the saying goes? Not so in meiosis, the special type of cell division in which gametes, sperm and egg cells are formed. At the start of meiosis the ring-...
• Braiding a molecular knot with eight crossings
  Scientists at The University of Manchester have produced the most tightly knotted physical structure ever known - a scientific achievement which has the potential to create a new generation of adva...
• Creating the tiniest structures on surfaces
  Nanotechnology is regarded as the key technology of the 21st century, delivering the fundamental methods, which allow objects just a few hundred nanometers in size to be produced in any required sh...
• Environmentally-friendly alternative to genetically-modified crops and chemical pesticide
  The breakthrough research could have huge benefits for agriculture and positively impact communities around the world. Plant pests and pathogens are estimated to reduce global crop yields by 30 to ...
• Study on radionuclide half-life length: safeguarding the unit becquerel
  The exponential decay of radionuclides as a function of time is a cornerstone of nuclear physics. Decay constants for spontaneous radioactive decay are considered invariable in time and space. This...
• More efficient vaccine production using electrons to inactivate viruses
  Many vaccines contain viruses that are inactivated to prevent them from harming recipients. This is generally achieved by adding chemicals. Fraunhofer scientists are taking a different approach, us...
• Explaining memory on the molecular level?
  The molecular pharmacologist and biochemist Volker Haucke has been granted funding in the Koselleck programme of the DFG for highly innovative research into the mechanisms of neuronal communication...
• Nanotechnology enables new insights into chemical reactions
  Eighty percent of all products of the chemical industry are manufactured with catalytic processes. Catalysis is also indispensable in energy conversion and treatment of exhaust gases. It is importa...
• Protein crystals - a manifold substance class for biological and pharmaceutical applications
  Annette Rompel and her team of the Department of Biophysical Chemistry at the University of Vienna are investigating so-called polyoxometalates. These compounds exhibit a great diversity and offer ...
• Chemically Modified Insulin Is Available More Quickly
  Replacing a hydrogen atom by an iodine atom in insulin, the hormone retains its efficacy but is available more rapidly to the organism. Researchers at the University of Basel were able to predict t...
• Store and Supply - How the Brain Saves Time
  Neurons in the brain store RNA molecules - DNA gene copies - in order to rapidly react to stimuli. This storage dramatically accelerates the production of proteins. This is one of the reasons why n...
• Controlling heavy metals in seafood and feed products
  The European Reference Laboratory on Heavy Metals in Feed and Food (EURL-HM) - hosted by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Geel - organised in 2016 two proficiency tests for the determination of t...
• Malvern and PANalytical announce merger
  Malvern and PANalytical are pleased to announce that effective 1 January 2017 they will be merging their activities. Both companies are owned by parent company Spectris plc and are operating compan...