The chemical breakdown & Chemistry in its element

It's Nobel season again! And we're doing something a little different here on The chemical breakdown. Instead of our usual stories, in this episode we are turning the microphone to speculation and discussing who we think will be taking home the chemistry Nobel prize this year with Jamie Durrani and Neil Withers.

Each year the Nobel prize is awarded across six categories, including physiology/medicine, physics, literature, peace, economic sciences, and chemistry. This year the announcement of the chemistry prize is set for Wednesday 7 October.

Past winners have included last year's metal organic frameworks, protein structure prediction and design, and quantum dots.
Who is slated to win the prize this year? We trace trends in previous award winners, current predictions being discussed including the Clarivate citation laureates, and chat through our own Chemistry World team's predictions.

Main stories:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/who-will-win-the-2026-nobel-prize-in-chemistry/4024197.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/nobel-prize/the-data-behind-the-nobel-prizes/4010453.article

Headlines:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/hats-off-for-new-lower-temperature-route-to-unzip-plexiglass-for-recycling/4024240.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/300mw-electrolyser-construction-starts-off-spanish-hydrogen-valley/4024272.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/elemental-sulfur-found-in-mammalian-cells-for-first-time/4024258.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/simple-organic-catalyst-walks-phosphate-groups-along-sugar-backbones/4024254.article

This week, we explore how molecular glues have revolutionized how we treat previously 'undruggable' cancers and explore how modern scientific techniques are teasing apart the mysteries of one of the most iconic historical artefacts with Phillip Broadwith and Neil Withers.

A ground-breaking new drug has become the first of its kind to win FDA approval for metastatic pancreatic cancer. Could it mark the beginning of a new era for cancers that have long been considered impossible to target?

We'll also uncover the chemistry behind the investigation and conservation of the Bayeux Tapestry. What secrets have scientists already revealed, and what questions about this iconic artefact remain unanswered?

Main stories:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/us-approves-pancreatic-cancer-treatment-that-targets-undruggable-proteins/4024110.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/features/the-chemistry-helping-to-unravel-the-bayeux-tapestrys-secrets/4024093.article

Headlines:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/does-the-discovery-of-a-new-coronavirus-upend-the-covid-19-lab-leak-hypothesis/4024170.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/uk-funding-agency-to-spend-66-million-on-new-methods-for-engineering-the-mitochondrial-genome/4024165.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/chinas-scientific-rise-is-being-driven-by-returning-expertise-especially-chemists/4024149.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/growing-confidence-of-africas-chemical-societies-brings-chemistrys-benefits-to-continent/4024137.article

This week, we discuss a study showing promise in applying CAR-T immunotherapy in bladder cancer tumours and breakdown how scientists have uncovered spectral signatures previously misassigned in carbon materials – with Frankie Macpherson and Mason Wakley.

CAR-T therapy has been a game changer for blood cancers, yet solid tumours have been largely resistant to this treatment. We discuss a new study that shows promise in applying this immunotherapy in bladder cancer tumours.

And, we discuss why scientists are rethinking how they assign peaks in spectra of carbon-based materials. What does this mean for the technologies that rely on them, and do we need to rethink some long-held assumptions?

Main stories:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/step-forward-for-car-t-therapy-as-it-shows-promise-in-solid-bladder-tumours/4024034.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/chemists-may-be-misassigning-defects-in-carbon-materials-study-suggests/4024018.article

Headlines:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/copper-chains-more-than-4000-atoms-long-are-the-longest-ever-produced/4024095.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/hokkaido-university-graduate-student-dies-after-exposure-to-hydrofluoric-acid/4024098.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/sodium-batteries-durability-and-performance-boosted-by-scandium-additive/4024088.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/molecular-dyes-outside-of-the-srgb-colour-gamut-present-a-challenge-for-digital-chemistry/4024094.article

In this episode, we discuss the changes to science policy made by the new UK prime minister and breakdown the chemistry behind crumbling concrete in Ireland.

On July 21, new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham abolished the government's department of science and absorbing its functions into the business department. What does this mean for UK research? 

And, thousands of Irish buildings are cracking apart, but the culprit may not be what scientists first thought. We discuss the mica crisis and the chemistry behind it.

Main stories:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/science-department-abolished-as-uks-new-prime-minister-andy-burnham-appoints-first-cabinet/4023895.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/why-are-buildings-cracking-up-in-ireland/4023916.article

Headlines:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/chemistry-can-feel-inaccessible-to-british-asian-students-survey-finds/4024036.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/step-forward-for-car-t-therapy-as-it-shows-promise-in-solid-bladder-tumours/4024034.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/uranium-complex-smashes-record-for-consecutive-bonds-between-atoms/4024012.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/organisations-cant-solve-a-problem-they-cant-measure-industry-framework-aims-to-improve-chemical-hazard-monitoring/4024049.article

In this episode, we breakdown the controversy behind a collection of altered images in the online catalogue of one of the largest laboratory suppliers, and discuss the complexity behind chemical recycling of plastics with Frankie Macpherson and Phillip Broadwith.

Multinational laboratory supplier Thermo Fisher Scientific has been criticized after hundreds of doctored images of validation Western blots were found on their online antibody reagent catalogue. We discuss the latest reactions from the scientific community.

And, why hasn't chemical recycling been as successful with plastics? We explain some of the reasons behind the industry's contraction and what it means for the future of plastic recycling.

Main stories:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/thermo-fisher-antibody-data-manipulation-is-a-breach-of-trust-say-researchers/4023854.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/chemical-recycling-plants-closing-in-eu-and-us/4023904.article

Headlines:

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/the-genius-narrative-isnt-inspiring-science-biographies-for-children-may-send-a-demotivating-message/4023970.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/re-engineered-psychedelic-drug-retains-therapeutic-activity-in-mice-while-limiting-negative-side-effects/4023982.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/japan-finalises-joining-the-eus-flagship-research-programme-horizon-europe/4023981.article

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/oral-cholesterol-lowering-peptide-approved-after-a-decade-in-development/4023991.article