The journal covers all aspects of sustainable approaches to chemistry, from the test tube to the pilot plant, and is supported by an international Editorial Board headed up by Editor-in-Chief Prof. Munishwar Gupta from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India. In his Editorial, Prof. Gupta explains, “This initiative aims to provide a seamless platform to showcase efforts in the area of sustainable chemistry at the entire range of levels. The broad scope will bring in scientists from diverse disciplines and this should help cross-fertilization of concepts and methods, and awareness ...

Read more]]> We are pleased to announce that Sustainable Chemical Processes, a new open access journal from Chemistry Central, has today published its first articles.

The journal covers all aspects of sustainable approaches to chemistry, from the test tube to the pilot plant, and is supported by an international Editorial Board headed up by Editor-in-Chief Prof. Munishwar Gupta from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India. In his Editorial, Prof. Gupta explains, “This initiative aims to provide a seamless platform to showcase efforts in the area of sustainable chemistry at the entire range of levels. The broad scope will bring in scientists from diverse disciplines and this should help cross-fertilization of concepts and methods, and awareness of what is available in the toolbox of scientists who work in related sub-areas”.

The four launch papers already showcase the diverse range of topics that the journal will cover.

A research article from Prof. Gupta describes a new microwave-assisted method for facilitating rapid solubilization of inclusion bodies. Production of recombinant proteins in bacterial hosts often produces insoluble particles called inclusion bodies. Recovery of active soluble proteins from these inclusion bodies involves solubilization of the inclusion bodies, which can take up to 80 hours. However, the microwave assisted method described by Gupta and colleagues takes just 2 minutes, representing a significant time saving.

Meanwhile, a team of scientists led by Veera Gnaneswar Gude at Mississippi State University, USA, have published a review of the applications of microwave energy technology to biodiesel feedstock preparation and processing. Microwaves have been applied in numerous inorganic and organic chemical syntheses, and recent laboratory scale microwave applications in biodiesel production have proved the potential of the technology to achieve superior results over conventional techniques. The review analyses various laboratory scale studies, and discusses potential design and operation challenges for developing large scale biodiesel production systems. Another review, from Rafał Bogel-Łukasik and colleagues, discusses the use of ionic liquids as a tool for lignocellulosic biomass fractionation. Lignocellulosic biomass represents an abundant and renewable carbon source, but there are various drawbacks in the traditional methods used to process it. The use of ionic liquid technology in biomass processing is relatively recent, and this review provides a critical outlook on the study of biomass dissolution in ionic liquids.

Prof. Gupta feels that the open access model will allow a more inclusive dissemination of research. “Quite often, the scarcity of costly scientific tools becomes the mother of innovation,” he explains, “so, allowing open access becomes a two way street. Scientists from rich nations are able to profit from such innovations happening at places which lacked costly scientific resources. These innovations, many times are possible because scientists working in less developed nations are able to access knowledge via open access journals”.

Sign up for article alerts to keep up to date with the latest research in Sustainable Chemical Processes or visit the website to submit your own work. For more information please feel free to contact the editorial team.

One particular highlight is a paper from W Jeffery Hurst et al. comparing the antioxidant activity and flavanol content of cacao beans processed by modern and traditional Mesoamerican methods. The authors compared unfermented cocoa beans commonly produced and consumed by native Mesoamericans, and fermented Ivory Coast cocoa beans representing the most common country of origin for cocoa in the world today. People native to Mesoamerica and ...

Read more]]> The first papers for Heritage Science, a new journal covering the application of scientific methods for the study of cultural heritage, were published in April. The journal launched with eight papers covering a wide range of topics, and a further six have since been published, attracting more than 15000 article accesses to date.

One particular highlight is a paper from W Jeffery Hurst et al. comparing the antioxidant activity and flavanol content of cacao beans processed by modern and traditional Mesoamerican methods. The authors compared unfermented cocoa beans commonly produced and consumed by native Mesoamericans, and fermented Ivory Coast cocoa beans representing the most common country of origin for cocoa in the world today. People native to Mesoamerica and Northern South America have a tradition of consuming less-fermented or totally unfermented cocoa, but when Europeans began importing cocoa beans there was increased demand for partially or fully fermented cocoa beans, which were less bitter and more suited to European tastes. However, this processing results in a loss of flavanols from the product, and the authors found that the antioxidant capacity and flavanol content of unprocessed Mexican Lavado cocoa beans were significantly higher than that of the unprocessed, fermented Ivory Coast cocoa beans.

