Synthesis

Diamonds are famously formed under high pressure and temperature, which is partly why they’re so valuable. But now, scientists have created diamonds in a lab under regular pressure in just 15 minutes.

Can we take shortcuts on nature’s blueprint and make more efficient synthetic proteins? A new study finds simple combos of synthetic building blocks can make for protein alternatives that work just as well as, or even better than, the real thing.

With psilocybin on the cusp of becoming a clinically validated and approved medicine, scientists are exploring new ways to produce the chemical. Now a team has presented a novel method of producing the psychedelic chemical using common yeast.

Thirty years ago a molecule with incredible anti-cancer properties was discovered. But it was so structurally complex scientists were unable to synthesize it in large quantities. Now a team has made a breakthrough, achieving total synthesis of volumes large enough to proceed to clinical trials.

A team of chemists from the University of California, Davis, recently demonstrated a new synthetic analogue of cannabidiol (CBD) may be just as effective for medicinal uses as its naturally extracted counterpart. This synthetic CBD compound also promises to be easier, cheaper and faster to produce.

Scientists have, for the first time, investigated the pharmacological effects of a compound found in a rare moss called liverwort. The compound closely resembles that of THC, but exhibits less of a psychoactive effect with potentially better anti-inflammatory properties.

Complex molecules are used in everything from cell research to semiconductor development, but they are difficult and time-consuming to produce. Now researchers from the University of Illinois have created a machine that automatically assembles these tiny structures.

Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. in Kawasaki, Japan is working to move computers away from sounding monotone or perpetually distracted by developing a new speech synthesis system that can quickly produce high quality voices that can be tailored to suit individual environments and circumstances.

Scientists have accidentally created a new material thought for more than 100 years to be impossible. A single gram of Upsalite has a surface area of 800 sq m, equivalent to the sail of a megayacht.

A new high power explosive has been made that is superior to the best military explosives.