Atomic News Roundup—December 2024
Diabetes and anti-obesity drugs might improve mental health. But how?
Ozempic and similar drugs based on the active ingredient semaglutide seem to improve patients’ mental health, but how is still unknown.
Semaglutide is in the drug class glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, used to treat diabetes and obesity. The drugs are modeled after GLP-1 hormones that the body naturally produces to regulate blood sugar and help you feel full, but chemical modifications keep GLP-1 drugs circulating in the body longer.
Researchers have proposed a variety of mechanisms by which GLP-1 drugs could impact mental health, from changing the reward pathway in the brain to reducing inflammation. Results from clinical trials could come as early as next year and may suggest a new treatment approach for depression and other psychiatric conditions.
Read the full article in C&EN: Can diabetes drugs like Ozempic tackle the mental health crisis?
In cats, dinner’s aroma enhances its appeal
Cats have a well-developed sense of smell that impacts how they feel about their food. Specific volatile aroma compounds can make kibble more palatable, according to a study by Shanghai Institute of Technology researchers.
The team made four aromatic sprays by heating chicken liver proteins that had been broken down to different degrees, producing more than 50 flavor compounds and additional aroma compounds. Then, the researchers coated samples of commercial cat food with each spray.
Ten feline recruits were offered the four samples, along with a control. The winning dishes featured the furthest broken-down proteins and the highest levels of free amino acids, which had more mushroom and fatty flavors. This insight could help companies develop appetizing, sustainable meals for our picky friends.
Read the full article in ACS Axial: Letting Cats Have a Say in Designing Their Perfect Food Flavors
This device could make lithium mining more sustainable
Lithium, essential for many clean energy technologies, is typically mined from brines or hard-rock ores. A new device by researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) could offer a more sustainable, environmentally friendly method.
The device features a cathode chamber holding brine from the Dead Sea or brine with a similar composition and an anode chamber holding an extraction solution. The brine has a lower lithium concentration than brines commonly used today, 5–80 ppm.
Under a small electric field, an electrode in the cathode chamber selectively takes up lithium ions while a paired electrode in the anode chamber releases them. When the extraction solution is laden with lithium ions, sodium carbonate is added to produce battery-grade lithium carbonate powder. In a pilot test, a system with 1,000 L tanks and 300 electrode pairs extracted more than 84% of the lithium.
Read the full article in C&EN: Device extracts lithium from Dead Sea brine
Methanol poisoning lies in its metabolites
Ingested methanol is toxic in small doses. Still, some producers cut costs by adding the alcohol to liquor. In the past 26 years, there have been nearly 1,000 mass poisonings globally, leading to nearly 13,500 deaths.
Ethanol and methanol are metabolized by the same enzyme pathways in the liver. However, whereas ethanol is converted to acetaldehyde—leading to hangover symptoms—and then acetate, methanol takes a more dangerous turn. It’s converted to formaldehyde, then formic acid. Formic acid breaks down slowly, which can lead to a lethal buildup of acid.
Identifying methanol poisoning is challenging, in part because its initial symptoms are similar to ethanol poisoning. Distinguishing signs may not show up for 12–48 hours, and bedside diagnostic tools aren’t readily available.
Read the full article in C&EN: How methanol poisons
Coating keeps synthetic microfibers in fabrics—and out of the ocean
Cleaning nylon and polyester clothing adds around 500,000 metric tons of microfiber pollution to the oceans each year. A fabric finish developed at the University of Toronto could potentially reduce that amount without sacrificing comfort or performance.
Abrasive friction between fibers causes microfibers to break off in the washing machine. To reduce this, the team designed a two-layered coating. Adhesive molecules on one side bind to the fabric, while polymer chains on the other side stick out like bristles to reduce friction.
The researchers applied variations of their coating to nylon and polyester fabrics and washed them five times in a typical warm-water home machine cycle. The coatings reduced microfiber loss by 84–96%, depending on the fabric structure and finish.
Read the full article in C&EN: Slippery fabric finish cuts microplastic pollution
New approaches to nutritious and delicious ultraprocessed foods
The flavors imbued by sugar, salt, and saturated fat can be hard to resist, but companies are exploring ways to make great-tasting, healthier ultraprocessed foods.
Many artificial sweeteners have unwanted flavors, so some companies are taking a different approach to reducing sugar content—increasing the sweetness of sugar by chemically transforming it into a more amorphous crystal, for example.
Other companies are developing new ingredients to mask unwanted flavors, like a mushroom-derived product that hides bitter, sour, or astringent flavors. Still others are devising new substitute ingredients, such as an unsaturated fat replacement made of olive oil encapsulated in a potato protein scaffold.
Whether these approaches can produce nutritious snacks that rival junk food staples remains to be taste-tested.
Read the full article in C&EN: A healthier candy bar?
More on the Future of Food:
Welcome to the age of fermentation
Fat cells bring the flavor to lab-grown meat
About the Author
Kendra Redmond
is a freelance writer based in Minnesota. She specializes in sharing physical science discoveries and supporting science students along their journeys.