Two more articles were added to the Emerging Contaminants thematic series in Chemistry Central Journal in April. In the first, Viviane Yargeau and colleagues from McGill University, Canada, present a method for the identification, structural elucidation and confirmation of ozonation transformation products of the natural hormone estrone. The method proved successful at streamlining identification of the main transformation products and could be more widely applied to other contaminants of emerging concern such as illicit drugs and antibiotics.

Meanwhile, series editor Sébastien Sauvé has published an article on partitioning of silver and chemical speciation of free Ag in soils amended with nanoparticles. Knowledge about silver nanoparticles in soils is limited, but this study provides a method to differentiate free silver ions from silver in the <0.45 μm fraction, and helps to understand how nanosilver reacts in soils.

Other research highlights from April include:

A review article discussing the effects of hydration on parchment artefacts (Gonzalez and Wess)

An investigation of the surface characteristics of two strains of Shewanella sp. (Furukawa and Dale)

The development of an electrochemical DNA biosensor based on the AuNPs/CA/nBDD electrode (Jin, Wei and Wang)

The synthesis and antifungal activities of some novel nicotinamides (Wu et al.)

A description of how chemicalize.org can be used to explore chemical structure connectivity between documents and databases (Southan and Stracz)

A fast and accurate pKa prediction approach that can be used in assigning charges to compounds in virtual screening (Svobodová et al.)

Her research interests are directed towards the development of stand-alone electrochemical sensors for aquatic habitat monitoring; the analysis of heavy metals in the environment and in foodstuffs; and analysis of markers of oxidative stress, with the main aim of overcoming the limitations of current analytical techniques to enable continuous monitoring with little intervention.

Prof. Ronny Priefer from Western New England University, USA has also joined the Editorial Board. His research ...

Read more]]> We are pleased to announce that Dr Alison Willows from the University of Brighton, UK has joined the Chemistry Central Journal Editorial Board as a Section Editor for environmental chemistry. She is currently a Senior Lecturer in analytical chemistry and is also an Associate Lecturer with the Open University.

Her research interests are directed towards the development of stand-alone electrochemical sensors for aquatic habitat monitoring; the analysis of heavy metals in the environment and in foodstuffs; and analysis of markers of oxidative stress, with the main aim of overcoming the limitations of current analytical techniques to enable continuous monitoring with little intervention.

Prof. Ronny Priefer from Western New England University, USA has also joined the Editorial Board. His research interests cover medicinal chemistry, chemical biology and organic chemistry with a specific focus on small molecule design for the disruption of amyloid plaque formation, the development of new antimicrobial agents, and total synthesis of natural products.

Below is a roundup of some of our other open access highlights from March:

• Science Europe releases statement on open access
Science Europe, an association of fifty-one European national research organizations has released a major open access position statement. The statement recognises that “publication and dissemination of results are an integral part of ...

Read more]]> The Research Councils UK (RCUK) policy on open access came into effect last month, requiring all peer-reviewed published research articles and conference proceedings that it funds to be made openly available. The new policy reflects a growing trend amongst funding bodies mandating open access to research outputs and we wrote about this in more detail when the policy came into effect at the beginning of April.

Below is a roundup of some of our other open access highlights from March:

• Science Europe releases statement on open access
Science Europe, an association of fifty-one European national research organizations has released a major open access position statement. The statement recognises that “publication and dissemination of results are an integral part of the research process” and that “the allocation of resources within the research system must take this into account”

• Recent developments in open access
An article published in THETA: The Higher Education Technology Agenda explores recent developments in open access, including funder mandates, government policies, and the recent emergence of a third route to open access based on social networking

• US States considering public access policies
With open access policies being introduced at the federal level in America, several states have begun to consider their own open access policies. Creative Commons has provided a summary of the policies of three states that have already introduced their own legislation

In the first, Casey Doolette and colleagues investigated the fate of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in sludge that were subjected to aerobic and anaerobic treatment, and the impact of AgNPs on microbial processes and communities. Due to their antibacterial properties, AgNPs are increasingly being used in consumer products such as deodorants and wound dressings, and are therefore entering wastewater treatment plants where they may have an adverse effect on the microbes involved in sewage treatment. The authors investigated the fate of transformed AgNPs during activated sludge treatment and found that AgNPs are very unlikely to affect the efficient ...

Read more]]> Two articles published in Chemistry Central Journal last month were amongst the first to appear in a thematic series on Emerging Contaminants.

