What happened to Aqua Dots?
What happened to Aqua Dots?
Commonly we see organic chemistry as a bunch of atoms joined together with lines, others forming polygons. The truth is, many of these molecules have very specific functions for the human body, and a small modification in them would completely change their function. A great example of this is developed in the context of a children's game, attractive to the naked eye, but which has failed due to the negligence of one of its manufacturers.
I'm sure you remember this game a lot in the TV commercials. It was interesting to see how the children formed figures with small coloured spheres that then "rose" and magically ended up together.
Unexpectedly, in 2007, a 4.2 million unit recall of this toy was issued when 5 children were hospitalized after ingesting some of these spheres (which was to be expected, as these spheres could easily be mistaken for candies). However, the problem was in a small organic molecule used to coat the plastic spheres.
1.5-pentanediol (non-toxic) is supposed to be used to coat the plastic spheres, however, a Chinese manufacturer decided to use 1.4-butanediol, saving about $7,000 per tonne for this change...
Does a single carbon atom really matter?
As shown in the figure above, the difference between the two molecules is only one additional carbon atom (and its corresponding hydrogen). However, when this molecule is transformed by the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme, our body converts 1,4-butanediol into 4-hydroxybutanoic acid; colloquially known as " date rape drug" or GHB (gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid), therefore, the ingestion of 1,4-butanediol has similar effects to the ingestion of GHB.
The chemical structure of GHB is similar to a neurotransmitter: gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Therefore, it can interact in the central nervous system, producing a powerful sedative effect, which is why it has been regulated in a large number of countries, as it has been used as a sedative before a rape.
I would like to make a more in-depth post about GHB, but what I would like to highlight most about this story is the importance of changes in chemical structures, even if they are very insignificant, can cause a really unexpected effect, in the case of Aqua Dots, it represents failure in the market.
Today we've learned that an atom does really matter!
Sources:
You got a 50.00% upvote from @bid4joy courtesy of @alexicp!
You got a 3.11% upvote from @oceanwhale With 35+ Bonus Upvotes courtesy of @alexicp! Delegate us Steem Power & get 100%daily rewards Payout! 20 SP, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, 300, 500,1000 or Fill in any amount of SP Earn 1.25 SBD Per 1000 SP | Discord server
You got a 17.39% upvote from @moneymatchgaming courtesy of @alexicp! Please consider upvoting this post to help support the MMG Competitive Gaming Community.