3D Printed Molecules

Martin Burke, a Chemistry faculty member at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, focuses on the synthesis of small molecules with protein-like functions. This week William Herkewitz at PopularMechanics announced:

In a new study published in the journal Science today, Burke has announced the specs of a chemistry’s own version of the 3D printer—a machine that can systematically synthesize thousands of different molecules (including the ratanhine molecular family) from a handful of starting chemicals. Such a machine could not only make ratanhine step-by-step, but also could custom-create a dozen other closely-related chemicals—some never even synthesized before by humans.

For more information, check out the complete article.