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Between 1920 and 1922, the University of Bristol biochemist, Maximilian Nierenstein, published four papers in a series exploring the structure of catechin in the Journal of the Chemical Society. The Society then abruptly refused to accept any more of his papers on catechin, or any other subject. It provided him with no reasons for the embargo until 1925. It then transpired that Nierenstein was boycotted because it was deemed that he had not responded adequately to criticisms of his work made by his rival in catechin research, the German natural products chemist, Karl Freudenberg. It was not until 1929 that, as a result of a petition by a group of his former Bristol pupils and friends, that Nierenstein was again permitted to publish in the Society's journal. The paper explores the Chemical Society's treatment of Nierenstein in detail, sheds new light on his career and his reaction to the Society's unprecedented boycott, examines some of the structural chemistry involved in the disputes, and discusses whether Nierenstein's research deserves the label of 'bad science'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gene therapy is a promising strategy for treating challenging diseases. The successful delivery of genes is a critical step for gene therapy. However, concerns about immunogenicity and toxicity are the main obstacles against the widespread use of effective viral systems. Therefore, nonviral vectors are regarded as good alternatives to viral vectors. Chitosan is a natural cationic polysaccharide that could be used to create nonviral gene delivery vectors. Various methods have been developed to improve the properties of chitosan related to gene delivery. This review introduces the features of chitosan in gene delivery, summarizes current progress toward methods promoting the properties of chitosan related to gene delivery, and presents different applications of chitosan in gene delivery vectors. Finally, future prospects of gene vectors based on chitosan are discussed. Adapted with permission from [ 137 ]. Copyright © 2017, American Chemical Society. Reprinted with permission from [ 161 ]. Copyright © 2014, American Chemical Society. Adapted with permission from [ 169 ]. Copyright © 2018, American Chemical Society. Unlabelled Image • Chemical modification could improve the performance of chitosan in gene delivery systems. • Various ligands could be utilized to promote the targetability of chitosan. • Chitosan can be used in gene vectors with different functions. • Carboxymethyl chitosan and PEGylated chitosan have been used in CRISPR/Cas9 system delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, self‐healing polymers have been one of the most intriguing academic fields due to the fact that they can increase their service lives and reduce the amount of waste. Here we designed and synthesized a novel telechelic polyurethane with dopamine (DA) end groups that are coordinated with Ca2+ to form dynamic non‐covalent bonds. The tensile stress of the designed polyurethanes increases with increase in the amount of metal cation added, while the strain at break slightly decreases. Rheological tests show that the ionic coordination between Ca2+ and catechol can dynamically break and recombine under the stimulation of seawater, endowing the polymer with superior self‐healing properties (up to 84% based on toughness). Therefore, the seawater‐triggered self‐healable, super tough polyurethane presented here is very intriguing as it has many potential applications especially in the marine environment. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Micropatterning and nanopatterning with polymers has become a core technology for many industrially relevant areas and is also recognized as an enabling technology for research and development in many fields ranging from photonics to the biomedical field and beyond. In this review, established key lithographic techniques for patterning and structuring polymeric materials on micrometer and nanometer length scales are discussed and complemented by more recently developed approaches that either rely on polymers to fabricate functional microstructures and nanostructures or form micropatterned and nanopatterned polymers for specific applications with a particular focus on biointerface‐controlled systems. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Miniaturization of experimental instruments in the field of biochemistry and medicine has become more and more common. A major trend in microfluidic technology is the miniaturization of experimental instruments. The relatively simple design and fabrication of active micromixers has attracted more and more attention. RESULTS: In this paper, we design and simulate a novel electroosmotic micromixer that uses microelectrodes located in microchannel walls. The study first compares the mixing effect of the micromixer without and with electrodes, and then investigates the effects of the number of electrode pairs, the value of the alternating voltage and the AC frequency on the mixing performance. CONCLUSION: When the electroosmotic micromixer has three electrode pairs at alternating voltage of 10 V and alternating frequency of 16 Hz, the best mixing efficiency can reach 98.2%. We call this micromixer TEEM (three electrode electroosmotic micromixer). At the same flow velocity, the mixing efficiency of TEEM is 30% higher than the electrodeless micromixer. This paper provides an effective theoretical support for the design of active electroosmotic micromixers, and provides a potential application value for further research and manufacture of electroosmotic micromixers used in biomedicine. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND The study aimed to set forth a model simulation approach for an accurate calculation of denitrification potential (NDP) and selection of appropriate anoxic volume (VD) in biological nitrogen removal. Simulations utilized the characteristics of a typical sewage and the model coefficients associated with a model structure that included all relevant microbial processes. They were carried out first for a fully anoxic reactor sustained with excess nitrogen and then for a pre‐denitrification system operated with different anoxic volume ratios (VD/VT) of 0.1–0.4 when the influent nitrogen (TKN) level was set as 57 and 85 mg N L−1. RESULTS: Without nitrate limitation, generated NDP could reach 37 mg N L−1 for VD/VT = 0.1 and gradually escalated to 56, 75 and 86 mg N L−1 when VD/VT was raised to 0.4. Results for the pre‐denitrification system showed the effect of nitrate limitation on both substrate removal and NDP levels: At VD/VT = 0.4, NDP associated with TKN = 85 mg N L−1 was approximately 60 mg N L−1, while it remained basically around 40 mg N L−1 with TKN = 57 mg N L−1. Simulation also indicated that the hydrolysis kinetics significantly affected NDP generation. CONCLUSION: Simulation results revealed that stoichiometric estimations always underestimated NDP, recommending unnecessarily high anoxic volumes, where the oxidized nitrogen was consumed within the 20–25% portion of the provided volume. The remaining volume fraction was then totally wasted since it was forced to operate under anaerobic conditions, with practically no useful microbial activity and negligible substrate utilization. