Sought after for their ability to repel water, grease, and oil, PFAS are a class of more than 4700 synthetic compounds used since the 1950s. One application poorly studied in North America is PFAS in cosmetics. A new study now shows just how much they contain.
Read More >>Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan are working on an air filter to destroy viruses like the one that causes COVID-19. The idea is to capture airborne water droplets after someone coughs or sneezes, and to render viruses inside the droplets harmless by oxidizing them.
Read More >>Macrolides are a class of natural products known for their antibiotic properties and in the past few decades, scientists have also shown they can be important allies in the battle against cancer. Queen’s University researchers are getting closer to developing a macrolide-based treatment.
Read More >>More than a year into a pandemic that has brought the world to its knees, the need to quickly and easily detect pathogens is indisputable. University of New Brunswick chemists examine the use of electrochemical sensors to quickly detect highly contagious diseases and biological weapons.
Read More >>A newly developed nanoconstruct may not only diagnose Alzheimer’s disease at an early stage, but may help slow progression. It can get past the blood brain barrier in mice, target the amyloid-beta peptides that are the hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease and improve magnetic resonance imaging.
Read More >>The toll of pandemic-related plastic waste from discarded PPE is mounting at an alarming rate. Health Canada estimates that between June 2020 and June 2021, 63,000 tons of COVID-19 related PPE will end up as landfill waste. Researchers are investigating possibilities for disinfecting and reusing single-use PPE, including medical gloves and hospital gowns.
Read More >>Sneaking medications past our bodies’ blood-brain barrier has always been tricky. McMaster University chemical engineer Todd Hoare recently teamed up with a group of neuroscientist colleagues to make an antipsychotic nasal spray that does just that. The spray could reduce the drug’s often nasty side effects, including weight gain, diabetes, movement disorders and organ damage.
Read More >>Environmental contaminants can have different effects on women and men. The International Pollutants Elimination Network recently connected the dots between sex, gender, and chemicals with its report about the distinct effects of chemicals on women. It found women are disproportionally impacted by exposure to chemicals and have less access to participation in decision making.
Read More >>In 1971, U.S. researchers published a proof-of-concept showing how a cyclotron could produce the world’s most commonly used medical isotope. For the next four decades, the paper sat on a shelf. In 2009, University of British Columbia radiologist Dr. François Bénard dusted it off and thought, ‘Why not try to develop that technology?’
Read More >>When something fails to pass the ‘sniff test’ – whether it’s a plan of action or the milk in the back of the fridge – it’s often best to leave it be. But when it comes to unpleasant odours in the air, we don’t have much choice. We have to breathe.
Read More >>Chemist partners with City of Kitchener on innovative air pollution study It’s not every day a chemist gets to directly affect government policy. So Wilfrid Laurier University chemistry Professor Hind Al-Abadleh, MCIC, is understandably excited about her school-based air pollution study in Kitchener. Al-Abadleh launched a pilot air-quality monitoring project earlier in 2020 in partnership with...
Read More >>Researchers put anti-microbial mask coatings to the test. Triiodide, salt, and graphene-nano silver take their turn on the lab bench. Face masks with COVID-fighting coatings may be the next frontier in PPE. At least one such mask is available commercially in Canada – using a triiodide coating – and researchers are investigating the virus-busting powers...
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