Chemical Society Reviews Blog

Hot Chemical Society Reviews articles for May

06 May 2014

Here are the latest referee-recommended hot articles from Chemical Society Reviews – you can download them free until the end of May:

Mesoporous materials for clean energy technologies
Noemi Linares, Ana M. Silvestre-Albero, Elena Serrano, Joaquín Silvestre-Albero and Javier García-Martínez
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60435G, Review Article

AIE macromolecules: syntheses, structures and functionalities
Rongrong Hu, Nelson L. C. Leung and Ben Zhong Tang
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C4CS00044G, Review Article

Multifunctional metal–organic frameworks constructed from meta-benzenedicarboxylate units
Yabing He, Bin Li, Michael O’Keeffe and Banglin Chen
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C4CS00041B, Review Article

Macro-/micro-environment-sensitive chemosensing and biological imaging
Zhigang Yang, Jianfang Cao, Yanxia He, Jung Ho Yang, Taeyoung Kim, Xiaojun Peng and Jong Seung Kim
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C4CS00051J, Review Article

Recent progress in metal–organic complexes for optoelectronic applications
Hui Xu, Runfeng Chen, Qiang Sun, Wenyong Lai, Qianqian Su, Wei Huang and Xiaogang Liu
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014,43, 3259-3302
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60449G, Review Article

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Progress in Allene Chemistry – Themed Issue

11 Apr 2014

By Liz Bowley.

During the last three decades the chemistry of allenes has fascinated scientists world-wide. Guest editors, Benito Alcaide and Pedro Almendros, have gathered together a collection of papers highlighting the importance of allene chemistry. There is a diverse range of around 150 natural products containing an allenic or cumulenic structure; many of them showing interesting and promising therapeutic activities.

From tutorial reviews demonstrating the use of allenes as building blocks, the cycloadditions of allenes and an insight into the gold chemistry of allenes to review articles on the cyclization, synthesis and conversion of allenes, this collection acts as a reference for scientists in the area. The combination of these tutorial reviews and review articles illustrate the versatility of the cumulated diene system of allenes. This themed issue provides a multidisciplinary view of the chameleonic allene moiety – from synthesis, structure, and reactivity to properties of allenes. Click here to access the full collection of paper.

To view the full editorial for free* click the link below.

Progress in allene chemistry

Benito Alcaide and Pedro Almendros
DOI: 10.1039/C4CS90020K

*Access is free through a registered RSC account – click here to register

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Just How High is That Barrier?

10 Apr 2014

By Iain Larmour, web science writer.

Iain Larmour is a guest web writer for Chem Soc Rev. He has researched a wide variety of topics during his years in the lab including nanostructured surfaces for water repellency and developing nanoparticle systems for bioanalysis by surface enhanced optical spectroscopies. In his spare time he enjoys reading, photography, art and inventing.

Chemical reactions often have reaction barriers that must be overcome in order for reactants to become products. Appreciating the origins of these barriers and more importantly quantifying their heights from raw data is of significant use to the Chemist. Therefore, the Chemist would like to have these features in the general model of reactivity which they use. A model that can predict barriers from raw data is the Valence Bond model, the focus of this quality Tutorial Review.

Sason Shaik from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and colleagues share with the reader their insight from the development of the Valence Bond model. They focus on hydrogen atom transfer, the step most chemical oxidations begin with and which is therefore immensely important. They begin from the simplest hydrogen exchange reaction and work up to the more complex hydroxylation by Cyctochrome P450.

Valence Bond Models and the effect of different intermediates on the energy profile (bold line).

The authors take the reader through the preparation and use of valence bond diagrams and thus equip the reader with the tools required to understand mechanisms and predict chemical reactivity patterns. The authors have taken their role as tutors seriously and have provided the reader with supplementary data which they can use to work through problems and reconstruct results on their own. This focus on the reader, as a student, is very welcome and will ensure the interested reader appreciates the quality of the Valence Bond model as a useful interface between experiment and theory and between computations and understanding.

Read the Chem Soc Rev Tutorial Review in full now – for free*

A Tutorial for Understanding Chemical Reactivity Through The Valence Bond Approach
Dandamudi Usharani, Wenzhen Lai, Chunsen Li, Hui Chen, David Danovich and Sason Shaik
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, advance article
DOI: 10.1039/C4CS00043A

*Access is free through a registered RSC account – click here to register

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What were the most-read Chem Soc Rev reviews in 2013?

08 Apr 2014

By Bethany Johnson.

Have you seen the most-read Chemical Soc Rev articles from 2013?

