The Nobel chemistry prize goes for click-together molecules

Molecules are put together and pulled apart in mistry. The reactions vary from one to another. There are a lot of areas where it would be useful to have a way of snapping the building blocks of large molecule together. There has been a way for the past 20 years. The inventors of click chemistry are this year's winners of the chemistry prize.

The underlying trick was invented by Morton Meldal and Barry Sharpless, two of the winners. Carolyn was the third person to adapt it for use inbiological systems. In both instances, it uses a pair of chemical groups that will react to form a structure. The azide and the alkyne are similar to a snap-together buckle.