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Showing posts from September, 2014

Sugar is more addictive than cocaine... – what?!

“Everything is a poison, nothing is a poison. It is the dose that makes the poison.” Last week the statement “sugar is more addictive than cocaine” was spreading in the science news. I personally found this really strange and hard to believe, so I was directed to an article about a study conducted by the University of Edinburgh.

White Tea Inhibits Proliferation of Colon Cancer Cells

I was searching for journals about new research within cosmetic chemistry when I came across this journal about white tea. This is the first time I have heard about white tea. Black, green and herbal teas are the most renowned teas that everybody hears of and green tea has been getting a lot of good media coverage for its anti-oxidant properties.

Botox utilized as a medical prevention of abnormal joint adhesion.

Botox is famous for being used for cosmetic reasons and it is largely used an anti-ageing treatment to try and reverse fine lines and wrinkles on the face. It’s also known to get rid of migraines and headaches caused by possible uncontrollable muscle spasm; Botox inhibits muscle spasms and therefore causes muscle paralysis thus relieving the headache/migraine. Although Botox has a reputation for being an “age-defying elixir” it also has medical uses and can be used as a treatment for certain neuromuscular conditions. 

A dose of dark chocolate a day will keep the doctor away!

Since we are talking about chocolate, this is a very serious matter and needs to be treated with care. I’m not talking about the processed dark chocolate with copious amounts of sugar in it, but the dark chocolate with at least 50% cacao within it, which has been manufactured in a way such that the flavonol concentration inside it is not depleted.

All Things Sweet about the Chemistry of Honey

Honey has been crowned as a health elixir for its endless health benefits and it is the only food that is produced by insects and eaten by humans, without the need to be processed first.  The many benefits of honey are: ·          Treatment  of  sore throat, ulcers and burns ·          Anti-bacterial properties ·          Anti-oxidant properties ·          Guard against heart disease ·          Good for weight loss

Coffee has evolved twice!

The coffee genome has just been published. Denoeud et al have sequenced the genome of coffee (biological name Coffea canephora). They found that within coffee’s 11 chromosome pairs, that there were many duplicated genes which include the one that code for the production of caffeine. They also suggested that these duplications enhance the products produced by the coffee plant to produce more effective proteins. The research also found that unlike tea and cacao (the chocolate component), the genes that code for the production of caffeine, in the coffee plant, are different to the genome sequence for the tea and cacao caffeine-producing enzymes, defining that the caffeine production genome has evolved at least two times. The genome sequence could help in research to help identify the genes that help the plant to combat diseases (related to the plant) and to also cope with climate change and to also encourage more delicious tasting coffee! To read more about coffee and caffeine

Combating E. coli Drug Resistance by Mutation

Bacterial mutation can be caused by a number of factors, such as genetic mutation and genetic transfer. This mutation causes them to become resistant to antibiotics, making life harder for researchers and starting a new strain of resistant bacteria which could potentially be life threatening.