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recurring academic laboratory accidents and a lack of consensus about the best approach to chemical safety culture education has led to the development of laboratory safety team (LST) programs at many research institutions in the United States. LSTs are collaborative groups that seek to improve the safety culture within a department or multiple departments. They usually consist of a partnership between departmental faculty, staff, and students and have the goal of providing concrete opportunities for all of these stakeholders to continuously improve safety practices within their department. These programs also offer a supplementary form of safety education that is designed to fit the specific culture and needs of each institution. As these programs have developed in a variety of institutions, best practices for forming and maintaining LSTs have begun to emerge. In order to better understand these best practices, we developed a pilot workshop for the 255th National American Chemical Society Meeting audience to provide attendees with the knowledge and resources to go back to their home institutions and establish LSTs or similar programs. To understand the effectiveness of this pilot workshop, we conducted a small survey of the attendees at the first presentation. Questionnaires before and after the workshop show that the workshop was well received overall. Participants became more confident in their ability to teach others about safety and gained an improved understanding of safety topics and resources. There is also evidence that the workshop changed participants perception on their own career values and their institution's values on laboratory safety. These results are promising and give us hope that programs such as this can be a useful platform for safety education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the chemistry enterprise as a whole has experienced a monumental shift in the way that it understands and approaches safety, both within society and as part of the science of chemistry. The American Chemical Society (ACS) has embraced this change and has committed to modelling it by incorporating "safety" into its core values. In early 2018, a Safety Summit involving stakeholders from across the chemistry enterprise was convened to consider strategies for "accelerating the adoption of an ethos of safety across the chemical enterprise". The summit resulted in a better understanding of the factors influencing the implementation of safe chemical practices, programs in progress to effect change in this area, and gaps where additional effort is needed. Opportunities were identified where the ACS could make a meaningful impact on chemical safety and which aligned with the goals of the Society. In this paper, we will describe how the ACS strategic plan addresses the chemical safety challenges in relation to both historical influences and the current environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a review of work on the potential of biorefineries. First, it considers the concept of a refinery, the differences between biomass and oil, and the advantages of a biorefinery over a refinery. It goes on to describe the bio‐based economy and biorefinery concepts, and to discuss its origin as a promising alternative to dependence on non‐renewable feedstocks. It provides an exhaustive description of the classification of biorefineries, considering aspects such as systems, technological implementation status, size, feedstocks, platforms, products, and conversion processes. It outlines the main methodologies for designing biorefineries – conceptual design, optimization, and the 'early stage' method. Methodologies for the economic, environmental, and social assessment of a biorefinery are presented. Finally, challenges linked to the implementation of biorefinery projects at industrial level are discussed. The authors conclude that the methodologies of conceptual design and optimization must complement each other to achieve a robust design from a conceptual and mathematical point of view. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two‐component isocyanate curing films (2C NCO) yield a unique combination of properties, such as excellent mechanical and chemical resistances and very good film formation. For waterborne 2C NCO curing applications, dedicated polyols and polyisocyanates have been developed. Film properties such as drying rate, hardness development and conversion of isocyanate groups were found to depend strongly on the hydroxyl group content of the polyol, and with that the amount of polyisocyanate crosslinker which is added to a formulation. Tack‐free time of a film does not, however, correlate to the conversion of isocyanate groups and, hence, to crosslink density. The crosslink density and chemical resistances increase with hydroxyl group content, although not all chemical resistances increase (coffee resistance) along this trend. This is explained with hydrolysis of isocyanates resulting in more hydrophilic urea links. Due to early vitrification of the curing film, diffusion of crosslinker and, hence, mixing of polyol and crosslinker are impaired. As a result, with increasing hydroxyl group concentration, an increasing part of the crosslinker cannot react with hydroxyl groups and can only undergo hydrolysis. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry Two‐component isocyanate curing films (2C NCO) yield a unique combination of properties, such as excellent mechanical and chemical resistances and very good film formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polyurethanes exhibit excellent coating properties for many applications. Facing the continuous growth of the polyurethane coating market, in the last few years many scientists have addressed the safety and sustainability of their production. This paper highlights the efforts that have been pursued in this direction from both the academic and industrial perspectives and covers aspects ranging from the substitution of petroleum‐based monomers by biobased equivalents to the development of novel synthetic pathways for the production of polyhydroxyurethanes. