More efficient risk assessment for nanomaterials

Nanotechnology is booming, but risk assessment for these tiny particles is a laborious process that presents significant challenges to the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR). To find more efficient test methods, ...

Protein injections in medicine

Pathogens can use a range of toxins to damage their host organism. Bacteria, such as those responsible for causing the deadly Plague, use a special injection mechanism to deliver their poisonous contents into the host cell. ...

Sustainable sand pulls pollutants from stormwater

UC Berkeley engineers have developed a mineral-coated sand that can soak up toxic metals like lead and cadmium from water. Along with its ability to destroy organic pollutants like bisphenol A, this material could help cities ...

How plants harness 'bad' molecules for good ends

When most people think of a plant, they picture stems, leaves, flowers, and all the parts that are visible above ground. But Duke biologist Philip Benfey is more interested in the hidden half of the plant that is buried beneath ...

Molecular vibrations lead to high performance laser

Lasers. They are used for everything from entertaining our cats to encrypting our communications. Unfortunately, lasers can be energy intensive and many are made using toxic materials like arsenic and gallium. To make lasers ...

Transforming sulphur dioxide from harmful to useful

Scientists have created molecular cages within a polymer to trap harmful sulphur dioxide pollution in order to transform it into useful compounds and reduce waste and emissions.

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