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Electrocatalytic co-reduction of CO₂ and nitrate to synthesize urea is a sustainable and promising option to the alternative conventional Bosch-Meiser. Here, the authors report a CeO_x-integrated diatomic electrocatalyst overcomes the traditional trade-off between urea yield and Faradaic efficiency.

The authors show that NAT10 is upregulated with T cell antigen receptor signaling and that T cell-specific NAT10 deficiency results in diminished numbers of naive T cells, translating to an inability to mount a significant antiviral T cell response.

Wheat breeding programmes improve yield by enhancing biotic and abiotic stress resistance. This study reveals that high temperature extremes adversely affect the productivity of new elite wheat breeding lines, and that future yield gains may be outpaced by the rapid advance of climate change.

Altermagnetism arises from a combination of crystal symmetry and magnetic ordering. For the altermagnetic properties to be clear, and technologically useful, the same crystal variant must be present over the entire sample. Here, He, Wen and coauthors achieve such single variant thin films in RuO₂, confirming the altermagnetic properties via XMLD and transport measurements.

Tong et al. chemically trapped the structure of the E4 enzyme Ufd2, which mediates K48 branched ubiquitination on K29diUb and K29triUb, identifying Ufd2’s core region as a K29diUb binding domain and a dimeric conformation for distal ubiquitin stabilization.

C(sp³)-C(sp³) amination represents a promising approach for synthesizing various amines, facilitating applications from late-stage scaffold hopping to the degradation of polymers and biomass. Herein, the authors report an electro-oxidative benzylic C(sp³)-C(sp³) amination reaction of aromatic hydrocarbons using nitriles, amides, and sulfonamides as nucleophiles.

Zinc-ion batteries face challenges like dendrite formation, limiting their performance. Here, authors reveal that high-current deposition forms (002) textured Zn, enhancing cycling life, and propose guidelines for optimizing battery cycling protocols based on advanced in situ XRD analysis.

The functional role of the co-presence of aberrant long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and coding genes in cancer remains poorly understood. Here, the transcriptional regulator Prohibitin 2 (PHB2) is shown to co-regulate the transcription of an oncogenic CASC15- New-Isoform 2 (CANT2) lncRNA and the tumour-suppressor gene CCBE1 accelerating tumorigenesis of melanoma.

An Atlantic meridional overturning circulation slowdown drives widespread shifts in tropical rainfall through the propagation of high-latitude cooling into the tropical North Atlantic.

Tracing cellular changes in complex biological systems is challenging. Here, authors present a flexible framework that integrates multi-sample data with in-house algorithms to infer comparative and spatiotemporal cell-gene patterns, advancing understanding of cellular dynamics.

Native proteins use hydration frustration—regulating the dehydration of hydrophilic residues and the hydration of hydrophobic residues—to enhance their activity. Now it has been shown that single-polymer-chain nanoparticles made from random heteropolymers can exhibit similar hydration frustration, following design rules orthogonal to those of proteins.

Black phosphorus is an atomically thin material that exhibits excellent properties for electronics applications, but these degrade in atmospheric conditions. Here, the authors demonstrate the fabrication of stable, ultra-clean and high-mobility black phosphorus sandwiched between the layers of boron nitride.

Existing 3D Spatial Transcriptomics reconstruction approaches often overlook spatial information or experiment-induced distortions. Here, authors propose ST-GEARS to bridge the gap between in vivo cell locations and in vitro analysis, accurately recovering spatial profiles.

This Primer explores metal–organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) as a transformative technique for synthesizing wafer-scale 2D dichalcogenides. The MOCVD apparatus, the growth mechanism, process conditions, current applications across next-generation 3D integration, photonics, optoelectronics, flexible electronics and the future potential of MOCVD are discussed.

The mechanisms underlying optimal transcriptional activation remain elusive. Here, the authors show that CRISPR-SunTag activators form liquid-like droplets and boost gene expression, while increased SunTag scaffolds creates solid-like condensates that sequester coactivators, impairing activation.

Loss of MEN1 affects tumor growth, varing with the components of the tumor microenvironment. These tumors show redistribution of MLL1 on chromatin and the activation of a viral mimicry response.

Functionalization of unactivated C–H bonds is an attractive strategy to introduce functionality without the need for pre-functionalized starting materials. Here the authors combine cobalt catalysis with photoredox catalysis, allowing arene-azole cross-coupling under oxidant-free conditions.

Nitrogen-doped carbons (NCs) have shown significant potential for capacitive deionization applications, but the roles of different nitrogen configurations and the synergistic effect of oxygen doping remain unclear. Here, this study addresses these issues and reveals the crucial impact of trace oxygen doping in enhancing the desalination performance of NC electrodes.

In situ synchrotron X-ray tools are used to perform microstrain screening during solid-state synthesis of battery materials, leading to fewer structural defects and improved performance.