In the first, Casey Doolette and colleagues investigated the fate of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in sludge that were subjected to aerobic and anaerobic treatment, and the impact of AgNPs on microbial processes and communities. Due to their antibacterial properties, AgNPs are increasingly being used in consumer products such as deodorants and wound dressings, and are therefore entering wastewater treatment plants where they may have an adverse effect on the microbes involved in sewage treatment. The authors investigated the fate of transformed AgNPs during activated sludge treatment and found that AgNPs are very unlikely to affect the efficient functioning of wastewater treatment plants. However, AgNPs may negatively affect sub-dominant wastewater microbial communities.

In the other paper, Mark Hanson et al. assessed the presence of nutrients, micropollutants and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in lagoon outputs. The environmental fate of excess nutrients, pharmaceuticals and personal care products is an area of great interest. The authors studied of the Grand Marais treatment wetland in Canada, and found that while it could remove certain nutrients, suspended solids and several pharmaceutical compounds, it was not effective for most of the micropollutants that were quantifiable within the system or for removal of ARGs. The environmental fate of ARGs is of particular concern as they have the ability to impart resistance to antibiotics and reduce the efficacy of antibiotics in the systems in which they are found.

Both papers are currently amongst the most highly accessed articles in Chemistry Central Journal.

Other research highlights from March include:

A review article highlighting the efficacy of different materials for fluoride removal from water

A new strategy for synthesizing trace-element bearing chlorapatites

Applications of the InChI in cheminformatics with the CDK and Bioclipse

A mobile app for anti-tuberculosis molecules with known targets

Meanwhile, the Directory of Open Access Journals reached a new milestone last month of having a million articles searchable via the website. The DOAJ aims to increase the visibility and ease of use of open access journals and currently indexes close to 9000 titles

Below is a roundup of some of our other open access highlights from ...

Read more]]> The European Union looks set to become the latest funder to require open access to the outputs from research that it funds. Neelie Kroes, vice-president of the European Commission, has announced that all scientists receiving EU funding will have to publish their results in an open access format. The new policy reflects similar announcements from America, Australia and the UK over recent months.

Meanwhile, the Directory of Open Access Journals reached a new milestone last month of having a million articles searchable via the website. The DOAJ aims to increase the visibility and ease of use of open access journals and currently indexes close to 9000 titles

Below is a roundup of some of our other open access highlights from March:

• Advocacy: How to hasten open access
A Comment published in Nature last month provided three opinions on how open access will move forward, including one from BioMed Central Managing Director Matthew Cockerill, who argues that indexing services need to be made faster and fairer

• University of California Irvine announces open chemistry
University of California Irvine has opened up its undergraduate chemistry course by making all of the lectures freely available online. The lectures are available under a CC-BY-SA licence, facilitating use and re-use of the content by the wider community

• Open access: brave new world requires bravery
Stephen Curry, a structural biologist at Imperial College London, looks back at the development of open access in 2012 and surveys the challenges that lie ahead

This year’s spring meeting revolves around the Chemistry of Energy and Food, and a central theme within this is the concept of sustainability. It’s no surprise then that many of the technical sessions are aligned with the scope of one of our recently announced journals, Sustainable Chemical Processes, which covers all aspects of sustainable approaches to chemistry and will publish its first articles later this spring. Three of the journal’s Editorial Board Members – Arthur Ragauskas, Francesca Kerton ...

Read more]]> We’re about to head off to New Orleans for the Spring ACS Meeting (#ACSNOLA), which runs from 7th–11th April. Come find us at booth 419 to discuss the latest developments at Chemistry Central and pick up a free T-shirt.

This year’s spring meeting revolves around the Chemistry of Energy and Food, and a central theme within this is the concept of sustainability. It’s no surprise then that many of the technical sessions are aligned with the scope of one of our recently announced journals, Sustainable Chemical Processes, which covers all aspects of sustainable approaches to chemistry and will publish its first articles later this spring. Three of the journal’s Editorial Board Members – Arthur Ragauskas, Francesca Kerton and Rafael Luque – are presenting at the meeting, and Luque is also organising a session on “Green Chemistry Fostered Advances for Chemicals and Fuel Production”, running over the Tuesday and Wednesday.

A number of our Editorial Board Members for Journal of Cheminformatics will also be presenting during the meeting, including Rajarshi Guha, who has organised his regular CINFlash session, consisting of short, 8 minute, lightning talks on any aspect of chemical information and cheminformatics.

We hope to see you there.

