Articles
Chemistry Blog
Concepts, nomenclature, reactions and more — explained visually.
Ibuprofen: Why It Relieves Pain and Why It Upsets the Stomach
Ibuprofen is the world's best-selling NSAID. It reversibly inhibits COX, has better gastric tolerance than aspirin, and a more potent anti-inflammatory profile. But its chemistry also explains its renal and cardiovascular risks.
Aspirin: the Molecule of the 20th Century That Keeps Surprising
Aspirin has been on the market for over 125 years and remains one of the most studied drugs in the world. Analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, and antiplatelet — four mechanisms, one molecule, and new uses still being discovered.
Melatonin: the Darkness Hormone and the Biological Clock
Melatonin is not a sleeping pill — it is a darkness signal. It does not directly induce sleep but synchronizes the biological clock with the light-dark cycle. That difference explains why supplements work for jet lag but not for chronic insomnia.
Insulin: One Hundred Years of the Molecule That Saved Millions of Lives
In 1921, Frederick Banting and Charles Best extracted a pancreatic extract that kept a diabetic dog alive for weeks. One year later, that extract saved the life of the first human patient. The history of the most important molecule in medicine.
Cortisol: the Hormone That Saves You in Crisis and Deteriorates You in Routine
Cortisol is essential for survival — without it, a minor infection can kill. But when levels remain elevated for weeks and months due to chronic stress, it deteriorates the hippocampus, suppresses immunity, and dysregulates metabolism.
Adrenaline: the Survival Molecule in Fractions of a Second
Adrenaline prepares the body for an emergency in under 30 seconds: dilates pupils, accelerates the heart, opens airways, mobilizes glucose, and redirects blood flow. All done by one molecule of 183 g/mol.
Serotonin: the Wellbeing Messenger That Lives Mostly in the Gut
95% of the body's serotonin is in the intestine, not the brain. It is a neurotransmitter, a gastrointestinal hormone, and a vasoconstrictor — all at once. And the story of SSRI antidepressants is more complicated than we were told.
Dopamine: Reward, Motivation, and Why It's Not the Pleasure Molecule
Dopamine is perhaps the most misunderstood neurotransmitter in popular neuroscience. It is not the pleasure molecule — it is the desire and anticipation molecule. And that difference changes everything about addiction, motivation, and procrastination.
Phenylethylamine: from Cacao to the Brain, the Chemistry of Mood
Cacao contains phenylethylamine — the same amine the brain releases during falling in love and intense exercise. A small molecule with simple chemistry and a neurological effect that has fascinated humanity for centuries.
Water: the Most Studied and Most Underestimated Molecule in Chemistry
Water appears simple — H₂O, two hydrogens and one oxygen. But its physical and chemical properties are so anomalous that if water behaved as elementary chemistry predicts, life on Earth would be impossible.
Cholesterol: the Most Misunderstood Molecule in Nutrition
Cholesterol is not poison — it is an essential molecule that cells cannot live without. The problem is not cholesterol itself, but where it is, how much there is, and what type of particle it travels in.
Vitamin C: Why We're Among the Few Mammals That Can't Make It
Ascorbic acid is essential for collagen synthesis, iron absorption, and antioxidant defense. Humans, along with other primates, guinea pigs, and fruit-eating bats, lost the ability to synthesize it by a gene mutation 61 million years ago.
ATP: the Energy Currency of Life
Every second, a human cell consumes and regenerates its own weight in ATP. This three-phosphate molecule is the universal intermediary between chemical energy stored in food and biological work — movement, synthesis, transport.
Carotenoids: Why Carrots Are Orange and Tomatoes Are Red
The color of food is not accidental — it is quantum physics of π electrons. Carotenoids are the most widespread pigments in nature, and their color depends on how many conjugated double bonds they have.
Citric Acid: the Invisible Preservative in Almost Everything
The E-330 label appears on almost everything we buy processed. Citric acid is acidulant, preservative, metal chelator, and pH buffer — four functions in one molecule with three carboxyl groups.
Alcoholic Fermentation: From Sugar to Ethanol, the Complete Chemistry
Alcoholic fermentation has produced wine, beer, and bread for millennia. Behind the apparently simple transformation — sugar → alcohol + CO₂ — are ten chained enzymatic reactions with an elegant biochemical logic.
Capsaicin: the Chemistry Behind the Heat of Chili
Spiciness is not a flavor — it is a pain response. Capsaicin activates the same receptors that detect physical heat, tricking the brain into thinking the mouth is on fire. All because of one molecule.
Glucose vs Fructose: Two Isomers, Two Metabolic Destinies
They share the molecular formula C₆H₁₂O₆ and nearly the same sweetness, but their metabolic paths in the body are radically different. A single carbonyl position change has profound metabolic consequences.
Pyrazines of Colombian Cacao: the Aromatic Fingerprint of Origin
Pyrazines are the heterocyclic compounds that define roasted cacao aroma. In Colombian cacao, their specific profile acts as a chemical fingerprint of genotype, region, and fermentation protocol.
The Maillard Reaction in Cacao Roasting: Chemistry of Chocolate Aroma
The aroma of chocolate does not exist in the raw bean — it is built during roasting through hundreds of reactions between amino acids and sugars. The Maillard reaction is the molecular architect of everything that smells and tastes like cacao.
Organic Acids in Cacao Fermentation: Acetic, Lactic, and Succinic
Cacao fermentation is a 5–7 day microbial cascade where yeasts, lactic acid bacteria, and acetic acid bacteria transform pulp sugars into the acids that shape pH, flavor precursors, and final chocolate taste.
Cacao Polyphenols: Epicatechin, Catechin, and Procyanidins
Cacao is one of the most concentrated sources of flavanols in nature. The chemistry of epicatechin, catechin, and procyanidins — and why their structure determines their antioxidant power.
Theobromine vs Caffeine: two alkaloids, one cacao bean
They share the same molecular formula, differ by a single methyl group, and produce radically different effects. A deep dive into the two most abundant methylxanthines in Colombian cacao.
History of Molecular Simulators: From Paper to Screen
From the first ball-and-stick models to 3D visualizers in the browser, the evolution of molecular modeling tools has transformed the way we understand chemistry.
Oxidation States: A Complete Guide
Oxidation states are an essential tool for balancing redox equations and understanding chemical reactivity.