Sometimes, scientists give very good news, and in 2017 we have had one of these occasions. Boys suffering from X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD), a devastating neurodegenerative disease, have been cured with gene therapy. The STARBEAM study was performed by an international team headed by David A. Williams from the Boston Children’s Hospital in Massachusetts (USA), and […]
«BPA-Free», «No Bisphenol A» and similar labels have become a sort of seal of quality for those products where they are on display, especially containers and baby products. But, what is bisphenol A? In 1936 bisphenol A (BPA) was identified as a synthetic estrogen, this is, an artificial compound that shows estrogen-mimicking action. Estrogens are […]
Some mental health conditions share genetic patterns A study of brain tissue from people with either schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, depression or alcoholism suggests there are some similar gene expression patterns among those conditions. New Scientist Musk’s Tesla Roadster plots new orbital course The new projected orbit of SpaceX founder Elon Musk’s Tesla Roadster, launched […]
What only a decades ago seemed impossible for chemists, determining the chemical structure of molecules directly from experimental images, is now routinely done. Not only that, the information about bond order, intermediates, and products of on-surface chemical reactions or charge distribution within molecules can also be quantified from those images. Two main techniques have made […]
During 2017 we have been witnessing the first tests of what might be called an integral hyperloop system at the Virgin Hyperloop One installations in Las Vegas, Nevada. Virgin Hyperloop One — named Hyperloop One before Virgin Group’s entry into its shareholder structure — leads, by its own merits, the pack of companies pursuing the […]
Vitamin D is an atypical vitamin because it is not a real vitamin. Vitamins are supposed to be essential, meaning that our organism cannot live without them but their synthesis cannot take place in our cells, so we must ensure an external intake through the diet. However, only 10% of vitamin D daily requirements come […]
Unusual behavior of Centaurus A dwarf galaxies raises dark matter questions Scientists were surprised to find 14 dwarf galaxies swarming around the galaxy Centaurus A that are aligned and share an orbital plane, instead of moving in random orbits like their counterparts. The finding challenges current thoughts on how dark matter affects dwarf galaxies’ behaviour […]
Chemistry • Condensed matter • Energy • Materials • Physics • Quantum physics
Following the need for new and renewable sources of energy worldwide, fuel cells using electrocatalysts can be thought of as viable options. Catalyst materials modify and increase the rate of chemical reactions without itself undergoing any permanent change. An electrocatalyst is a catalyst that participates in electrochemical reactions and that functions at electrode surfaces or […]
Our society will be facing a number of health-related challenges in the near future, partly as a consequence of our own practices. Perhaps the best known examples are the (severe) health issues linked to smoking (not just to smokers, but also their children via epigenetic changes) or the abnormally high intake of carbohydrates, with the […]
The study of nuclear receptors includes a great variety of approaches and techniques: from experiments with transgenic mice assessing their roles in the organism, to three-dimensional methods at the atomic level, in which the position of each amino acid and its function are examined. Dr. Estébanez’s research line focuses in the latter feature. T he […]