Highlights
C&EN: Precise deuteration eases ‘heavy drug’ synthesis
10 September 2026Nickel catalyst swaps hydrogen for deuterium to produce drugs that are metabolized more slowly.
Engineering: Can ‘Superwood’ Replace Concrete and Steel?
25 August 2026Engineered woods aim to curb construction’s climate emissions.
ACS Central Science: These Graphene Experts Are Trying to Close the Reproducibility Gap in Two-Dimensional Materials Research
14 May 2026Too much work on graphene and related materials cannot be repeated — a problem that wastes time and holds back commercialization. New rules could help solve it.
C&EN Talented 12: Aisulu Aitbekova
13 May 2026Combining light and heat to produce sustainable chemicals.
C&EN Talented 12: Martina Benešová-Schäfer
13 May 2026Building targeting systems for radioactive cancer treatments.
TESTIMONIALS
“As an editor and reporter, Mark Peplow is fast, accurate, and versatile. He covers science policy and pure research with equal passion, and his writing combines a scientist’s precision with a journalist’s verve.” Tim Appenzeller
Former Chief Magazine Editor at Nature, now News Editor at Science
"Mark guided me through some of the most challenging stories I've written. These are pieces I might not have attempted were it not for his steady editorial hand." Linda Nordling
Freelance Journalist, South Africa
“Working with Mark is never anything other than a pleasure. He is the kind of editor that writers hope for: able to identify what needs fixing and what doesn’t, bringing to bear a wealth of knowledge, always clear, prompt and easy to talk with. Much of that comes from being a splendid writer himself.”
Philip Ball
Freelance Science Writer
Author Archives: Mark Peplow
C&EN: Chain-link molecules form flexible networks
Catenated covalent organic frameworks could find use as additives or membranes.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: Chain-link molecules form flexible networks
C&EN: Electric molecular motor charges ahead
Oscillating voltage prompts molecular rings to trundle around a circular track.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: Electric molecular motor charges ahead
C&EN: Battery anodes recycled in a flash
Jolt of electricity zaps impurities in graphite anodes, potentially offering a cheaper and greener recycling strategy.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: Battery anodes recycled in a flash
C&EN: These DNA nanoshells trap a broad spectrum of viruses
Using sugar chains as a ‘virus glue’ could help DNA origami structures become antiviral agents.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: These DNA nanoshells trap a broad spectrum of viruses
C&EN: Mirror-image polymerase makes key parts of mirror ribosome
Ongoing effort to create a reflection of life’s protein-making machinery could provide access to mirror molecules for diagnostics, therapeutics, and more.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: Mirror-image polymerase makes key parts of mirror ribosome
C&EN: Molecular ring mimics photosynthetic machinery
Spoke-like templates bend a linear chain of 24 porphyrins into a light-harvesting hoop.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: Molecular ring mimics photosynthetic machinery
Unlocking the Lanthanome
The secret biological life of lanthanides (C&EN).
Posted in Feature reporting, My Work
Comments Off on Unlocking the Lanthanome
The race to upcycle CO2
Converting the greenhouse gas into useful products (Nature).
Posted in Feature reporting, My Work
Comments Off on The race to upcycle CO2
C&EN: Chemistry and biology unite to recycle mixed plastics
No presorting needed in 2-step process that turns multiple plastics into single products.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: Chemistry and biology unite to recycle mixed plastics
C&EN: Click and bioorthogonal chemistry win 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Carolyn R. Bertozzi, Morten Meldal, and K. Barry Sharpless receive prize for their work on reactions that quickly link up molecules and their application in living cells.
Posted in Highlights
Comments Off on C&EN: Click and bioorthogonal chemistry win 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
