All articles by Kat Arney

  • Chanel N°5 perfume
    Podcast

    Indole

    2019-05-31T09:30:00Z

    Kat Arney investigates a potent chemical that might explain the brain-bending powers of bacteria

  • Cub scout surrounded by flowers
    Podcast

    Vinblastine and vincristine: Vinca alkaloids

    2019-03-15T13:36:00Z

    Kat Arney unearths a story of an overlooked female researcher in the search for the origins of cancer drugs found in plants

  • Chopping onions on a wooden board with a ceramic knife
    Podcast

    Propanethial-S-oxide: how chopping onions makes you cry

    2018-11-23T11:02:00Z

    Kat Arney’s investigation of the pungent chemical in onions is enough to bring tears to your eyes

  • Universal indicator paper
    Podcast

    Phenolphthalein

    2018-10-25T16:12:00Z

    Kat Arney gets to the bottom of the story of phenolphthalein – a chemical with two very different uses. If you've measured pH in a classroom or had some trouble in the bathroom, you may have met this compound before.

  • Thaumetopoea processionea. Oak processionary moth caterpillars
    Podcast

    Thaumetopoein

    2018-09-07T09:30:00Z

    The allergenic compound behind those 'toxic caterpillars'

  • Students in chemistry class
    Careers

    How to become a chemistry teacher

    2018-08-15T14:30:00Z

    Teaching can be an intense but rewarding and refreshing career change

  • Infant with Neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. Jaundice.
    Podcast

    Bilirubin

    2018-08-10T15:20:00Z

    Kat Arney investigates the chemicals responsible for giving bruises their hue and colouring your poo

  • Spider web
    Podcast

    Spidroin

    2018-06-07T11:40:00Z

    Kat Arney on your friendly neighbourhood spider silk protein

  • Arene pirouette
    Podcast

    Twistacenes

    2018-05-17T11:00:00Z

    Kat Arney discovers the strange things that happen when organic compounds go round the twist

  • A person wearing a Big bang theory 'Bazinga!' cape
    Podcast

    BaZnGa

    2018-04-26T17:03:00Z

    Science imitates art imitating science, as sitcom The big bang theory inspires the creation of a new compound

  • 3d rendering of a subsea cable on the seabed
    Podcast

    Gutta percha

    2018-03-29T16:27:00Z

    Kat Arney on the tree sap that once insulated transatlantic cables

  • A man using a ultraviolet tanning bed
    Podcast

    Melanin

    2018-02-22T17:18:00Z

     A family of biological pigments that make life more colourful

  • Blood bags containing blue coloured blood
    Podcast

    Methaemoglobin and diaphorase 1

    2018-01-19T16:19:00Z

    Kat Arney discovers the biological chemistry behind a colourful blood disorder

  • A hand holding a viagra tablet
    Podcast

    Sildenafil (Viagra)

    2017-11-22T15:48:00Z

    Kat Arney investigates one of the fastest selling drugs of all time

  • Mouldy peanuts
    Podcast

    Aflatoxins

    2017-11-02T12:01:00Z

    Kat Arney investigates the cancer-causing chemicals that could be lurking in that bag of peanuts

  • PC-3 human prostate cancer cells in air bubble, stained with Coomassie blue, under differencial interference contrast microscope.
    Podcast

    Coomassie blue

    2017-09-29T16:43:00Z

    How an attractive blue dye became the basis of a fundamental lab technique

  • A baby in a disposable nappy with a snowglobe
    Podcast

    Sodium polyacrylate

    2017-08-16T13:40:00Z

    Need some fake snow for your Christmas party? Simply look inside a baby’s nappy.

  • Young black and white cat with bottles of milk
    Podcast

    Casein

    2017-06-28T13:27:00Z

    One of the most popular plastics of the early 20th century was accidentally invented by a cat, as Kat Arney finds out.

  • The scab on a grazed knee, healing nicely
    Podcast

    Fibrin and fibrinogen

    2017-05-31T12:05:00Z

    From scabby knees to life-threatening strokes, this important protein is the fundamental link in the complex molecular chain that forms blood clots

  • Vintage Japanese black lacquer tea caddy with auspicious gold makie bamboo forest design, used in the Japanese Tea Ceremony
    Podcast

    Urushiol

    2017-04-05T15:40:00Z

    The compounds that link poison ivy with beautiful lacquerwork