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Final press briefing schedule -- 237th American Chemical Society National Meeting in Salt Lake City

All topics are strictly embargoed for the times indicated; note that some press briefings, indicated by **, take place before the embargo time

Sunday, March 22

Researchers in Canada are reporting that proteins found in a common garden pea show promise as a natural food additive or new dietary supplement for fighting high blood pressure and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Those potentially life-threatening conditions affect millions of people worldwide. The study is the first reporting that a natural food product can relieve symptoms of CKD, the scientists say. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for AGFD 002.

Rotimi E. Aluko, Ph.D., is with the Department of Human Nutritional Sciences at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada.

Results of the first human clinical studies confirm that a new yogurt fights the bacteria that cause gastritis and stomach ulcers with what researchers describe as almost vaccine-like effects, scientists in Japan report. Some brands of yogurt are now made with "probiotics" — certain types of bacteria — intended to improve health. The new yogurt represents a unique approach to fighting stomach ulcers, which affect 25 million people in the United States alone, and is part of a growing "functional food" market that now generates $60 billion in sales annually. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for AGFD 006.

Hajime Hatta, Ph.D., is with the Department of Food and Nutrition at Kyoto Women's University in Kyoto, Japan.

Chemists in Taiwan are reporting that an ingredient in licorice — widely used in various foods and herbal medicines — appears to block the absorption of cyclosporine, a drug used by transplant patients to prevent organ rejection. This drug interaction could potentially result in transplant rejection, causing illness and even death among patients worldwide who take cyclosporine and licorice together, the researchers caution. The study is the first report of this potential drug interaction, the scientists say. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for AGFD 081.

Pei-Dawn Lee Chao, Ph.D., is with the School of Pharmacy, China Medical University, in Taichung, Taiwan.

Scientists from Germany today reported a major advance toward opening the doors of a carbohydrate-based medicine chest for the 21st Century. Much more than just potatoes and pasta, these carbohydrates may form the basis of revolutionary new vaccines and drugs to battle malaria, HIV, and a bevy of other diseases. Peter H. Seeberger, Ph.D., will describe development of an automated carbohydrate synthesizer, a device that builds these intricate molecules in a few hours — rather than the months or years required with existing technology. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for CARB 004.

Peter H. Seeberger, Ph.D., is with the Max-Planck Institute for Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam (Germany) and a Professor at the Free University Berlin.

Researchers are describing a long-awaited advance toward applying the marvels of nanotechnology in the battle against cancer. They have developed the first hollow gold nanospheres — smaller than the finest flecks of dust — that search out and "cook" cancer cells. The cancer-destroying nanospheres show particular promise as a minimally invasive future treatment for malignant melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer, the researchers say. Melanoma now causes more than 8,000 deaths annually in the United States alone and is on the increase globally. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for COLL 006.

Jin Z. Zhang, Ph.D., is with the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Monday, March 23

Scientists are reporting promising results with a drug called nitrosylcobalamin (NO-Cbl) in battling cancer in dogs without any negative side effects. While it gives profound hope to dog owners, NO-Cbl also points to a powerful new cancer treatment for humans — one that infiltrates cancer cells like a biological Trojan horse. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for BIOL 023.

Joseph A. Bauer, Ph.D., is with the Center for Hematology & Oncology Molecular Therapeutics at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

Researchers are reporting compelling new scientific evidence for the existence of low-energy nuclear reactions (LENR), the process once called "cold fusion" that may promise a new source of energy. One group of scientists, for instance, describe what they term the first clear visual evidence that LENR devices can produce neutrons, subatomic particles that scientists view as tell-tale signs that nuclear reactions are occurring. Low-energy nuclear reactions (LENR) could potentially provide 21st Century society a limitless and environmentally-clean energy source for generating electricity, researchers say. The report injects new life into this controversial field. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for ENVR 30.

Pamela Mosier-Boss, Ph.D., is with the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific (SPAWAR-Pacific) in San Diego, Calif.

Mahadeva Srinivasan, Ph.D., is with the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in Mumbai, India.

