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Science news related to spectroscopy, spectrometry, X-ray techniques, magnetic resonance imaging, NMR, UV, IR, Raman, Atomic, Cheminformatics
David Bradley
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by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Functional magnetic resonance imaging studies reveal that voters are persuaded more by the negative aspects of a politician's looks than by the positive features. The findings apply specifically if the voter was previously unaware of the politician. Ahead of the US elections, voters there should read on but let their political conscience guide their voting decision.... Read more »
M. L. Spezio, A. Rangel, R. M. Alvarez, J. P. O'Doherty, K. Mattes, A. Todorov, H. Kim, & R. Adolphs. (2008) A neural basis for the effect of candidate appearance on election outcomes. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsn040
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Researchers have used NMR to show that endurance-trained athletes have a higher resting muscle metabolism than couch potatoes. The work suggests that the dissociation of oxidation and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production could be another route by which exercise improves insulin sensitivity and burns excess energy and may have implications for understanding the development of type 2 diabetes.... Read more »
D. E. Befroy, K. F. Petersen, S. Dufour, G. F. Mason, D. L. Rothman, & G. I. Shulman. (2008) Increased substrate oxidation and mitochondrial uncoupling in skeletal muscle of endurance-trained individuals. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(43), 16701-16706. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0808889105
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg, Maryland, are using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) to test the properties of star-shaped gold nanoparticles. They have found that these particles have optical qualities that outshine the competition and could make them useful in chemical and biological sensing and imaging.... Read more »
E. Nalbant Esenturk, & A. R. Hight Walker. (2008) Surface-enhanced Raman scattering spectroscopy via gold nanostars. Journal of Raman Spectroscopy. DOI: 10.1002/jrs.2084
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Forget the so-called morning banana diet, blue is the new yellow and researchers in Europe and the US have no intention of slipping up when it comes to explaining why ripened bananas glow blue under ultraviolet light.... Read more »
Bernhard Kräutler. (2008) Chlorophyll breakdown and chlorophyll catabolites in leaves and fruit. Photochemical , 7(10), 1114. DOI: 10.1039/b802356p
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
US researchers have used NMR to study the products of research into a new high explosive material that can nevertheless be melt cast into a charge with any shape.... Read more »
David E. Chavez, Michael A. Hiskey, Darren L. Naud, & Damon Parrish. (2008) Synthesis of an Energetic Nitrate Ester. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 47(43), 8307-8309. DOI: 10.1002/anie.200803648
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Impure forms of illicit drugs are almost as big a problem as the drugs themselves. Now, researchers in Spain have used diffuse reflectance near-infrared spectroscopy (DR-NIR) to quickly determine the purity of heroin.... Read more »
Javier Moros, Nieves Galipienso, Rocío Vilches, Salvador Garrigues, & Miguel de la Guardia. (2008) Nondestructive Direct Determination of Heroin in Seized Illicit Street Drugs by Diffuse Reflectance near-Infrared Spectroscopy. Analytical Chemistry. DOI: 10.1021/ac800781c
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has revealed a reason why the excitement of unwrapping presents dwindles as our brains get older and more jaded. According to a new study, a biochemical pathway is responsible for mellowing our expectations.... Read more »
J.-C. Dreher, A. Meyer-Lindenberg, P. Kohn, & K. F. Berman. (2008) Age-related changes in midbrain dopaminergic regulation of the human reward system. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0802127105
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
A mutant enzyme that breaks down cocaine in the bloodstream 2000 times faster than the body's natural enzymes could lead to a rapid-response treatment for acute overdose or lead to a new therapeutic approach to treating drug addiction.... Read more »
Fang Zheng, Wenchao Yang, Mei-Chuan Ko, Junjun Liu, Hoon Cho, Daquan Gao, Min Tong, Hsin-Hsiung Tai, James H. Woods, & Chang-Guo Zhan. (2008) Most Efficient Cocaine Hydrolase Designed by Virtual Screening of Transition States. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 130(36), 12148-12155. DOI: 10.1021/ja803646t
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Astroscientists are using various spectroscopic techniques to root out relatively complex molecules lurking in the interstellar medium. The complexity of naphthalene, discovered in space, and corannulene, could provide new evidence of a cosmic origin for the precursor molecules of life on Earth... Read more »
Gaël Rouillé, Cornelia Jäger, Mathias Steglich, Friedrich Huisken, Thomas Henning, Gabriele Theumer, Ingmar Bauer, & Hans-Joachim Knölker. (2008) IR, Raman, and UV/Vis Spectra of Corannulene for Use in Possible Interstellar Identification. ChemPhysChem. DOI: 10.1002/cphc.200800387
S. Iglesias-Groth, A. Manchado, D. A. García-Hernández, J. I. González Hernández, & D. L. Lambert. (2008) Evidence for the Naphthalene Cation in a Region of the Interstellar Medium with Anomalous Microwave Emission. The Astrophysical Journal, 685(1). DOI: 10.1086/592349
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
Nothing more sophisticated than a lump of graphite, a roll of sticky tape, and a wafer thin sliver of silica are needed to inflate ideas about nanochemistry. Raman spectroscopy and other techniques have been used to reveal the details of the DIY construction of a balloon-like membrane of graphene.... Read more »
J. Scott Bunch, Scott S. Verbridge, Jonathan S. Alden, Arend M. van der Zande, Jeevak M. Parpia, Harold G. Craighead, & Paul L. McEuen. (2008) Impermeable Atomic Membranes from Graphene Sheets. Nano Letters, 8(8), 2458-2462. DOI: 10.1021/nl801457b
by David Bradley in SpectroscopyNOW ezine
A new X-ray technique, time-resolved wide-angle X-ray scattering (TR-WAXS) could defeat even high-field NMR spectroscopy in allowing researchers to monitor very fast, nanosecond-scale movements in the context of the overall three-dimensional protein structure.... Read more »
Marco Cammarata, Matteo Levantino, Friedrich Schotte, Philip A Anfinrud, Friederike Ewald, Jungkweon Choi, Antonio Cupane, Michael Wulff, & Hyotcherl Ihee. (2008) Tracking the structural dynamics of proteins in solution using time-resolved wide-angle X-ray scattering. Nature Methods. DOI: 10.1038/nmeth.1255
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