Volume 1 Issue 7, July 2017

Enzymes that are optimized for low temperatures have characteristics that are distinct from those that operate under milder conditions. This Review examines cold-adapted enzymes and describes how computational studies have highlighted structural and energetic consequences that arise from adaptation to cold environments.

Transition metal catalysis is well established as an enabling tool in synthetic organic chemistry. Photoredox catalysis has recently emerged as a method to effect reactions that occur through single-electron-transfer pathways. Here we review the combination of the two to show how this provides access to highly reactive oxidation states of transition metals and distinct activation modes that further enable the synthetic chemist.

An untargeted mass spectrometry analysis of a biological sample will detect both biological molecules and compounds that are derived from, for example, diet and the environment. This Review examines the design of such experiments, how to process and interpret the vast amount of data that are produced, and how far we are from being able to use mass spectrometry to inventory the world around us.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have potential applications in, for example, gas storage and separation. The pore sizes in these materials are tunable by selection of the building blocks, and materials with multiple pore sizes are desirable. This Perspective considers synthetic approaches to 2D COFs that rely on tessellation to prepare such multiporous materials.