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New SLAC theory institute aims to speed research on exotic materials at light sources

DOE/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

A new institute at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is using the power of theory to search for new types of materials that could revolutionize society -- by making it possible, for instance, to transmit electricity over power lines with no loss.

Researchers gain insight into protein critical to Zika virus reproduction

DOE/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Berkeley Lab researchers collaborated with colleagues from the University of Indiana and Texas A&M University to solve the atomic structure of a Zika virus protein that is key to viral reproduction. The X-ray studies were conducted at the Advanced Light Source in the Berkeley Center for Structural Biology.

Journal: Nature Communications
Funder: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, National Institutes of Health

Americans use more clean energy in 2016

DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Americans used more renewable energy in 2016 compared to the previous year, according to the most recent energy flow charts released by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Overall, energy consumption was nearly flat.

Scientists watch a molecule protect itself from radiation damage

DOE/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

When DNA is hit with ultraviolet light, it can lose excess energy from radiation by ejecting the core of a hydrogen atom -- a single proton -- to keep other chemical bonds in the system from breaking. To gain insight into this process, researchers used X-ray laser pulses from the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory to investigate how energy from light transforms a relatively simple molecule, 2-thiopyridone.

Coming to a lab bench near you: Femtosecond X-ray spectroscopy

DOE/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Berkeley Lab researchers have, for the first time, captured the ephemeral electron movements in a transient state of a chemical reaction using ultrafast, tabletop X-ray spectroscopy. The researchers used femtosecond pulses of X-ray light to catch the unraveling of a ring molecule that is important in biochemical and optoelectronic processes.

Journal: Science
Funder: DOE/US Department of Energy

Discovered: Novel group of giant viruses

DOE/Joint Genome Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Viruses are thought to outnumber the microbes on Earth; both outnumber the stars in the Milky Way. A handful of giant viruses have been discovered in the past two decades, and in Science, DOE Joint Genome Institute scientists report a novel group of giant viruses with a more complete set of translation machinery genes than any other virus known to date. They believe that this discovery significantly increases our understanding of viral evolution.

Journal: Science
Funder: DOE/US Department of Energy

X-ray study reveals long-sought insights into potential drug target

DOE/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

X-ray studies done in part at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have produced surprising insights into the workings of a hormone receptor associated with blood pressure regulation. Researchers believe it could be a target for new medicines related to cardiovascular conditions, neuropathic pain and tissue growth.

Journal: Nature
Funder: DOE/US Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health

New device produces hydrogen peroxide for water purification

DOE/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

Producing and distributing hydrogen peroxide is a challenge in many parts of the world. Now scientists at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University have created a small device for hydrogen peroxide production that could be powered by renewable energy sources, like conventional solar panels.

The economic case for wind and solar energy in Africa

DOE/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

To meet skyrocketing demand for electricity, African countries may have to triple their energy output by 2030. While hydropower and fossil fuel power plants are favored approaches in some quarters, a new assessment by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has found that wind and solar can be economically and environmentally competitive options and can contribute significantly to the rising demand.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Cryo-electron microscopy achieves unprecedented resolution using new computational methods

DOE/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM)--which enables the visualization of viruses, proteins, and other biological structures at the molecular level--is a critical tool used to advance biochemical knowledge. Now Berkeley Lab researchers have extended cryo-EM's impact further by developing a new computational algorithm instrumental in constructing a 3-D atomic-scale model of bacteriophage P22 for the first time.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Funder: National Institutes of Health