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Claudia Turro from The Ohio State University talks Nature Chemistry through the different binding modes small metal complexes can adopt when interacting with DNA — and why elucidating them in detail matters.
Although first known among chemists for its noxious or lifeless character, nitrogen was later revealed to be involved in many life, and death, processes. Michael Tarselli ponders on this unforeseen characteristic.
Structure by structure, more information is steadily being gathered on how small molecules bind to DNA. A better understanding of the interactions involved in such processes will be crucial for the successful design of compounds for specific diagnostic and therapeutic purposes.
Richard Wilson relates how the rare, highly radioactive, highly toxic element protactinium puzzled chemists for a long time, and was discovered and named twice from two different isotopes before finding its place in fundamental research.