Ancient DNA, stable isotopes and other archaeological methods establish that humans were living at extremely high elevation on the Tibetan Plateau 4,400 years ago, maintaining sedentary lifestyles that combined fishing, hunting and crop exchange.

The authors resolved large scale fresh and recirculated submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) and their associated nutrient fluxes in China’s coastal seas, revealing a dominant role of SGD in nutrient budgets.

Protein homeostasis is tightly regulated in developing sperm, which cease transcription during later stages of differentiation. Here they show that UBL7 can regulate the ubiquitin-proteasome system to safeguard key proteins during spermatogenesis.

Medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) is a neuroendocrine tumor that originates from thyroid parafollicular cells, generally associated with a poor prognosis. By comparing MTC with less aggressive papillary thyroid cancer, here the authors find that the neurotransmitter calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) promotes an immunosuppressive microenvironment in MTC.

The power conversion efficiencies of thick-film perovskite solar cells lag behind those with nanometre film thickness. Here, the authors rule out the restrictions of carrier lifetime on device performance and reveal the critical role of lattice strain in micron-scale thick perovskite films.

This study investigates the regulatory mechanisms of DNA-lncRNA triplexes, specifically their role in gastric cancer through the stable formation and precise oncogenic activity of the SENP5/GAU1 triplex. It shows how PPIA orchestrates the SENP5/GAU1 DNA-lncRNA triplex.

Here, the authors perform a pan-genome-based genome-wide meta-analysis of six independent GWAS experiments in rice, demonstrating the potential of this approach to increase understanding of the genetic basis of, and genes underlying key rice traits.

A quantitative assessment suggests that the reductions in aerosol and ozone levels from 2014 to 2020 due to the clean air action in China led to a substantial increase in the national net primary productivity due to the weakened aerosol climatic effects, alleviated ozone vegetation damage and enhanced light availability.

Synthetic Chromosome Rearrangement and Modification by LoxP-mediated Evolution (SCRaMbLE) is a promising tool to study genomic rearrangements. Here the authors present an engineered yeast strain with 83 sparsely distributed loxPsym sites across the genome can genrerate large-scale genomic rearrangements, which benefits cell fitness under stress and boosts the SCRaMbLE system when combined with synthetic chromosomes.

A unified evolution-driven deep learning framework is presented, which outperforms state-of-the-art methods across various virus mutational driver predictions, and which captures fundamental patterns of virus evolution.

The realization of active metasurfaces operating in the infrared range remains challenging due to design complexities and scarcity of suitable materials. Here, the authors report the realization of electrically programmable plasmonic metasurfaces integrated with graphene transistors, enabling pixelated thermal emission with low cross-talk and enhanced coherence.

Overexposure to ozone compromises crop yields, yet accurate estimates of such impact in Asia have been hindered by limited empirical data. This study assesses relative yield losses of three main crops in Japan, China, and South Korea through O₃ exposure–response relationships based on monitoring data and experiment-based sensitivities.

The application of polyether electrolytes for Li-ion batteries is limited by their poor oxidative stability. Here, authors report an ion-bridging approach to extend their oxidation potential by stabilizing lone pairs of ethereal oxygen through Zn²⁺−O coordination.

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.

Sparse immune-binding data for emerging pathogens limits the ability of existing in silico antigenicity prediction methods to aid vaccine design. Here, the authors introduce a computational method that estimates antigenic pathogen similarity based on epitope structure.

Sodium layered metal oxides suffer from irreversible structural deterioration at high voltage in sodium-ion batteries. Here, authors develop a magnesium ion and vacancy dual-doping strategy to enhance the anionic redox reversibility and structural stability of layered oxides.

Tandem repeats (TRs) have unique ability to drive a range of phenotype variations. Here, the authors survey rice TR variations based on 231 genome assemblies and the rice pan-genome graph, identify TR variations associated with expressed genes, and reveal expression TRs contributed to rice agronomic trait variations.

This study introduces a ChickenGTEx atlas of regulatory variants across 28 tissues and illustrates its utility in deciphering association signals for 39 complex traits in chickens.

Layered Ni-rich oxide cathodes are susceptible to challenges with surface reconstruction and strain propagation, limiting their cyclability. The authors propose a solution involving oriented attachment-driven reactions, utilizing Wadsley–Roth nanocrystals and layered oxide to induce an epitaxial entropy-assisted coating, effectively addressing these issues.

Lithium-sulfur batteries promise high energy density, but polysulfide shuttling acts as a major stumbling block toward practical development. Here, a redox-active interlayer is proposed to confine polysulfides, increase the cell capacity and improve cell cycle life.

A compositionally complex (high-entropy) doping strategy is proposed to fabricate zero-strain high-Ni and Co-free layered cathodes with superior structural and mechanical stabilities and long cycle life.

Manipulating collective phenomena in solid-state platforms with optical means is an ongoing topic of interest in condensed matter physics. Here, the authors demonstrate all-optical room-temperature manipulation of electronic states in the charge-density-wave material EuTe₄.