Chemists

MIT chemists have discovered how the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor changes its conformation when it binds to EGF. Credit: Courtesy of the researchersNew insight into the way the EGF receptor sends signals into cells could help researchers design new cancer drugs that target this protein.Receptors found on cell surfaces bind to hormones, proteins, and other molecules, helping cells respond to their environment. Chemists at <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt"…

If chemists built cars, they'd fill a factory with car parts, set it on fire, and sift from the ashes pieces that now looked vaguely car-like. When you're dealing with car-parts the size of atoms, this is a perfectly reasonable process. Yet chemists yearn for ways to reduce the waste and make reactions far more precise.  Chemical engineering has taken a step forward, with researchers from the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, the University of Regensburg in Germany, and IBM Research Europe forcing a single…

MIT chemists have used nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to reveal how two different forms of the Tau protein mix to form the tangles seen in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Credit: Aurelio Dregni/Nadia El-Mammeri/Hong Lab at MITTwo types of tau proteins mix together in a nearly random way to generate the tangles seen in the brains of people with <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>Alzheimer’s</div><div…

MIT chemists have designed a new type of photoredox catalyst that could make it easier to incorporate light-driven reactions into continuous flow manufacturing processes. The polymer catalysts could be used to coat tubing and perform chemical transformations on reactants as they flow through the tube, as imagined in this digital artwork. Credit: Richard LiuWhen coated onto plastic tubing, the catalysts could act on chemicals flowing through, helping to synthesize drugs and other compounds.A new type of photoredox…

Plywood and other composite wood products are used extensively in home construction, furniture, and decor. They are often made using glues and resins that contain potentially carcinogenic chemicals such as formaldehyde.The go-to materials for building home furniture, décor, and floors are composite wood products that come in large sheets. But the glues and resins holding together particleboard, fiberboard, and plywood usually contain formaldehyde and could release this probable carcinogen into the air. To develop a…