Major Breakthroughs in Chemistry in the year 2007

This article highlights some of the advances in chemistry in last year-2007. At the end of each year, time is to evaluate what scientists have done in their respective field. This article was published in Chemical and Engineering News.

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Stu Borman

EACH YEAR the editors of C&EN select some of the most important research advances from among the stories we've reported throughout the year and highlight them in a year-end issue. This year we've selected about two dozen examples of chemistry-based research at its best.

© 2007 Science


Two Approaches Similar structures (one gold and one blue and red) of the membrane receptor β2AR were obtained by stabilizing the receptor with T4 lysozyme (gray, left) or an antibody fragment (gray, right). β2AR is only the second G-protein-coupled receptor ever analyzed structurally.

Of the various chemically related subdisciplines spanned by our selections, structural analysis stands out as the most prolific. Highlighted breakthroughs include structures of a G-protein-coupled receptor, a type of protein that's been nearly impossible to analyze; and a new technique that made it possible to obtain the first detailed structure of one of the largest biomolecular complexes in cells.

Other selections this year range from advances in neurochemistry and molecular biology to key discoveries in organic synthesis, nanotechnology, molecular imaging, and environmental chemistry. They include a possible cure for a mental retardation disorder, a surprising finding about a common mechanism of different types of antibiotics, the design and synthesis of one of the lowest-density crystals ever known, a source of power for nanoelectronic devices, and the real-time imaging of gene regulation in living cells.

Our choices are necessarily subjective and do not pretend to be comprehensive. Indeed, these studies represent only a few examples of the many ways in which chemistry-related research advances our society and improves people's lives each and every year.

Rett Syndrome Research Foundation


Rett Reversed Rett syndrome patients often have trouble walking. A study showed that Rett syndrome could be reversed in mice.

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