By examining the pigments in a painting can we tell how it was painted, where it was painted and even whether it is a forgery? By looking at dyes in a textile can we find out about the origin of manufacture and the geographical route it took to get to its destination and hence about trade routes? By analysing the metal content of a coin can we tell about the economic factors of the time? These are the sorts of questions that Heritage Science will address, with a focus on the development and application of scientific techniques to study cultural heritage.

The launch papers feature a tremendous ...

Read more]]> Heritage Science, a new open access journal published by Chemistry Central, has now launched.

By examining the pigments in a painting can we tell how it was painted, where it was painted and even whether it is a forgery? By looking at dyes in a textile can we find out about the origin of manufacture and the geographical route it took to get to its destination and hence about trade routes? By analysing the metal content of a coin can we tell about the economic factors of the time? These are the sorts of questions that Heritage Science will address, with a focus on the development and application of scientific techniques to study cultural heritage.

The launch papers feature a tremendous diversity of applications and techniques, according to Prof. Richard Brereton, the journal’s Editor-in-Chief. Among the first articles to be published, a paper by Kamilla Kalinina and colleagues at the Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg describes the examination of a lost statue found inside the walls of St Petersburg’s Winter Palace in 2010. By conducting a detailed examination of the materials and techniques used when the sculpture was created they were able to identify the techniques used to make it, information that could be used by curators at the State Hermitage Museum who have since restored it.

Other papers published at launch include a study of gold medallions in the Royal Palace in Seville, an investigation of the influence of humidity on conserving our heritage, and a review on fine particulate matter – an important and not well studied factor that can lead to degradation of objects in museums and libraries. “This exciting variety of applications using modern scientific techniques suggests that there is a big potential for modern scientific methods in the study of our heritage” explains Prof. Brereton in his Editorial. “This journal will capture these exciting new developments”.

The journal is supported by an international Editorial Board, covering Europe, The Americas, Asia and Australia, ensuring a full range of international contributors, and coverage of finds about significant and influential ancient civilizations from all regions.

Visit the journal website to read all the launch articles and to sign up for article alerts. For more information please contact the editorial team at editorial@heritagesciencejournal.com.

Following the publication of the Finch report in June last year, the UK government announced plans to make publically funded research freely available. That policy came into effect yesterday, meaning that all peer-reviewed published research articles and conference proceedings funded by RCUK must be open access.

RCUK is supporting both the green and gold options for open access but with a strong preference for the gold route, where papers are made freely available immediately on publication. Where a journal offers a gold option, and funds to cover the article processing charge are available from the research funder, authors will be ...

Read more]]> The Research Councils UK (RCUK) policy on open access came into effect yesterday, but what does it mean for researchers?

Following the publication of the Finch report in June last year, the UK government announced plans to make publically funded research freely available. That policy came into effect yesterday, meaning that all peer-reviewed published research articles and conference proceedings funded by RCUK must be open access.

RCUK is supporting both the green and gold options for open access but with a strong preference for the gold route, where papers are made freely available immediately on publication. Where a journal offers a gold option, and funds to cover the article processing charge are available from the research funder, authors will be expected to publish their article via the gold route. Where a journal does not offer a gold option, RCUK will accept the green route, in which articles can be archived in a suitable repository 6–12 months after publication, depending on the discipline.

RCUK is also requiring that any publications it funds are published under a CC-BY license, which allows full use and reuse rights to everyone, as long as the work is attributed to the original authors. All articles published by Chemistry Central are freely available under the CC-BY license, making them fully compliant with the RCUK policy.

The UK is not alone in taking steps towards open access. Since 2008, the National Institutes of Health in America have mandated that the outputs from research it funds are made freely available, and earlier this year announced that they would enforce the policy by withholding grant money from those who fail to abide by it. Many other countries have also announced plans for open access over recent months, including Australia, Ireland and Denmark.

RCUK acknowledges that the journey to full open access will take time, and they will allow some flexibility in the implementation of the policy over a transition period. Some researchers may still be left wondering how this will affect them, and BioMed Central has put together a short online video that should clarify any questions.

Journal of Cheminformatics is the official publishing partner of the conference, and the 2012 meeting represents the fourth consecutive year that the journal has been involved and the sixth year that Chemistry Central has been involved. The abstracts of 20 oral presentations and 53 posters from the meeting have been published in this supplement, which covers topics such as:

• Cheminformatics and Drug Discovery
• Chemical Information, Patents and Databases
• Molecular Modeling
• Computational Materials Science and Nanotechnology

The abstracts from this, as well as the previous five meetings, are freely available via the Chemistry Central website.