Abstract
A QUIRKY LIPID that is associated with seafood toxicity has been constructed in a lab for the first time. The work opens the possibility of developing tools to detect and study the molecule. First isolated from mussels in the Adriatic Sea, the compound is “a chemical oddity” because it’s a lipid that features both a sulfate group and six chlorine atoms, which is unusual, says Erick M. Carreira, a chemist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, who led the research. He and coworkers report the synthesis in Nature ( 2009, 457 , 573). The toxin probably originates from algae that are consumed by the mussel, explains Ernesto Fattorusso, a pharmacologist at the University of Naples Federico II who isolated the chlorosulfolipid in 1999. “But we were only able to extract a few milligrams,” Fattorusso says. “This synthesis appears relatively simple, considering the stereochemical complexity of the molecule,” so there are hopes of obtaining enough of ...
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
