—Collaborations announced for antibody-drug conjugate development “Merck KGaA and Merck & Co. announce end-of-year pacts to develop ADC cancer treatments” Two pharma giants have struck up international licensing collaborations involving antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs). ADCs use their antibody component to guide a drug payload to specific sites in the body.
by Shi En Kim | December 29, 2022
For students at that time, joining ACS was the first step into our profession, whether we were considering careers in medicine, chemical engineering, or chemistry. Little did we know at the time that the network we were unfolding was so immense and that we were opening up a lifetime of career opportunities, collaborations, and friendships.
by Angela K. Wilson, ACS President | December 16, 2022
When things we’ve been a part of for years are suddenly different, it can be unsettling and disruptive. But change is also the start of something new, which is exciting and filled with opportunities. C&EN is experiencing change. As we prepare to enter our centennial year, we are doing so with a slightly different organizational structure.
by Susan R. Morrissey | December 16, 2022
—6 experts predict chemistry’s big trends for 2023 “Chemists in academia and industry discuss what will make headlines next year” Maher El-Kady, chief technology officer, Nanotech Energy, and electrochemist, University of California, Los Angeles “In order to eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels and reduce our carbon emissions, the only real alternative is to electrify everything from homes to cars.
December 15, 2022
Tied up with a bow Chemists tied a molecular knot with a record-breaking 12 crossings this year. David A. Leigh’s trefoil of trefoils is a three-way crossing of three-way crossings and contains a dizzying 378 atoms (Science 2022, DOI: 10.1126/science.abm9247). The behemoth molecule is made of one continuous strand that took 3 years to complete.
by Leigh Krietsch Boerner | December 07, 2022
Sales in its largest business, WuXi Chemistry, more than doubled. The performance at Asymchem and Porton Pharma Solutions, two other publicly traded drug services providers in China, has been similarly robust this year. And WuXi’s third-quarter earnings report predicts that the firm “will maintain strong growth regardless of the environment.”
by Michael McCoy | December 02, 2022
For historical reference, roughly 20 years passed between when Pong sequels first shipped with an AI opponent option and when IBM’s Deep Blue supercomputer defeated human international chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov. If the idea of living, learning supercomputers shakes your certainty in humanity’s continued dominance on Earth, Newscripts can offer one consoling result from the paper: human cell lines consistently outperformed mouse cell lines at Pong.
by Craig Bettenhausen | November 27, 2022
These designs date from World War II, when planes were in active service for less than a year on average, Lindgren says. “In the last few decades, we’ve extended the [service] life. So now they may be in the inventory for 40 years or longer,” he says. “Materials systems aren’t perfect,” Lindgren acknowledges.
by Mitch Jacoby | November 27, 2022
—Airlines invest in chemistry as a way to decarbonize “Sustainable aviation fuel and direct air capture win big bucks from the aviation industry” The airline industry has committed a lot of funds for its decarbonization goals this year, and that trend continues. Airbus and Air Canada have invested in the direct air capture (DAC) firm Carbon Engineering, and Etihad Airways has signed a long-term pact with the biofuel maker World Energy for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
by Craig Bettenhausen | November 22, 2022