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry Towards greener polyurethane coatings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first total synthesis of carthamin (3), a historic natural red pigment, has been achieved. The molecular structure was efficiently constructed by assembling two equivalents of the in situ generated lithiated monomers and triisopropyl orthoformate. This synthesis confirms the structure proposed in 1996. Go red: The first total synthesis of carthamin, a historic natural red pigment, has been achieved. The molecular structure was efficiently constructed by assembling two equivalents of in situ generated lithiated monomers and triisopropyl orthoformate, concluding its structural identity after a century‐long scrutiny of the chemical society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In the past 15+ years, gas chromatography (GC) has undergone a renaissance in its implementation on the basis of the “disruptive” technology of comprehensive two‐dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC). With a foundation based upon a two‐column GC separation approach, GC×GC significantly alters the classical multidimensional gas chromatography (MDGC) method by employing very fast separation on a second dimension (2D) after a conventional one‐dimensional (i.e., single column; 1D) column separation. This allows the experimentalist to apply the advantages of multidimensionality to the total sample rather than to just discrete zones of the 1D separation that characterizes MDGC. This requires a new “language” to describe GC×GC separations, applied to the first dimension (1D) and 2D, and consideration of the modulation processes that define the transfer of analyte from the 1D to the 2D. The present review is based on the FACS Foundation lectureship of the author given at the 17th Asian Chemical Congress of the Federation of Asian Chemical Societies (FACS). The award lecture and this manuscript is based on material deriving largely from research in the area of MDGC and GC×GC separations of the author. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The author's experience as editor of John D. Roberts' autobiography The Right Place at the Right Time published by the American Chemical Society in 1990 forms the basis for his description of Roberts as a research scientist and teacher, an author, a citizen of the world, and a friend. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new type of organic‐inorganic hybrid hydrogel was prepared under the condition of low air press using SiO2 nanoparticles as initiator. The products shows a novel microstructure and characteristics that increased salt resistance and proper water absorbency. The xerogel showed absorbencies of 102.8 g/g for 0.9 wt% NaCl solution, respectively. More details will be discussed by Dr. Haiwang Wang and his co‐workers on page 157–293 in this issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This special issue of the Journal of the Chinese Chemical Society is dedicated to Prof. Tien‐Yau Luh in honor of his 70th birthday. In this issue, 16 articles/reviews represent cutting‐edge research carried out by many of Prof. Luh's friends, colleagues, former students and coworkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One-hundred fifty years ago, on the eve of German unification, about one-hundred people gathered in Berlin to found the German Chemical Society (DChG) under the charismatic leadership of August Wilhelm von Hofmann, who attracted a large international membership by promoting modern organic chemistry. By 1892, when Emil Fischer succeeded Hofmann, the DChG was the world's largest chemical society. Under Fischer the Society promoted international collaboration with foreign societies, and in 1900 it opened an impressive headquarters, the Hofmann House, where it centralized its greatly expanded literary activity including abstracts and reference publications. Yet a half-century later, after war and racial-national extremism, the house lay in ruins and the Society had ceased to exist. In remembering the Society, one may well ask why its auspicious beginning should have led to this ignominious end. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time to reflect: This issue marks the 750th issue of Chemistry—A European Journal. The journal has played a significant role in changing chemistry. Its history has featured top papers from top authors for more than 20 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

General chemistry courses are often the foundation for the study of other science disciplines and upper-level chemistry concepts. Students who take introductory chemistry courses are more often from health and science-related fields than chemistry. As such, the content taught and assessed in general chemistry courses is envisioned as building blocks for concepts in other science courses and across many science disciplines. American Chemical Society (ACS) exams are developed by committees of expert chemists and serve as representative artifacts of content valued by the chemistry community. Before an exam is released, items developed by an examination committee undergo trial testing, and items deemed too easy, too hard, or not discriminating based on item statistics are removed. Analysis of content coverage from items on multiple released general chemistry ACS exams from the past decade and their associated unreleased trial tests revealed content areas where few exam items were written. Content coverage was analyzed by aligning exam items to the ACS Anchoring Concepts Content Map for General Chemistry. By comparing released and unreleased trial items, we found that many of the content coverage gaps on released exams are the result of a lack of items developed about these concepts. These conceptual holes warrant a discussion of whether what is being assessed is what is desired to be assessed and how curricular improvement and assessment reform efforts address content coverage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this Essay we write about the history of the German Catalysis Society Meeting, the unification of its component clubs, their members, and how those responsible pushed the boundaries of science policy and funding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at providing a statistical model for the preferred behavior of authors submitting a paper to a scientific journal. The electronic submission of (about 600) papers to the Journal of the Serbian Chemical Society has been recorded for every day from Jan. 01, 2013 till Dec. 31, 2014, together with the acceptance or rejection paper fate. Seasonal effects and editor roles (through desk rejection and subfield editors) are examined. An ARCH-like econometric model is derived stressing the main determinants of the favorite day-of-week process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Should manuscripts by young authors with low H indices be directly rejected? Such crazy ideas can be extrapolated from the notion that lots of citations are a guarantee for high quality. Such flawed developments in scientific publishing are one theme of the Editorial by the Editor in Chief of Angewandte Chemie, as are far more positive aspects, such as the activities of the German Chemical Society (GDCh; Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker) in it anniversary year, 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A table of contents for the issue is presented.

