2024-12-02 - A tiny, four-fingered “hand” folded from a single piece of DNA can pick up the virus that causes COVID-19 for highly sensitive rapid detection and can even block viral particles from entering cells to infect them, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers report. Dubbed the NanoGripper, the nanorobotic hand also could be programmed to interact with other viruses or to recognize cell...

2024-11-25 - In honor of the 80th birthday of chemistry Prof. John Katzenellenbogen, several alumni of his research group organized a scientific symposium that was held Nov. 8-9 on the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus where he has been a faculty member for over 50 years. More than 70 alumni of the Katzenellenbogen research group returned for the event that included a one-day symposium featuring...

2024-11-20 - Scott E. Denmark, Reynold C. Fuson Professor of Chemistry, has been elected a Center for Advanced Study professor. Prof. Denmark is one of seven new CAS professors elected in November. The others are Lisa Ainsworth, Plant Biology; Jodi Flaws, Comparative Biosciences; Peter Fritzsche, History; Bill Gropp, Siebel School of...

2024-11-18 - Nicholas E. Jackson has won the 2024 Computational Molecular Science and Engineering Forum's Young Investigator Award.  Jackson, assistant professor of chemistry and Lincoln Excellence for Assistant Professors Scholar, was cited for "the development and application of scalable quantum mechanical approaches to soft materials at...

2024-11-14 - The American Chemical Society's Board of Directors has awarded Petroleum Research Fund grants to 126 researchers, including chemistry professor Liviu M. Mirica, in the second application round of 2024. Mirica said this award from the ACS Petroleum Research Fund will allow his research group to develop functional model systems of the carbon...

2024-10-16 - By combining visible light and electrochemistry, researchers have enhanced the conversion of carbon dioxide into valuable products and stumbled upon a surprising discovery. The team found that visible light significantly improved an important chemical attribute called selectivity, opening new avenues not only for CO2 conversion but also for many other chemical reactions used in catalysis research...

2024-10-02 - For typical illnesses, the body’s immune system is a robust, pathogen-killing machine. It provides a general defense against harmful germs while also adapting and producing antibodies that target specific bacteria or viruses. After fighting off an infection like the flu, the body produces regulatory T cells, also known as Tregs. These cells send signals to slow down the immune system, usually an...

2024-09-18 - The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has awarded a $5.6 million grant to the Neuroproteomics & Neurometabolomics Center on Cell-Cell Signaling. Established in 2005 at Illinois, the Center is a designated NIDA Center of Excellence that provides expertise and technologies to support researchers who require state-of-the-art...

2024-09-18 - In a 1994 alumni profile story, Dr. David Milligan (MS, ’65; PhD, ’67) expressed his belief that hard work and the rational application of science would continue to pay off in years to come. “In the future, industry will be scrambling to hire high quality talent. There is a tremendous need for more scientifically literate students evolving through the system,” said Milligan, who was Abbott...

2024-09-12 - Taking inspiration from enzymes, chemists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign developed a catalyst to simplify the synthesis of ethers, key functional components of many drugs, foods, personal care items and other consumer goods. The catalyst puts the two chemical ingredients in just the right proximity and position to come together, bypassing the need for the steps and quantities...

2024-09-06 - In her first month on campus as the new Assistant Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Chemical Sciences, Raylene Gomez Hernandez continues to meet with various faculty, staff, and students to get acclimated to her new position. “The most exciting part of this new journey is the wonderful opportunity of meeting students and collaborating with all the awesome staff and faculty in...

2024-08-26 - Three graduate students in chemistry and a materials science and engineering student in a chemistry research group have been recognized with awards from the American Chemical Society for their leadership in one of three areas — mentoring, research safety, or diversity, equity, inclusion and respect. Leadership in Mentoring: This recognition category highlights outstanding...

2024-08-30 - A major project launched in early 2024 features the renovation of a 6,000 square foot area on the second floor of Noyes Laboratory where the School of Chemical Sciences is leading the modernization of undergraduate labs, including advanced organic and inorganic lab facilities, equipment and curriculum to better prepare its students for successful careers in chemistry. One half of this state-of-...

2024-09-04 - Wilfred A. van der Donk has won the 2025 Alfred Bader Award in Bioorganic or Bioinorganic Chemistry, a national award administered by the American Chemical Society. His research focuses on the discovery and design of new antibiotics and natural products, focusing on projects that combine synthetic organic and protein chemistry to address problems at the interface of chemistry and biology. ...

2024-09-04 - With a natural enzyme as inspiration, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have designed an artificial enzyme that converts methanol to formaldehyde in a process that has the potential to massively reduce energy use in the commercial production of this prevalently used chemical. The artificial metalloenzyme (ArM) created by chemistry professor Lisa Olshansky and graduate...