Chemists are constantly looking for new applications of chemicals to enhance the quality of our lives. Exploring the properties of fluorine, atomic number 16 is a good example.
Key Takeaways:
- Fluorine is widely used in making drugs and can be seen in products such as toothpastes and drinking water.
- Some researchers at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) have been studying thiols because its levels in the body can mean health or sickness.
- The researchers discovered a new technique that involved cysteine dioxygenase (CDO) and cysteamine dioxygenase (ADO) which are chemicals in the body that regulate thiol levels.
- 2-deoxy-2-18F-fluoro-β-D-glucose (18F-FDG), an analogue of glucose, is used for early detection of brain tumors using PET scanners.
“A groundbreaking discovery by chemists at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) will have a significant impact on how pharmaceutical companies develop new drug treatments.”
Read more: https://phys.org/news/2018-09-chemists-historic-fluorine-discovery.html
