Since its introduction by August Kekulé in 1865,1 the concept of aromaticity has been continuously conquering new territories in chemistry (refs 2-20 are only a small fraction of the published articles, reviews, books, and conference proceedings on this subject). Initially, aromaticity was developed for the following classes of organic compounds: (i) monocyclic planar conjugate hydrocarbons and...

Botryococcus braunii, a green colonial microalga, is an unusually rich renewable source of hydrocarbons and other chemicals. Hydrocarbons can constitute up to 75% of the dry mass of B. braunii. This review details the various facets of biotechnology of B. braunii, including its microbiology and physiology; production of hydrocarbons and other compounds by the alga; methods of culture; downstrea...

In social insect colonies, recognition of nestmates, kinship, caste and reproductive status is crucial both for individuals and for the colony. The recognition cues used are thought to be chemical, with the hydrocarbons found on the cuticle of insects often cited as being particularly important. However, in honeybees (Apis mellifera) the role of cuticular hydrocarbons in nestmate recognition is...

Fifteen bacterial strains isolated from solid waste oil samples were selected due to their capacity of growing in the presence of hydrocarbons. The isolates were identified by PCR of the 16S rDNA gene using fD1 and rD1 primers. The majority of the strains belonged to genera Bacillus, Bacillus pumilus (eight strains) and Bacillus subtilis (two strains). Besides, three strains were identified as ...

It has been proposed that extensive wildfires occurred after the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) impact event. An abundance of soot and pyrosynthetic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (pPAHs) in marine K-T boundary impact rocks (BIRs) have been considered support for this hypothesis. However, nonmarine K-T BIRs, from across North America, contain only rare occurrences of charcoal yet abundant noncharr...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the possible impact of long-term occupational exposure to hydrocarbons on respiratory health. METHODS Respiratory health was assessed by questionnaires, spirometry, and exhaled nitric oxide in 250 male workers from a company handling and distributing refined petroleum products (exposed) and 250 electricians (controls). Exposure to hydrocarbons was assessed by personal...