News & Comment

Although they are generally poor coupling agents under palladium catalysis, germanes are easily cross-coupled under gold catalysis, enabling a new orthogonal cross-coupling reaction.

Despite their similarity with surfactants, the mechanism by which hydrotropes assist in solubilizing apolar molecules in water is not totally understood. A mechanism is now proposed that identifies apolar interactions as driving forces of hydrotropy, in agreement with a statistical thermodynamic picture.

One can combine two distinct chain-transfer agents to tune the dispersity of vinyl polymers. The polymer chains remain living and can be transformed into diblock copolymers.

An unexpected epoxide deoxygenation reaction was observed to occur with inversion of stereochemistry and has enabled development of a method for alkene isomerization.

Sample preparation and instrumentation for macromolecular mass spectrometry continue to evolve, making the technique more relevant than ever.

Uncharged polymers on the surface of charged colloidal particles can help to control their self-assembly into ordered structures.

A persistent silylene complex of CO is reminiscent of metal carbonyls and features interesting bonding interactions.

A new book by Peter Wothers delves into the tumultuous history of naming (and symbolizing) the elements.

Anions can act as efficient templates for the formation of macrocyclic peptides.

An autobiography by Martin Karplus, from his childhood and continuing right through to a journey to Stockholm to receive the 2013 Nobel prize.

Machine learning approaches that attempt to predict the outcome of organic reactions are often complex or highly specialized. A new approach requires the molecular structure of reactants as the only input to predict products, enantioselectivities and yields.

Ethylene is a plant hormone that has proved difficult to measure. A new catalytic chemiresistor senses ethylene in the parts per billion regime and can monitor plant senescence.

A rod-shaped molecular motor constructed from DNA rolls in a straight line across an RNA-functionalized surface.

Decoherence in quantum systems compromises the quantum information processing. However, in molecular systems, coherence is not completely lost and residual coherence can provide important information to guide the design of efficient molecular qubits.

Air-stable nickel precatalysts enable one to rapidly screen ligands, organic substrates and conditions in an accessible and scalable fashion. The best method can be identified and translated to an industrial setting.

A spray reactor system that recycles solvent enables green and rapid synthesis in high yield, at a production rate on the order of multiple grams per hour.

Atomistic simulations reveal details on phase transition and lateral organization of domains in model cellular membranes.

Copper efflux oxidase is a special oxygen reduction electrocatalyst with five copper binding sites. Mutations at the fifth site can give highly active variants and tell us which factors are important for catalysis.

The complete biosynthetic pathway of the anticancer drug etoposide has been engineered into a tobacco plant enabling its direct milligram scale production.

Real-space imaging reveals how thin layers of ice grow. Although the basal structure of bulk ice is still observed in 2D ice, the edges exhibit different molecular arrangements.