The chemistry of graphene oxide
Daniel R. Dreyer, Sungjin Park, Christopher W. Bielawski and Rodney S. Ruoff
DOI: 10.1039/B917103G

Gold nanorods and their plasmonic properties
Huanjun Chen, Lei Shao, Qian Li and Jianfang Wang
DOI: 10.1039/C2CS35367A

Heterogeneous photocatalyst materials for water splitting
Akihiko Kudo and Yugo Miseki
DOI: 10.1039/B800489G

Graphene-based composites
Xiao Huang, Xiaoying Qi, Freddy Boey and Hua Zhang
DOI: 10.1039/C1CS15078B

A review of electrode materials for electrochemical supercapacitors
Guoping Wang, Lei Zhang and Jiujun Zhang
DOI: 10.1039/C1CS15060J

Nanomaterials for energy conversion and storage
Qifeng Zhang, Evan Uchaker, Stephanie L. Candelaria and Guozhong Cao
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS00009E

Microfluidic lab-on-a-chip platforms: requirements, characteristics and applications
Daniel Mark, Stefan Haeberle, Günter Roth, Felix von Stetten and Roland Zengerle
DOI: 10.1039/B820557B

Three dimensional macroporous architectures and aerogels built of carbon nanotubes and/or graphene: synthesis and applications
Stefania Nardecchia, Daniel Carriazo, M. Luisa Ferrer, María C. Gutiérrez and Francisco del Monte
DOI: 10.1039/C2CS35353A

Nanostructured metal chalcogenides: synthesis, modification, and applications in energy conversion and storage devices
Min-Rui Gao, Yun-Fei Xu, Jun Jiang and Shu-Hong Yu
DOI: 10.1039/C2CS35310E

Biosensors: sense and sensibility
Anthony P. F. Turner
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS35528D

Inorganic nanostructures for photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic water splitting
Frank E. Osterloh
DOI: 10.1039/C2CS35266D

Metal–organic framework materials as catalysts
JeongYong Lee, Omar K. Farha, John Roberts, Karl A. Scheidt, SonBinh T. Nguyen and Joseph T. Hupp
DOI: 10.1039/B807080F

Templated synthesis of nanostructured materials
Yiding Liu, James Goebl and Yadong Yin
DOI: 10.1039/C2CS35369E

Selective gas adsorption and separation in metal–organic frameworks
Jian-Rong Li, Ryan J. Kuppler and Hong-Cai Zhou
DOI: 10.1039/B802426J

Carbon-based materials as supercapacitor electrodes
Li Li Zhang and X. S. Zhao
DOI: 10.1039/B813846J

Chem Soc Rev is the home of high impact reviews from across the chemical sciences and publishes accessible, succinct and reader-friendly articles on topics of current interest.

If you are interested in writing a review, you can submit a review proposal form to Chem Soc Rev for the Editorial Board’s consideration.

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Be among the first to hear about the newest articles being published – Sign-up to our journal news alert to receive information about most read articles, themed issues, journal news, as well as calls for papers and invitations.

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Nucleation & Crystallography Themed Issue

04 Apr 2014

By Liz Bowley.

Crystallisation of compounds is a wondrous process that captures the imagination of children…

This year is the international year of crystallography so guest editors David Amabilino and Xavier Obradors from the Institute of Material Science of Barcelona, introduce the ‘Nucleation and Crystallisation’ themed issue of Chemical Society Reviews.

It is over a hundred years since the thermodynamic principles of nucleation were established. The formation of crystals can be spectacular, but the mechanisms of their nucleation and growth are not fully understood. Control over crystallisation can be achieved, but there are still a number of outstanding fundamental questions that remain unanswered.

With different backgrounds, yet a common passion for nucleation and crystallisation, our guest editors put together a collection of view-points of crystallisation from across different areas of chemistry. From crystal crops in Mexico to pulsed lasers and crystallisation techniques involving light, this stimulating collection fuses together the great advances made over the years in the different disciplines of chemistry.

The Nucleation and Crystallisation themed issue is now available online. To access the full editorial for free, click the link below:
Nucleation & crystallisation
David B. Amabilino and Xavier Obradors
DOI: 10.1039/C4CS90015D

If this fascinating area of chemistry inspires you, why not attend the upcoming discussion in Leeds?
Nucleation – A Transition State to the Directed Assembly of Materials

Faraday Discussion
30 March – 1 April 2015, Leeds MET, UK
http://rsc.li/nucleation-fd2015

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Hot articles in Chem Soc Rev

03 Apr 2014

By Bethany Johnson.

