The Bryostatin Saga

Quote of the Week
"Studies by a number of international organizations in the last 10 years have clearly shown that the most effective way to help developing countries is by educating and empowering their women."
ALAN LIGHTMAN, FOUNDING DIRECTOR, HARPSWELL FOUNDATION – p. 45
October 24, 2011
In This Issue:
Jump to Table of Contents ↓
Highlights

Cover Story
Bryostatins Retain Promise
New results in total synthesis reinvigorate a 40-year-old field of research. (pp. 10-17)

Government & Policy
Academic Lab Safety Under Exam
Chemical safety board report probes academic research practices, identifies role for ACS. (pp. 25-27)

Science & Technology
For Cave's Art, An Uncertain Future
Disagreement on conservation course of action complicates a potential reopening. (pp. 38-40)
Table of Contents
Cover Story
The Bryostatins' Tale pp. 10-17
With the promise of treating Cancer, Alzheimer's, and HIV, this family of marine natural products continues to intrigue scientists more than four decades after its discovery.
Pioneer: Undersea Treasure Hunter pp. 14-15
Drug Development: Taking The Long Route p. 16
News Of The Week
Shedding Nanoparticles p. 5
Materials Science: Chemists observe metal objects sloughing off ions to form nanoparticles.
European Firms Invest In China p. 6
Specialty Chemicals: Companies pursue local research and production.
Prioritizing Science Funding p. 6
Budget: House committee members outline science funding they think the nation can do without.
Modifying Messenger RNA p. 7
Chemical Biology: Methylated bases in mRNA may have roles in gene regulation and obesity.
Reconsidering Safe Lead Levels p. 7
Preliminary analysis links low blood lead levels with adverse health effects.
House Bills Would Undermine EPA p. 8
Pollution: Congressional Republicans seek to derail rules on boilers, coal ash.
Lab-On-A-Chip For Planets, Moons p. 8
Microfluidics: Automated chip is designed to detect extraterrestrial amino acids.
New Editor For Analytical Chemistry p. 9
Publishing: Jonathan Sweedler to take the helm.
Investors Bet On Cleantech p. 9
Green Chemistry: Close to $1 billion is slated for start-up firms.
Business

Celanese Takes An Ethanol Plunge pp. 20-21 (Member Content)
The chemical producer seeks to make ethanol a major business but is secretive about details of its process.
Building On The Momentum p. 22 (Member Content)
BWA Water Additives rides crest of rising demand for specialty water treatment chemicals.
Business Concentrates p. 18 (Member Content)
- Roche To Acquire Anadys
- To bolster its pipeline of hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapies, Roche has agreed to acquire...
- Abbott Will Split Into Two Companies
- Abandoning its structure as a diversified health care company, Abbott Laboratories will split...
- GE Will Build U.S. Solar Factory
- As part of a $600 million investment in solar energy, General Electric is building what it says will be...
- Floods Hit Thai Chemical Industry
- Although the rains and floods that have afflicted Thailand have not damaged the country’s main...
- Indian Labs Open
- Two specialty chemical firms have opened technical centers in the Mumbai region...
- Investors Launch Sage Therapeutics
- Third Rock Ventures has helped form Sage Therapeutics, based in Boston, by spearheading...
- Business Roundup
- DIC will spend, Yule Catto has acquired, Allychem has licensed...
Education

Haven Of Hope In Cambodia pp. 45-47
Dormitory for women helps cultivate the future leaders of war-ravaged country.
High Expectations, High Achievement Web Exclusive
School Aims To Enable Poor Children To Build A Better Future.
Fulfilling A Dream Web Exclusive
One Young Woman Tells Her Story.
This Week Online

Chemists Write With Conductive Silver Ink
In a video on C&EN's YouTube channel, a researcher shows how to make conductive ink.
Municipal Wastewater Spreads Antibiotic Resistance
Materials Science: Chemists observe metal objects sloughing off ions to form nanoparticles.
Why Women Leave Science
C&EN blogger Christine Herman discusses why women opt out of their jobs and how to reverse this trend. Join the discussion at Just Another Electron Pusher.
Education Fulfills A Dream
Suon describes growing up in Cambodia a decade after the Khmer Rouge fell, her desire to go to college, and how the Harpswell Foundation helped her fulfill that dream.
Government & Policy

Academic Lab Safety Under Exam pp. 25-27
Chemical safety board report probes academic research practices, identifies role for ACS.
Critical Materials Problem Continues pp. 28-31 (Member Content)
Debate over use of and substitutions for rare-earth elements points out a need for much more research.
Alleged Science Manipulation pp. 32-33 (Member Content)
Republicans say EPA chemical assessments are slanted toward tougher regulation.
EPA Clean Air Rules Challenged pp. 34-35 (Member Content)
Republicans, Democrats clash over the costs and benefits of agency’s actions.
Government & Policy Concentrates p. 24 (Member Content)
- New Director For NIH Institute
- Government: Cell biologist Chris A. Kaiser to lead National Institute of General Medical Sciences.
- Flame Retardant May Be Banned
- The flame retardant hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), used primarily in polystyrene products, is a step closer to regulation under a global treaty...
- OSHA Updates For Chemical Safety
- OSHA has published new guidelines to help protect laboratory workers from chemical and physical hazards in the lab...
- Future Unclear For Yucca Mountain
- Stakeholders have little consensus and much uncertainty about possible uses of the now-defunct Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository site...
- EPA Cracks Down On Nitric Acid Plants
- EPA is proposing to sharply reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides from nitric acid plants, the first update in four decades...
» more government & policy news...
Awards
p. 48 (Member Content)
People
p. 49 (Member Content)