John Dash, Ph.D., is with the Low Energy Nuclear Laboratory at Portland State University in Portland, Ore.

Antonella De Ninno, Ph.D., is with the Agency for New Technologies Energy and Environment in Rome, Italy.

Steve Krivit is editor of New Energy Times and author of "The Rebirth of Cold Fusion."

Jan Marwan, Ph.D., is the organizer of the ACS National Meeting symposium "New Energy Technology." He also heads his own research company, Dr. Marwan Chemie in Berlin, Germany.

In the future, natural gas derived from chunks of ice that workers collect from beneath the ocean floor and beneath the arctic permafrost may fuel cars, heat homes, and power factories. Government researchers are reporting that these so-called "gas hydrates," a frozen form of natural gas that bursts into flames at the touch of a match, show increasing promise as an abundant, untapped source of clean, sustainable energy. The icy chunks could supplement traditional energy sources that are in short supply and which produce large amounts of carbon dioxide linked to global warming, the scientists say. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for FUEL 046.

Tim Collett, Ph.D., is with the U.S. Geological Survey in Denver, Colo.

E. Dendy Sloan, Ph.D., is with the Chemical Engineering Department at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colo.

In a dramatic rewrite of the recipe for life, scientists from Florida are reporting the design of a new type of DNA with 12 chemical letters instead of the usual four. This artificial genetic system already is helping to usher in the era of personalized medicine for millions of patients with HIV, hepatitis and other diseases. The research may also shed light on how life arose on Earth, by producing a self-sustaining molecule capable of Darwinian evolution and reproduction, much like one that many scientists suggest arose at the dawn of life on Earth nearly 4 billion years ago. Led by Steven Benner, Ph.D., this team is rewriting the rulebook that Nobel laureates James Watson and Francis Crick started when they described DNA's structure in 1953. One of the crowning discoveries of 20th century science, Watson and Crick's discovery established how the four chemical "letters" of DNA — A, T, C and G — pair up. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for COMSCI 001.

Steven Benner, Ph.D., is with the Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution in Gainesville, Fla.

Tuesday, March 24

Scientists from Japan are reporting development of what could be the world's first "green" hair bleach, an environmentally friendly preparation for lightening the color of hair on the head and other parts of the body without the unwanted effects of the bleaches used by millions of people each year. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for CELL 171.

Kenzo Koike, Ph.D., is with the Kao Corporation's Beauty Research Center in Tokyo, Japan.

Concerns that terrorists could produce a new and particularly dangerous form of the explosive responsible for airport security screening of passengers' shoes and restrictions on liquids in carryon baggage are unfounded, scientists reported today. Gerard Harbison, Ph.D., and colleagues will describe using computer simulations to analyze a variety of potential peroxide-based explosives in the same chemical class as triacetone triperoxide (TATP). That powerful, easy-to-make explosive was used by the "shoe bomber," Richard Reid, in his failed attempt to blow up a transatlantic airline flight in 2001. TATP has also been used by suicide bombers in the Palestinian Intifada. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for COMP 180.

Gerard Harbison, Ph.D., is with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Lincoln, Neb.

Imagine if all you had to do to charge your iPod or your BlackBerry was to wave your hand, or stretch your arm, or take a walk? You could say goodbye to batteries and never have to plug those devices into a power source again. Scientists from Georgia will describe technology that converts mechanical energy from body movements or even the flow of blood in the body into electric energy that can be used to power a broad range of electronic devices without using batteries. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for I&EC 125.

Zhong Liu Wang, Ph.D., is with the School of Material Science and Engineering, at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Ga.

Confusion about what constitutes plagiarism — not malicious intent — is the leading cause of plagiarism at the graduate school level, according to an expert who will present research on the increasingly worrisome problem. George M. Bodner, Ph.D., who serves on the Ethics Committee of the ACS, which is the world's largest scientific society, is among a panel of scientists who will discuss plagiarism during the meeting. The presentations are part of an ACS initiative to educate the larger scientific community about ethics in chemistry. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for CHED 001 and CHED 002.

