carbonyl sulfide tagged posts

Sulfur is one of the most abundant elements in the universe. If you peer into a diffuse interstellar cloud, you find loads of it—about the amount expected based on fusion patterns in the stars it was born in. However, if you look at a dense, cold molecular cloud—the kind where those stars actually form—it seems like 99% of the sulfur expected to be there is missing. Scientists have puzzled over this “missing sulfur problem” for decades, though a leading theory is that the element hides in icy dust grains, making it hard to detect.

A new paper published in Astronomy & Astrophysics from the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics and the Centro de Astrobiologia describes a new computer s...

Illustration shows the delivery route of hydrogen sulfide to damaged cells based on two projects completed in the University of Oregon lab of Michael Pluth. Credit: Michael Pluth

Molecules with the potential to deliver healing power to stressed cells – such as those involved in heart attacks – have been created by University of Oregon researchers. The research – done at a cellular level in the lab and far from medical reality – involves the design of organic molecules that break down to release hydrogen sulfide when triggered by specific conditions such as increased oxidative stress. Oxidative stress damages cells and is tied especially to heart disease and cancer, as well as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

“We have discovered that small organic molecules can be engineered to release ...