Social Networking And C&EN
You can now follow C&EN on Facebook. Become a fan and track the latest news and discussions at facebook.com/CENews.
Science & Technology

For Cave's Art, An Uncertain Future pp. 38-40
Disagreement on conservation course of action complicates a potential reopening.
Cancer Stem Cells pp. 41-43
Researchers zero in on the pathways that allow cancer to bounce back after treatment.
What's That Stuff? Blue Jeans p. 44
Making the iconic pants requires both color-addition and color-removal chemistry.
Science & Technology Concentrates p. 37
- Hydrogenase Spills Secret
- Crystallography reveals novel cluster behind oxygen tolerance, opening up new possibilities for fuel-cell applications
- Brainy Route To Prostaglandins
- Pathway produces prostaglandins differently in the brain than elsewhere in the body
- MOFs Sop Up Oil
- Fluorinated metal-organic framework materials selectively adsorb hydrocarbons
- Planet-Forming Disk Soaked In Cold Water
- Cold water from ice grains add more to picture of solar system formation and water deposition
- Cells Get Electric Jolt, Then A Shot
» more science & technology news...
Editor's Page
Educating Women p. 3
Meetings
2011 C&EN Calendar Web Exclusive
C&EN's latest list of meetings and events of interest to those in the chemical community.
The Departments
Letters p. 2 (Member Content)

Newscripts p. 56
Chemists’ Holiday, Indestructible Data.
C&EN Archives

Now the history of the chemical enterprise is instantly accessible online. C&EN Archives holds the complete collection of C&EN issues dated back from 1923, covering world chemical events, breakthroughs in research, technological advances, business and marketing ventures, government policy, career and education trends, and ACS milestones. With more than 500,000 pages of content, C&EN Archives is instantly accessible and fully searchable, allowing you to discover how the chemical enterprise developed into what it is today.
Head here to discover the past via the C&EN Archives, go to http://pubs.acs.org/cen-archives
Environmental SCENE News
Fertilizer May Help Bacteria Slip Into Groundwater
Water Safety: High phosphate levels allow deadly microbes to pass through soil.
Bisphenol A Is Ubiquitous In Receipts
Endocrine Disrupters: Researchers detect BPA in every receipt that they collected from seven U.S. cities.
Sunlight Is An Effective Disinfectant
Public Health: Field work shows that a cheap water treatment method improves children's health.
House Takes Aim At Clean Air Act
Pollution: Industry backs cost-benefit analyses of EPA rules, but critics fear assault on public health.
Analytical SCENE News
New Method Isolates Membrane Proteins
Protein Purification: Technique separates proteins on a lipid bilayer.
Bisphenol A Is Ubiquitous In Receipts
Endocrine Disrupters: Researchers detect BPA in every receipt that they collected from seven U.S. cities.
Mapping Drugs In Human Tissue
Clinical Chemistry: Mass spectrometry imaging provides view of an inhaled drug in human lung tissue.
Skeletons Come To Light
Fluorescence Imaging: Monitoring cells as they dissolve bone may lead to disease treatments.
Analyzing Nuclear Processes
ACS Meeting News: Analytical chemists devise ways to watch radioactive streams.
JACS Research In C&EN
Indole Changeup Yields Elusive Alkaloid
ACS Meeting News: Cyclization and nitrene insertion star in synthesis.
Prefab Synthesis Moves Ahead
Organic Chemistry: First stable alpha-boryl aldehydes ease preparation of complex small molecules.
Multiple Bradykinin States Revealed
The peptide adopts at least 10 conformers in solution, explaining why its structure had only been partially characterized.
Scaling Up The Axinellamines
A quicker, more efficient, and stereocontrolled route to a key intermediate streamlines natural product syntheses.
A Revamped Vancomycin
Medicinal Chemistry: Modified compound shows promise against hard-to-treat bacteria.
CENtral Science
» News, notes, and musings from C&EN
Check out some of the recent posts from C&EN's blog, "C&ENtral Science"
Services & Tools
ACS Resources
ACS Careers
ACS is the leading employment source for recruiting scientific professionals. ACS Careers and C&EN Classifieds provide employers direct access to scientific talent both in print and online. Jobseekers | Employers
» Join ACS
Join more than 161,000 professionals in the chemical sciences world-wide, as a member of the American Chemical Society.
» Join Now!