Hydrogen Bonds Revealed in First Pictures Ever Seen

The hydrogen bonds that link quinolines (a type of organic compounds) have been seen for the very first time, according to Chemistry World.

Scientists from the US University of California Berkeley were able to capture images of molecules prior to and following chemical transformation. The amazing images showed that covalent bonds formed in a cyclisation reaction.

Chinese researchers from the National Centre for Nanoscience and Technology took these findings further as they searched for weaker interactions.

The most important molecules found in nature are dependent on hydrogen bonds.These bonds hold the two strands of the double helix of DNA together and, through their use, a number of enzymes catalyse reactions.

All of the scientists used atomic force microscopy (AFM) to image the molecules, bonds and interactions. It has been confirmed that AFM can be used to aid understanding of hydrogen bonds, but the nature of the bond is worthy of further debate and discovery.

Some of the researchers are hopeful that AFM will become a tool that is routinely used and that limitations can be removed, allowing chemists greater insight into molecules that are manipulated on a daily basis.