ACS News Service Weekly PressPac: November 5, 2008

• New insights into thalidomide-birth defect episode
• Chemical magic in the mouth
• “Liquid mirror” advance may lead to better eye exams, improved telescopes
• A new way to remove unwanted heparin from blood
• Terrorism crackdown threatens chemistry hobbyists

Scientists in Germany have discovered why the medication thalidomide appeared safe in animal tests before going on the market 50 years ago, only to cause perhaps the most extensive outbreak of drug-induced birth defects in medical history. Their study is scheduled for the December 1 edition of ACS’ Molecular Pharmaceutics, a bimonthly journal.

Jurgen Knobloch, Ulrich Ruther and colleagues note that more than 10,000 children were born with severe birth defects after drug regulators in Europe approved the medication for treating nausea and vomiting in pregnant women. The drug, never approved for that use in the United States, is available for certain conditions, including multiple myeloma and leprosy. The birth defects outbreak puzzled scientists because pre-marketing tests in lab mice and rats showed no sign of a birth defect risk.

The researchers point out that those animals proved to be resistant to thalidomide's adverse effects, and in the new study they describe discovery of the biochemical basis for that resistance. It involves a key difference between human embryonic cells and those of mice. They found in mice cells advanced antioxidant defenses compared to those in humans and other thalidomide-susceptible species. Therefore, thalidomide is not able to induce the generation of large quantities of damaging free radicals called superoxides in mouse embryonic cells as it does in human embryonic cells (where subsequent cell death is believed to be responsible for birth defects.) — JS

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Scientists in Canada are reporting progress toward a new type of “liquid mirror” — mirrors made with highly reflective liquids — whose shape can be changed to provide superior optical properties over conventional solid mirrors. The advance could lead to improved instruments for diagnosing eye disease, more powerful telescopes, and other applications, the researchers say. Their research will be described in the November 25 issue of ACS’ Chemistry of Materials, a bi-weekly journal.

In the report, Anna Ritcey, Jean-Philippe Dery, and Ermanno Borra note that “liquid mirrors” are not new. Scientists have long recognized that these liquids could provide a low-cost, easy-to-use alternative to solid mirrors for a variety of optical applications while offering the potential for less image distortion. Researchers have recently developed liquid-mirror telescopes that use mercury as the reflective material. Mercury, however, is toxic and the shape of the surface can’t be deformed or adjusted.

The scientists describe development of a new type of deformable “liquid mirror” composed of magnetic iron particles, ethylene glycol (a component of automotive antifreeze), and a coating of silver nanoparticles. These materials form a highly reflective mirror whose shape can be changed by adjusting the voltage applied to electromagnets placed below the liquid, allowing the user to fine-tune the mirror’s optical properties. In lab studies, the new material showed better reflectivity and stability than current liquid-mirror materials, the scientists say. — MTS

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Laws and regulations intended to crack down on terrorists, illicit drug manufacture, and other criminal activities are stifling an elite cadre of individuals who pursue chemistry as a hobby and have a home chemistry lab, according to an article scheduled for the Nov. 10 issue of Chemical & Engineering News, ACS’ weekly newsmagazine.

In the article, C&EN Associate Editor Bethany Halford notes that having a lab in the basement, garage, or backyard shed was once a rite of passage for scientifically minded kids and a relatively common hobby for science curious-adults. Some of these labs have even produced significant contributions to chemistry, including vulcanized rubber and aniline dyes, the article notes.

Now, in an ongoing battle against bomb-makers and illegal methamphetamine labs, home-based chemistry is increasingly coming under attack. Thousands of people who want to pursue chemistry as a do-it-yourself hobby or home-school lesson must navigate through a maze of federal, state, and local laws that target hazardous substances — or run the risk of fines or laboratory shutdowns, the article notes. “Not all of us are mad bombers or drug makers and we would like to be able to practice our hobby in peace if there’s a reasonable way for us to figure out the guidelines,” says one authority on hobby chemists.

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• Press releases, chat room sessions, and more from ACS' 236^th National Meeting

It's never too late to explore a treasure trove of news sources, background material and story ideas available from the ACS' latest National Meeting, which was held in Philadelphia from August 17-21, 2008. Reporters can view press releases, search an archive with abstracts of more than 9,000 scientific presentations and hundreds of non-technical summaries of those presentations, and access other resources at: www.eurekalert.org/acsmeet.php.

The ACS Office of Public Affairs also offers recorded video versions of its National Meeting "chat room" briefings and accompanying chat transcripts by going to http://www.ustream.tv/channel/acslive. To use this site, you must first register with Ustream.tv by going to http://ustream.tv/sign-up-step-1. It's free and only takes a minute or two to sign up. To view the archived chat room sessions, click the "Login" button at the top right of the Ustream window. Then, select "Past Clips." Please note that Ustream requires the latest version of Adobe Flash, which can be downloaded without charge at http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer.

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