'ACS in the News' publishes daily articles from newspapers, blogs and magazines about the American Chemical Society and its 38 peer-reviewed journals. Click on the links below to view the published article. The full-text article can also be found in the attached document at the bottom of the page.
Mail on Sunday (London, England: daily circulation 2.2 million)
“Copper pipes 'could cause Alzheimer's and heart disease in people over 50'”
January 22, 2010
Copper pipes could cause people over 50 to contract Alzheimer's and place them at risk of heart disease, a new study has found. Scientists have warned people to remove old copper pipes from their homes because the metal has been shown to build up in their bodies and cause serious health problems. The study from the American Chemical Society's Chemical Research in Toxicology journal found that people were at risk from copper as they aged. Lead researcher George Brewer said the study had wide ranging implications for health authorities. 'Their toxicities are so general in the population that they are a looming public health problem in diseases of aging and in the aging process itself,' he said.
Scientific American (New York, N.Y.: monthly circulation 732,617)
“Cleopatra's Eyeliner: Peeper Health Keeper”
January 22, 2010
When you picture ancient Egyptian beauties such as Queen Nefertiti or Cleopatra, they’re probably wearing dramatic black eyeliner. Ancient Egyptians believed that eye makeup had properties bestowed by the gods protected the wearers from illness. Modern scientists determined that the makeup contains often-harmful lead, so they discounted any beneficial effects. But according to research published in the journal Analytical Chemistry, the eye makeup may indeed have prevented disease. Scientists analyzed 52 different samples from ancient Egyptian makeup found at the Louvre. They identified four different lead-based substances, two of which were man-made, not natural. They then applied the substances to a culture of human cells. And the cells experienced a 240 percent increase in the production of nitric oxide, which is known to jump start the immune system.
WebMD (Orlando, Fla.: 13.8 million monthly unique users)
“Blueberry Juice May Boost Memory”
January 21, 2010
[The Daily Mail (London, England: daily circulation 2.2 million) also covered the story.]
Swapping out the usual OJ for blueberry juice in the morning may give your brain a memory boost. A new study shows that drinking a daily dose of wild blueberry juice improved the memory of older adults with age-related memory problems. It's the first study to show a potential benefit of blueberries in improving memory in older adults at risk for dementia. "The findings of this preliminary study suggest that moderate-term blueberry supplementation can confer neurocognitive benefit," write researcher Robert Krikorian, of the University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, and colleagues in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
Science360 News Service (Arlington, Va.: 119,800 monthly unique users)
“An Electrifying Advance Toward Tomorrow's Power Suits”
January 25, 2010
Could powering an iPod or cell phone become as easy as plugging it into your tee shirt or jeans, and then recharging the clothing overnight? Scientists in California are reporting an advance in that direction with an easier way of changing ordinary cotton and polyester into "conductive energy textiles" — e-Textiles that double as a rechargeable battery. Their report on the research appears in ACS' Nano Letters, a monthly journal. "Wearable electronics represent a developing new class of materials with an array of novel functionalities, such as flexibility, stretchability, and lightweight, which allow for many applications and designs previously impossible with traditional electronics technology," Yi Cui and colleagues note. "High-performance sportswear, wearable displays, new classes of portable power, and embedded health monitoring systems are examples of these novel applications."
New York Times (New York, N.Y.: daily circulation 928,000)
“Study Examines Costs and Benefits of Algae”
January 25, 2010
Last week, the government doled out more than $80 million in stimulus money for biofuels research, much of which will be focused on algae research. But a recent study, published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, suggests that algae production is energy intensive and can end up emitting more greenhouse gases than it sequesters. Other biofuel crops such as corn, canola and switchgress result in a net carbon dioxide uptake, the study found. The main reason for this is that fertilizers have to be directly delivered to the pool of water that algae is growing in, said Andres Clarens, an assistant professor of civil engineering at the University of Virginia Civil and a lead author on the paper. Fertilizers emit nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas.
BBC News (London, England: 55 million monthly unique users)
“Scientists shed light on cancer”
January 22, 2010
Researchers at the University of St Andrews have developed a new technique that could allow earlier detection of cancer. 'Raman spectroscopy' involves the use of monochromatic light which, when aimed at a cell, interacts with the biological molecules. Scientists are then able to identify the cells components and detect disease. This new tool will also provide new diagnosis methods for pathologists. The research is published in the latest edition of the international journal Analytical Chemistry.
Columbus Dispatch (Columbus, Ohio: daily circulation 199,524)
“Local company forced to deal with attacks from China-based hackers”
Friday, January 22, 2010
Google has not been alone in dealing with computer hackers from China. Chemical Abstracts Service said it began seeing a sharp increase in attempted hacks of customer accounts from China about a year ago, well before Google's problems started. The Columbus-based company manages a database of information on millions of chemicals, providing a service used by scientists and researchers. A successful hacker could gain access to important information about patent and product development going on around the world. "We've experienced a widespread and growing problem of theft to our SciFinder product," said Christine McCue, vice president of marketing at Chemical Abstracts. SciFinder is a subscription service that allows customers access to a multitude of information.
Discovery News (Silver Spring, Md.: 1.5 million monthly unique users)
“Tobacco Plants Tapped to Grow Solar Cells”
January 25, 2010
Tobacco plants could help wean the world from fossil fuels, according to scientists from the University of California, Berkeley. In a paper in the journal ACS Nano Letters, Matt Francis and his colleagues used tobacco plants, infected with a genetically engineered virus, to produce artificial photovoltaic and photochemical cells. The technique is more environmentally friendly than traditional methods of making solar cells and could lead to cheap, temporary and biodegradable solar cells. "Over billions of years, evolution has established exactly the right distances to collect light from the sun and to do so with unparalleled efficiency," said Francis. "We are just trying to mimic these finely tuned systems."
Broadcast News
KABC-LA (Los Angeles, Calif.: 170,633 daily viewers)
“Blueberry juice boosts memory?”
January 25, 2010
Drinking blueberry juice could boost your memory. Older adults showed improvement in learning and memory skills after drinking wild blueberry juice for 12 weeks. The study showed that this type of affect in older adults at risk for dementia. The study is published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
… From the Blogs
Schizophrenia-Update
“Soon, blood test to detect schizophrenia”
January 24, 2010
Schizophrenia, with symptoms that can include hallucinations and delusional thoughts, affects millions of people worldwide. A simple blood test for diagnosing schizophrenia, the most serious form of mental illness, could be available by year-end, according to a new study. Celia Henry Arnaud, senior editor, Chemical and Engineering News, which published the report, mentions the test as a part of a broader discussion of how scientists are using non-brain cells to study
schizophrenia in a bid to develop new diagnostic tests.
Next Big Future
“Possibly Revolutionary Dry Contact Printing of Carbon Nanotubes Patterns to Any Surface”
January 22, 2010
Rice University has developed dry printing of nanotube patterns to any surface which could revolutionize microelectronics and more. The techniques represent a huge step toward a nearly limitless number of practical applications that include sensors, highly efficient solar panels and electronic components. (ACS Nano)