Here are the latest referee-recommended hot articles from Chemical Society Reviews – download them free until the end of April:

Zeolitic imidazolate framework composite membranes and thin films: synthesis and applications
Jianfeng Yao and Huanting Wang
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60480B, Review Article

Tuning the structure and function of metal–organic frameworks via linker design
Weigang Lu, Zhangwen Wei, Zhi-Yuan Gu, Tian-Fu Liu, Jinhee Park, Jihye Park, Jian Tian, Muwei Zhang, Qiang Zhang, Thomas Gentle III, Mathieu Bosch and Hong-Cai Zhou
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C4CS00003J, Review Article

Dehydration, dehydrogenation, and condensation of alcohols on supported oxide catalysts based on cyclic (WO3)3 and (MoO3)3 clusters
Roger Rousseau, David A. Dixon, Bruce D. Kay and Zdenek Dohnálek
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60445D, Review Article

Click here for more hot Chem Soc Rev articles

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Hot Chem Soc Rev articles for March

26 Mar 2014

By Bethany Johnson.

Here are this month’s referee-recommended hot articles – you can read and download them free until 13th April

All the articles below are free to access until 13th April

Chiral metal nanoparticle-catalyzed asymmetric C–C bond formation reactions
Tomohiro Yasukawa, Hiroyuki Miyamura and Shū Kobayashi
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014,43, 1450-1461
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60298B, Review Article

Assessment, origin, and implementation of breath volatile cancer markers
Hossam Haick, Yoav Y. Broza, Pawel Mochalski, Vera Ruzsanyi and Anton Amann
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014,43, 1423-1449
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60329F, Review Article

Multifunctional polymer–metal nanocomposites via direct chemical reduction by conjugated polymers
Ping Xu, Xijiang Han, Bin Zhang, Yunchen Du and Hsing-Lin Wang
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014,43, 1349-1360
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60380F, Tutorial Review

Dynamic combinatorial/covalent chemistry: a tool to read, generate and modulate the bioactivity of compounds and compound mixtures
Andreas Herrmann
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014,43, 1899-1933
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60336A, Review Article

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Janus-faced drug discovery

17 Mar 2014

By Sarah Brown.

Sarah Brown is a guest web-writer for Chem Soc Rev. Sarah hung up her lab coat after finishing her PhD and post-doctorate in nanotechnology for diagnostics and therapeutics, and now works in scientific publishing. When not trying to explain science through ridiculous analogies, you can often find her crocheting, baking or climbing, but not all at once. All views are her own.

When the magician pulls the rabbit from the hat, or the coin from behind someone’s ear or even guesses the card that they were thinking of, we commonly think “How did they do that?” (Because we are scientists and magic is not real).

When developing drugs for disease, scientists often design the candidates to interact with a hypothesised pathway or function. These are tested initially on cells, with successful therapeutics escalated to animal testing and clinical trials. However, in a review paper published online in Chem Soc Rev, Andrew Pieper and colleagues from the University of Iowa and Southwestern UT suggest that this method may limit the potential of drug development, inadvertently closing off avenues of discovery due to the presumed understanding of the mode of disease, and also reflecting the bias of the investigators.

The authors took a different approach when developing a drug for neurodegenerative disease. They looked at which drugs would work and then asked “how did it do that?” Rather than use a biochemical or cell-based assay, an in vivo screen was employed to identify potential candidate drugs that increased the number or survival of certain cells in the brain. Of the 1000 small molecules that were tested, one candidate, P7C3, was shown to improve memory and learning in mice. This was also orally available, crossed the blood brain barrier and non-toxic. Subsequently, the authors used the drug as a scaffold to develop a number of derivatives for application as a neuroprotective agent in a number of diseases, including Parkinson’s disease.

This different approach has enabled the development of the drug to move forwards, whilst also being able to look back and investigate the mechanism of action. Perhaps, even more notably, this has also saved a significant amount of time in discovering a potential therapeutic for neurodegenerative diseases, which, with an aging population, are becoming increasingly common.

Click on the link below to download the full article for free*

P7C3 and an unbiased approach to drugdiscovery for neurodegenerative diseases

Andrew A. Pieper, Steven L. McKnight and Joseph M. Ready

Chem Soc Rev Advanced Article

DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60448A

*Access is free through a registered RSC account for 4 weeks – click here to register

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HOT Chem Soc Rev articles for Sept–Nov 2013

20 Dec 2013

By Bethany Johnson.

Here are our referee-recommended HOT Chem Soc Rev articles for September-November 2013– download them for FREE for a limited time!

Anion receptor chemistry: highlights from 2011 and 2012
Philip A. Gale, Nathalie Busschaert, Cally J. E. Haynes, Louise E. Karagiannidis and Isabelle L. Kirby
Chem. Soc. Rev., 2014,43, 205-241
DOI: 10.1039/C3CS60316D, Review Article
From themed collection In celebration of Seiji Shinkai’s 70th Birthday