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This animation explains how cytotoxic T cells of the immune system recognize foreign antigens from viruses on the surface of infected cells.

This animation explains the structure of the DNA molecule and shows how the molecule replicates.

Yes, you read that correctly. Comets may have helped seed life on Earth. Far out, right? Sarah Everts of C&EN has the chemical clues that back up this out-of-this-world hypothesis. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

This video explains how to make your own glass cleaner, keep red wine from staining your carpet, and why saliva can also be a great cleaning product. [Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society (www.youtube.com/acsreactions)]

This animation describes DNA microarrays and how microarrays can be used to make genetic discoveries.

This animation shows how the double helical structure of DNA allows enzymes to assemble duplicate copies of the nucleotide sequences in each strand so that the genetic information can be replicated.

Would you like a younger, more perfect-looking you? Young skin is firm and stretchy because of protein fibers, called collagen and elastin, in the tissue beneath the surface. As we age, environmental factors, such as smoking or ultraviolet…

How do astronauts survive the deadly radiation of deep space? NASA is still figuring out how to protect astronauts from cosmic radiation using plastic shielding and magnetic deflectors. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

You may have heard it from your mom over and over again: "Eat your carrots, they'll help you see better!" Is it true? In this video, chemist Chad Jones, host of the Collapsed Wavefunction podcast, cracks the carrot case wide open. [Credit:…

Online entrepreneurs may try to sell bottled human pheromones, but do these even exist? It's doubtful, according to this video. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

This video tackles the fad that never dies—low-carbohydrate diets. There's a lot of science that goes with the keto diet and cutting out carbs. Low-carb diets were a thing in the late 1990s and they are still a thing now. But why does this…

Many of us have used some type of odor eliminator, such as Febreze, to get rid of offensive odors. These sprays can be effective, but how do they actually work? This video tells whether they really remove the smell or just mask it. Credit:…

It’s a legendary piece of playground lore: If you swallow a piece of gum, it stays stuck in your stomach for years and years. So was your elementary-school buddy right? This video looks at the mechanics and chemistry of digestion in order to…

Melatonin is a supplement that’s supposed to help you sleep. But does melatonin really work? What’s the chemistry of this sleep aid? This video explores the chemistry of melatonin and the realities of other supplements. Credit:…

A common belief is that a compound in turkey known as tryptophan makes people especially drowsy after they've eaten it. This video debunks this myth. [Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society (www.youtube.com/acsreactions)]

Chemists have found potential drugs and other useful compounds in some truly bizarre places in nature. Who would have thought that blood from the Komodo dragon could have a secret inside of it that could possibly save your life? This video…

This animation explains how the ear allows the sense of hearing and shows how the anatomy of the ear converts sound waves into nerve signals that are perceived as sounds.

This animation describes Cohen and Boyer's pioneering 1973 experiment showing that frog gene DNA could be expressed in bacteria.

This animation shows how sound waves interacting with anatomical structures in the ear set up vibrations in the cochlea that are detected and perceived as sounds.

Sports-drink commercials often mention electrolytes, but why do we need these chemicals, and what happens if we don’t have enough of them? Electrolytes are salts that help our cells move water around, and enable nerve impulses that keep our…

This animation explains how the mitochondria of cells use the energy in a proton gradient across a membrane to synthesize ATP.

Centuries after the discovery of the simple microscope, biomedical engineer Elizabeth Hillman has developed a cutting-edge microscope that can “see” inside the brains of living organisms and create 3D movies that answer fundamental questions…

This animation shows how cells use endocytosis to ingest materials and exocytosis to release materials inside membrane vesicles.

This animation shows how enzymes act as protein catalysts for biological reactions.

This animation explains how enzyme active sites use the specific binding properties of the enzyme to catalyze a reaction.