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Long-wavelength luminescence from boron-based cations is typically hindered by both intrinsic instability and pronounced non-radiative decay. Now a triadic design that integrates a non-Kekulé polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon framework, a charge-localizing carbodicarbene ligand and counterion-directed assembly enables stable borenium ions with tunable red-to-near-infrared emission in the solid state.

Histone H1 binds to nucleosomes with ultrahigh affinity, implying residence times incompatible with efficient biological regulation. Now it has been shown that the disordered regions of H1 retain their large-amplitude dynamics on the nucleosome, which enables a charged disordered histone chaperone to invade the H1–nucleosome complex and vastly accelerate H1 dissociation.

The potential of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) for solid-state lighting applications is limited by the need to develop efficient blue emitters. Here, the authors utilize a unicolored phosphor-sensitized fluorescence strategy to demonstrate efficient sky-blue OLEDs with enhanced lifetime.

The interaction between the polyelectrolytic IDP ProTα and a highly charged folded protein domain is investigated by integrating NMR, single-molecule FRET and MD simulations. Net charge and charge distribution are implicated in binding and selectivity.

Integrated multi-omic analyses using samples from the TRACERx study highlight cross-talk between DNA hypermethylation and genomic lesions in non-small cell lung cancer.

Perturbation of the cardiac voltage-gated sodium channel, Na_V1.5, by drugs or inherited mutation can underlie and trigger cardiac arrhythmias. Here, the role of the Na_V1.5 carboxy terminus in channel inactivation is investigated, and structural details of an arrhythmia associated H6 mutant are reported.

McGeachan et al. observe oligomeric tau in synapses from individuals with progressive supranuclear palsy and provide evidence that tau pathology may spread through the brain via synapses.

Two highly charged disordered human proteins phase-separate into viscous complex coacervates while retaining their rapid conformational dynamics through pico- to nanosecond exchange of short-lived side-chain interactions.

Rudalska et al. describe a novel class of p38α inhibitors with increased target residence time. They explore the drugs’ specificity, pharmacokinetics and toxicity profile and show that they are efficacious in the context of colorectal cancer.

Quantum beating has been observed in photosynthetic systems, suggesting that energy-transfer processes in natural light harvesting could involve quantum effects. Now, extensive beating is found in the light-harvesting protein of a cryptophyte alga, and shown to be electronic. The implications of these observations on the free-energy surfaces and exciton delocalization were investigated.

RNA chaperones, such as the hepatitic C virus (HCV) core protein, are proteins that aid in the folding of nucleic acids. Here authors use single‐molecule spectroscopy and simulation to show that the HCV core protein acts as a flexible macromolecular counterion which facilitates nucleic acid folding.

Photoactive transition metal complexes usually feature 4d6 and 5d6 precious metals with charge transfer excited state lifetimes exceeding hundreds of nanoseconds, while complexes with earth abundant 3d6 metals exhibit lifetimes of less than 1–2 ns. Here, the authors report a tetracarbene manganese(I) complex with an excited state lifetime of 190 ns.

Donor exciton delocalization and its impact on photovoltaic performance of organic solar cells remains less explored. Here, the authors found that delocalized excitons are formed in aggregates of the donor polymer D18, and that these delocalized excitons mediate charge generation in solar cells.

The authors report a Yin-Yang balance between α-Synuclein and β-Synuclein via regulating phase separation in physiological states and Parkinson’s disease. AI-designed peptides mitigate the symptoms and prolong the lifespan of C. elegans PD models.

A new riboswitch-based RNA sensor called Riboglow binds to quenched fluorescent probes to induce fluorescence turn-on. Riboglow enables tagging and tracking of mRNA and short noncoding RNAs with different colored fluorophores in live mammalian cells.

The hepatocyte growth factor receptor MET is a receptor tyrosine kinase involved in cellular processes such as proliferation, migration, and survival. Here the authors combine molecular dynamics simulations and smFRET in cells, to investigate the early stages of MET activation.

Understanding the confinement and transport of excitons in low dimensional systems will aid the development of next generation photovoltaics. Via photophysical studies Ni et al. observe 'quantum cutting' in 0D metal-organic hybrid materials based on methylammonium bismuth halide (CH₃NH₃)3Bi₂I₉.

The size distribution of polymer vesicles and phospholipids is usually polydisperse as there are no selection rules for the overall size. A method combining photolithography and molecular self-assembly can now produce giant polymer vesicles with controlled and narrow size distributions.

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.

Genetically-encoded indicators with more red-shifted excitation and emission wavelengths are advantageous for in vivo imaging. Here, Dalangin et al. report the engineering of far-red fluorescent Ca2+ indicators and demonstrate their utility for monitoring of all-optical cardiac pacing in embryonic zebrafish.

The first experimental demonstration of saturable absorption in core-electron transitions in aluminium paves the way for investigating warm dense matter, which potentially has an important role in planetary science and the realization of inertial confinement fusion.

Here the authors present cyclic peptide-based AND-gated nanosensors to detect concomitant protease activity. These nanosensors improve detection specificity during immune checkpoint blockade therapy compared with off-tumour anti-viral immunity in a mouse model.

An international blind study confirms that smFRET measurements on dynamic proteins are highly reproducible across instruments, analysis procedures and timescales, further highlighting the promise of smFRET for dynamic structural biology.

Current calcium-sensitive probes based on red fluorescent proteins are unsuitable for two-photon excitation at the near-infrared wavelengths commonly used for green fluorescent probes. Wu et al. use a structure-guided approach to engineer a red fluorescent probe with optimal two-photon excitation at these wavelengths.

The vast scale of emerging on-demand chemical collections presents a challenge for efficiently identifying promising drug candidates. Here, the authors develop a bottom-up computational strategy to first explore fragment space and then exploit the most promising scaffolds, successfully identifying diverse and potent BRD4 binders.

A computational design strategy guided by biophysical principles enables engineering of split protein systems to tune their degree of interfacial destabilization, and thus reconstitution propensity, while preserving stability and catalytic activity.

STIM1, the endoplasmic reticulum calcium sensor, is activated in response to calcium store depletion and translocates to the ER–plasma membrane junctions to activate Orai1 channels. Here the authors present a new model of unimolecular coupling between STIM1 and Orai1 whereby STIM1 dimers may be involved in crosslinking Orai1 channels.

Dynamic proteolipid nanoassemblies at the plasma membrane of colonocytes serve as Wnt signaling hubs. Here, the authors find a role for mutant APC in colorectal cancer in the dysregulation of plasma membrane sterol homeostasis.