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A selective inhibitor of Sec61 blocks protein entry into the secretory pathway and has therapeutic efficacy in rheumatoid arthritis. A cryo-EM structure of the inhibited Sec61 provides a model for client-selective protein translocation inhibition.

Biomolecular condensates form via phase separation of multivalent macromolecules. Phase separation is governed by solubility whereas multivalence drives percolation, also known as gelation. The authors in this work identify the distinct energy and length scales that influence phase separation versus percolation.

Cells are in constant movement inside tissues, but often remain cohesive nevertheless, i.e., single cells do not escape from the colony edges. Using an active Brownian-particle model with attraction, in this paper the authors develop an interaction potential that reproduces experimental observations describing the motion of epithelial sheets under different conditions.

SARS-CoV-2 spike protein binds host ACE2 for virus entry. Here, the authors determine kinetic and thermodynamic properties of this interaction using atomic force microscopy, develop peptides that inhibit binding and suggest existence of additional attachment factors.

Quasicrystals exhibit long-range order without periodicity. The authors report an approach for quasicrystal fabrication and show through in situ imaging and corresponding simulations the formation of a single decagonal quasicrystal arising from coalescence of multiple quasicrystals in a liquid.

Crosstalk between protein oxidation and other post-translational modifications remains unexplored. Here, the authors map the phosphoproteome, cysteine redox proteome and total proteome of adipocytes under acute oxidative stress and reveal crosstalk between cysteine oxidation and phosphorylation-based signalling.

Gold nanoparticles typically exhibit hard-sphere-like assembly behaviour, but now the size, morphology and symmetry of crystals of Au₂₅ nanoparticles have been tuned. The presence of excess tetraethylammonium cations has been shown to promote the one-dimensional assembly of the nanoparticles, which in turn form rod-like crystals, by stabilizing dynamically detached ligands from adjacent particles into interparticle linkers through CH⋯π and ion-pairing interactions.

Natural silk fibers are produced using a simple and green approach compared to alternative synthetic methods. Here, the authors show a bioinspired approach to spin regenerated silk fibers using anisotropic liquid crystals and dry spinning, resulting in remarkably robust fibers.

While metal–organic frameworks exhibit record-breaking gas storage capacities, their typically powdered form hinders their industrial applicability. Here, the authors engineer UiO-66 into centimetre-sized monoliths with optimal pore-size distributions, achieving benchmark volumetric working capacities for both CH₄ and CO₂.

The authors determined crystal structures of the main protease (Mpro) of SARS-CoV-2 bound to substrate peptides. These structures define the substrate envelope and enable identification of sites that may be susceptible to drug resistance.

To facilitate the rational design of (nano)-materials and biomacromolecules by MD simulations, the authors present the polyply suite, featuring a graph matching algorithm and a random walk protocol for generating multi-scale polymeric topologies and initial coordinates.

Here, using an interfacial growth strategy, UiO-66 MOF nanocrystals are asymmetrically embedded into conical pores in a polymer membrane. These pores have a mono/divalent cation selectivity of 10³, which can be tuned by pH, and act as ionic rectifiers.

Oxide nanoprecipitates with typical sizes of smaller than five nanometres have been known to considerably enhance the mechanical properties of steel. An atomic-scale characterization is now able to directly verify the crystal structure of these stable oxide nanoclusters.

Mechanistic analysis of α-synuclein binding clarifies the roles of lipid packing defects and charge in regulating membrane interactions.

Blending polymers with nanoparticles is a way to generate new functional materials, whose properties can be tailored by the degree of dispersion of nanoparticles. Chandran et al.show geometric confinements improve dispersion, which leads to a reduced glass transition temperature compared to the bulk.

Mechanically robust, centimetre-sized, molecularly thin nanoporous carbon membranes were fabricated via the thermal crosslinking of core–rim structured monomers, offering a high reverse electrodialysis short-circuit current with a giant output power density of 67 W m⁻².

The human serotonin transporter (SERT) mediates the uptake of neurotransmitters to terminate neuronal signalling. Here the authors use single-molecule imaging to get insight into the molecular origin of SERT oligomerization and their pre-set stoichiometry at the plasma membrane.

The narrow exit tunnel of the ribosome is important for cotranslational protein folding. Here, authors show that their rationally designed and engineered exit tunnel protein loops modulate the free energy of nascent chain dynamics and folding.

In clusters, relaxation of excited atoms can lead to ionization of nearby atoms, a process known as interatomic Coulomb decay. Here, the authors report on a so far unobserved correlated electronic decay process following Rydberg atom generation in clusters ionized by intense near-infrared fields.

Tailoring the macroscopic properties of deep eutectic solvents requires knowing how these depend on the local structure and microscopic dynamics. The authors, with computational and experimental tools spanning a wide range of space- and timescales, shed light into the relationship between micro and macroscopic properties in glyceline and ethaline.

Surface-supported metalorganics promise the best of homogenous and heterogeneous catalysts. Here the authors show that small molecules bind to an iron-terpyridine site on silver via surface bound intermediates by following molecules one at a time.