The times of the “ivory tower” are over; society expects that scientists accept their responsibility for the consequences of their research. In addition, due to numerous examples of significant misbehavior, scientists are increasingly judged by the general public whether they perform according to good scientific practice. Learned societies play an important role here, which, however, has changed since such societies were established more than 150 years ago. This article addresses these questions with a special focus on the situation in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Obituary: We are very sad that the ISN lost its President Kazuhiro Ikenaka, Professor and Chairman at National Institute for Physiological Sciences (NIPS), Director of Okazaki Institute of Integrative Biology. JNeurochem published an Obituary to value his outstanding achievements: Akio Wanaka et al. (2019) OBITUARY Kazuhiro Ikenaka (1952‐2018). https://doi.org/10.1111/jnc.14679 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As you may be aware, the American Chemical Society (ACS) has adopted Safety into its Core Values. What does this mean to you? Are you prepared to lead the way in safety like you do the other aspects of your technical undertakings? It may mean thinking and acting differently as you go about your everyday activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article congratulates several members of the New Zealand Institute of Chemistry. Topics include congratulations to Leandro Dias Araujo and Jessica Suda on the birth of their son Enzo, congratulations to Mahsa Motshakeri for winning the best poster prize for a symposium on nanomaterials and Rakesh Arul, from the Photon Factory, who was awarded a Cambridge-Rutherford Memorial doctor of philosophy degree (PhD) scholarship.

The article offers information on several happenings related to the New Zealand Institute of Chemistry Council (NZIC) held in Otago, New Zealand as of January 2019. Topics include NZIC members Sameek Singh and Andrea Vernall attended the Medicinal Chemistry and Chemical Biology Conference in Brisbane, Queensland, and Calum Gordon jointly won the prize for the best student talk at the Otago Energy Research Centre (OERC) annual symposium.

The article discusses about the development of a new non-hormonal male birth control pill may help expand options, along with develop a non-hormonal male contraceptive to avoid these side effects. It mentions that researchers targeted a protein called the retinoic acid receptor alpha in order to develop non-hormonal male contraceptive.

This paper aims at providing an introduction to the behavior of authors submitting a paper to a scientific journal. Dates of electronic submission of papers to the Journal of the Serbian Chemical Society have been recorded from the 1st January 2013 till the 31st December 2014, thus over 2 years. There is no Monday or Friday effect like in financial markets, but rather a Tuesday–Wednesday effect occurs: papers are more often submitted on Wednesday; however, the relative number of going to be accepted papers is larger if these are submitted on Tuesday. On the other hand, weekend days (Saturday and Sunday) are not the best days to finalize and submit manuscripts. An interpretation based on the type of submitted work (“experimental chemistry”) and on the influence of (senior) coauthors is presented. A thermodynamic connection is proposed within an entropy context. A (new) entropic distance is defined in order to measure the “opaqueness” = disorder) of the submission process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A table of contents for the December 2015 issue of the journal "Chemical Communications" is presented.

Chemistry has served a unique historical role among the sciences by not only studying the world around us, but also creating the chemicals we study and use. The impacts of chemistry are accordingly more profound on earth and societal systems, and helping our students understand both the benefits and potential hazards of chemicals and chemical processes represents a core responsibility of chemistry education. Establishing an overarching learning outcome for chemistry courses presents a flexible approach for embracing the challenge posed by our unique history and catalyzing future contributions to society through the students we educate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A table of contents for the September 2015 issue of the "Journal of the Chinese Chemical Society" is presented.