George M. Bodner, Ph.D. is with Purdue University, in West Lafayette, Ind.

Thomas Holme, Ph.D. is with Iowa State University, in Ames, Iowa

Using aquatic microbes as their "canary-in-a-cage," scientists are reporting that nanoparticles now being added to cosmetics, sunscreens, and hundreds of other personal care products may be harmful to the environment. Their report is part of symposia that included almost two dozen papers at the 237th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society where scientists grappled to understand the environmental and human health effects of nanotechnology. Hundreds of products utilizing these microscopic particles — 1/5,000th the diameter of a human hair — already are on the market. With many more poised for debut, scientists are seeking to avoid unwanted health and environmental effects in advance. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for ENVR 094.

Cyndee L. Gruden, Ph.D. is with the University of Toledo in Ohio.

Wednesday, March 25

Scientists who traced a genetic mutation for colon cancer back almost 370 years are now confirming that routine screening and education can prevent people with the mutated gene from developing cancer. Deb Neklason, Ph.D., and colleagues explained how they used cancer records and a massive genealogic archive known as the Utah Population Database (UPDB) to trace the genetic condition to a Utah pioneer family and their 7,000 descendents. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for CINF 069.

Deborah W. Neklason, Ph.D., is with the Department of Oncological Studies at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.

Chemists are reporting development of what they termed the first economical, eco-friendly process to convert algae oil into biodiesel fuel — a discovery they predict could one day lead to U.S. independence from petroleum as a fuel. One of the problems with current methods for producing biodiesel from algae oil is the processing cost, and the New York researchers say their innovative process is at least 40 percent cheaper that of others now being used. Supply will not be a problem: There is a limitless amount of algae growing in oceans, lakes, and rivers, throughout the world. Another benefit from the "continuously flowing fixed-bed" method to create algae biodiesel, they add, is that there is no wastewater produced to cause pollution. See corresponding news release, abstract, and nontechnical summary for ENVR 178.

Marianne Meyers, with United Environment & Energy LLC, in Horseheads, NY.

Ben Wen, Ph.D., is with United Environment & Energy LLC, in Horseheads, N.Y.

*Instructions for joining chat room sessions

The American Chemical Society (ACS) Office of Public Affairs is offering the news media the opportunity to join press briefings whether covering the meeting onsite or from a remote location. This new updated format during ACS' 237th National Meeting Mar. 22-26 Salt Lake City will provide access to the increasing number of journalists who cover scientific meetings from their home base.

Borrowing the popular chat room concept from the Internet, we will provide news media with access to both real and virtual chat room sessions during the Salt Lake City meeting.

Reporters attending the meeting can gather with scientists in an informal setting in our Press Briefing Room at the Salt Palace Convention Center, Hall A, in Salt Lake City. Scientists will summarize their research and field questions. Offsite reporters can enter a virtual version of this Chat Room over the Internet. In addition to seeing and hearing the real-world activity, offsite reporters can submit questions.

Like hosts of a traditional chat room, we never know how many participants will join a session. Each session will proceed, regardless of attendance, so that digital transcripts can be made and posted online as a resource for individuals unable to attend.

Chat Room sessions begin at 11:00 a.m. MT on Sunday, March 22, and continue during the week. Get a head start by registering at Ustream.tv, a live, interactive online video site.

To register with Ustream.tv, go to http://ustream.tv/sign-up-step-1. It's free and only takes a minute or two to sign up. To join the chat room during one of our sessions, visit http://www.ustream.tv/acslive and click the "Login" button at the top right of the Ustream window. Ustream requires the latest version of Adobe Flash, which can be downloaded without charge here.

Use the chat box to the right of the video window to submit questions to the researchers. To resolve connection problems contact Adam Dylewski (a_dylewski@acs.org) or Mike Woods (m_woods@acs.org). After the press conference is complete, recorded versions of the sessions and accompanying chat transcripts will be available by going to the ACS Press Room (www.acs.org) and clicking on "Chat Sessions."

The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 154,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

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