Most proteins must fold co-translationally on the ribosome to adopt biologically active conformations, yet structural, mechanistic descriptions are lacking. Using ¹⁹F NMR spectroscopy to study a nascent multi-domain protein has now enabled the identification of two co-translational folding intermediates that are significantly more stable than intermediates formed off the ribosome, suggesting that the ribosome may thermodynamically regulate folding.

While biological fluoride ion channels display excellent F⁻ conductivity and selectivity, designing synthetic analogues remains highly challenging. Here the authors show that zirconium-based metal–organic frameworks with F⁻ binding sites and sub-1-nanometer channels exhibit ultrahigh F⁻ conductivity and selectivity.

Two-dimensional materials show great potential for membrane technologies, but their disordered channels hinder their molecular sieving performance. Here, Wang, Gogotsi and colleagues design a MXene membrane with ordered nanochannels that exhibits an excellent H₂/CO₂ gas separation performance.

TMEM16 lipid scramblases transport lipids and also operate as ion channels with highly variable ion selectivities and various physiological functions. Using computational electrophysiology simulations, the authors identify the main ion-conductive state of TMEM16 lipid scramblases and find that lipid headgroups modulate ion permeability and regulate ion selectivity of TMEM16 proteolipidic pores.

AlfC transfucosidase is used to modulate fucosylation of glycans decorating monoclonal antibodies. Herein, structural and biophysical characterization reveals the enzymatic mechanism of AlfC and a blueprint for the design of AlfC mutants with novel specificities and functions.

Nanobowls represent building blocks of fullerenes and nanotubes as detected in combustion systems and deep space, but their formation mechanisms in these environments have remained elusive. Here, the authors explore the gas-phase formation of benzocorannulene and beyond to the C₄₀ nanobowl.

Crystal structural and biochemical analysis of the chloroplast-localized Holliday junction (HJ) resolvase MOC1 in Zea mays reveals that ZmMOC1 uses a unique β-hairpin structure and a two-metal ion catalysis mechanism to recognize and cleave HJs.

A new compatibilization strategy installs dynamic crosslinkers into several classes of binary, ternary and postconsumer immiscible polymer mixtures in situ, with the resulting compatibilized dynamic thermosets exhibiting intrinsic reprocessability and enhanced tensile strength and creep resistance.

Zeolites are industrially important materials, functioning as separation media and catalyst supports. Here, the authors use a large-scale, multi-step computational screening process to identify promising zeolites for challenging separations, namely ethanol purification and alkane adsorption.

IgE molecules associate with the FcɛRIα receptor in an acutely bent conformation where the Cɛ2 domains fold over the Cɛ3-Cɛ4 domains. A new study demonstrates that IgE can exist in an extended conformation with a Cɛ2 domain capable of flipping from side to side, suggesting a level of structural flexibility that could functionally impact allergen recognition.

A quantitative prediction of DNA-mediated interactions between colloids is crucial to the design of colloidal structures for optical applications. Cui et al. measure the interaction potential with nanometer resolution and propose a theory to accurately predict adhesion and melting at a molecular level.

The results of the Fifth RNA-Puzzles contest highlights advances in RNA three-dimensional structure prediction and uncovers new insights into RNA folding and structure.

Precision design of DNA origami needs precision validation. Here, the authors developed cryo-EM methods for obtaining high resolution structural data and for constructing pseudo-atomic models in a semi-automated fashion, allowing for iterative nanodevice inspection and refinement.

Thermal management is important for designing bio-nano interfaces for biosensing and thermotherapic applications. Here the authors perform simulations showing that nm-thick water layers between graphene and cell membranes display layered ordering, promoting interfacial thermal coupling and thermal dissipation.

Porphyromonas gingivalis, an oral anaerobe involved in the pathogenesis of periodontitis, relies on extracellular proteases to degrade proteins into peptides for growth, but how these peptides enter the cell is unknown. Here, the authors identify RagAB as the outer-membrane importer for these peptides and solve its structure, elucidating that it works via a ‘pedal bin’ mechanism of nutrient uptake.

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons can be precisely manipulated to yield ever more complex and discrete graphene analogs, such as nanographenes. Here, the authors use azomethine ylide homocoupling to insert an antiaromatic pyrazine ring into the core of a nanographene, and characterize the molecule’s unique electronic character.

The abundant IincRNA growth arrest-specific 5 (Gas5) inhibits the transcriptional activity of steroid hormone receptors (SRs) through direct competition for DNA binding. Here the authors use X-ray crystallography, NMR and complementary biochemical approaches to elucidate the molecular and evolutionary mechanisms that guide Gas5 binding to SRs.

Two crystal structures of the Escherichia coli β-barrel assembly machinery (BAM complex) are presented, one of which includes all five subunits (BamA–BamE), in two distinct conformational states; together with functional assays and molecular dynamics stimulations, these structures help to generate a model for outer membrane protein insertion.

A high-affinity complex of histone H1 and prothymosin-α reveals an unexpected interaction mechanism, where the large opposite net charge enables the two proteins to remain highly disordered even in the complex.