Tackling vaccine hesitancy
Vaccine uptake has been stalling – and in some cases declining – over the past decade. Healthcare experts are calling for urgent action to address the problem and warn of significant health risks. Maria Burke reports on the challenge
Anti-malarial treatment impresses in trials
A combination treatment that attacks the malaria parasite has impressed in a late-stage trial in Africa. One of the two compounds wields a completely new mode of action.
Europe’s ethylene cracker conundrum
The European petrochemical industry has suffered yet another blow with the announcement of the closure of the ExxonMobil 830,000t/year ethylene cracker at Mossmorran in Fife, Scotland.
Artificial leaf to produce chemicals
A nature-inspired artificial leaf created in Cambridge, UK, has turned carbon dioxide and water into formate (CHO2). This was fed into a chemical reaction to produce a compound with high yield and purity that is used in pharmaceuticals.
Applied chemistry highlights: High-energy solid fuel, quantum dots and more
Nigel P. Freestone from the University of Northampton discusses selected research papers from recent journal issues for Issue 12 of C&I magazine.
A novel mode of action group to control plant pathogens
A team of researchers from Bayer have reported on the discovery of a new class of compounds, the pyridazine carboxamides (PCs), that exhibit potent inhibitory activity against the enzyme serine palmitoyl transferase (SPT), an enzyme crucial for sphingolipid biosynthesis in fungi.
Insulin hitches ride on polymer switcher
A compound has ferried insulin across the skin of mice and minipigs, opening up an alternative route to insulin delivery for diabetic patients. It relies on a special polymer that switches charge as it moves through the skin.
Comment: Antibiotic availability
A new independent study, sponsored by healthcare company Viatris, Securing access, improving lives. Strengthening patients’ access to off-patent medicines in Europe, investigates the reasons behind the increasing unavailability of medicines, focusing on antibiotics.