Victoria Atkinson

1 week ago | chemistryworld.com | Victoria Atkinson

A shape-shifting nanomedicine that exploits subtle differences in the cellular environment can selectively target and penetrate cancerous cells. The cofactor-assisted complex exists as stable nanofibres in the blood but assembles into virus-like clusters in the acidic conditions surrounding tumours. Once inside the tumour cells, the assembly rearranges again, releasing its drug cargo and inducing cell death with minimal side effects.

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Victoria Atkinson

An alternative use for skeletal editing provides a one-pot method to synthesise ‘matching pairs’ of pharmaceutical candidates for structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies. This functional group transposition employs a photochemical reaction to exchange two ring carbons in dihydrobenzofuran substrates, simultaneously switching the position of any associated functional groups to produce the constitutional isomer. Source: © Ryan T.

1 month ago | cen.acs.org | Victoria Atkinson

The mystery surrounding the mummified remains stored at the church of Sankt Thomas am Blasenstein, a small village in Upper Austria, has finally been solved. Researchers have now identified the person who in death became known colloquially as the "air-dried chaplain," and they have also solved the puzzle of just how he was embalmed ( Front. Med. 2025, DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1560050). Unlike mummification practices in ancient Egypt, the process involved no removal of internal organs.

1 month ago | cen.acs.org | Victoria Atkinson

Starch-based plastics, which are derived from treated starch from plants, may not be as safe or environmentally benign as previously assumed. Composed mainly of starch and typically blended with other biobased polymers such as polylactic acid (PLA), starch-based plastics were hailed as a green alternative to conventional plastics and are now widely used in everyday products like food packaging and disposable cutlery.

1 month ago | chemistryworld.com | Victoria Atkinson

A new catalyst promotes an asymmetric radical reaction using an engineered ligand that can differentiate between very similar alkyl groups. The stereoselective amination process forms highly enantioenriched α-chiral alkyl amines, a common motif in drug molecules. Radicals are a common intermediate in many synthetic transformations. Their single electron makes these species extremely reactive, enabling rapid reactions with minimal energy input.