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The authors present resonant inelastic x-ray scattering measurements of Sr₂RuO₄ in the normal Fermi-liquid state. They find that spin excitations are confined below 200 meV, while orbital fluctuations appear only at higher energies. This separation of energy scales is a hallmark of Hund’s-rule-induced electron correlations.

Two polypeptides synthesized by common bacterial strains in human gut microbiota lower body fat and blood glucose and increase bone density, improving the metabolism of rodents.

Synthetic antiferromagnets (SAF), formed out of alternating layers of a ferromagnet with neutral spacer combine technologically appealing properties of both antiferromagnets and ferromagnets. Here, Chen et al demonstrate controlled switching of an SAF, without the need for an applied magnetic field.

Catalytic asymmetric all-carbon-based inverse-electron-demand Diels–Alder reactions are challenging. Now, transition metal catalysts enable formal inverse-electron-demand [4+2] cycloaddition reactions of Morita–Baylis–Hillman carbonates with 1,3-unsaturated compounds to afford chiral cyclohexene derivatives.

This study introduces ChemAHNet, a deep learning model that predicts stereoselectivity and absolute configurations in the asymmetric hydrogenation of olefins with two prochiral centers, providing a broadly applicable tool for catalyst and substrate design.

Dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) allows the conversion of both enantiomers of a racemic mixture into a single enantiomer of product, and requires both a stereoselective reaction and a means of rapidly racemizing the starting materials. Here, a highly stereoselective iridium-catalysed DKR of secondary allylic alcohols is reported, with mechanistic studies implying that substrate racemization is achieved through carbon–oxygen bond cleavage.

This study develops a biophysical theory explaining root anatomical allometry as a regulator for carbon-nutrient exchange with mycorrhizal fungi. Accordingly, arbuscules residing inner cortical layers can improve carbon efficiency in nutrient uptake.

The ability to functionalize normally unreactive sites in molecules opens up tremendous flexibility in synthesis design and structural modification, in addition to reducing the need for multiple steps or highly reactive reagents. Now, a dual-catalytic strategy, demonstrated with the methods for the β-arylation of aliphatic alcohols and for the enantioselective γ-hydroarylation of allylic alcohols, is reported for such reactions.

The activation of C-C bond of benzocyclobutenones under mild reaction conditions remains a challenge. Herein, the authors report a photoinduced catalyst-free regio-specific bond cleavage of benzocyclobutenones, enabling the generation of ortho-quinoid ketene methides for aza-[4 + 2]-cycloaddition with imines. Catalytic asymmetric version is also realized with Ni catalysis.

Surgery is a primary therapeutic modality for treating melanoma, but it is challenging to tackle tumor recurrence/metastasis and postsurgical wounds. Here the authors report a sprayable hydrogel capable of long-lasting and controllable oxygen supply for preventing tumor recurrence/metastasis and simultaneously promoting wound healing during the postsurgical treatment of melanoma.

Transition metal-based homogenous photocatalysts are important in organic synthesis, but the metals used can be rare and immobilization of the catalysts for recycling is challenging. Here, the authors report the recovery of such catalysts using covalent organic framework membranes with tuneable pore sizes.

Control of magnetization is at the core of many spintronic applications. Out-of-plane anti-damping magnon torque now enables low-power, deterministic switching of perpendicular magnetization at zero magnetic field.

Authors present a bispecific antiviral design targeting the virus and the host that simultaneously offers broad-spectrum protection against multiple existing transmissible human-pathogenic coronaviruses, including the Paxlovid-resistant SARS-CoV-2 mutants.

Incorporation of deuterium into small molecules in the place of hydrogens can alter the properties of the molecule in ways that provide benefits without affecting the core function of the molecule. Here, the authors report a ring-opening deuteration of cyclic alkanes via biphosphonium photocatalysis.

A large language model designed for health monitoring provides personalized sleep and fitness predictions, insights and advice.

6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase is commonly upregulated in cancers. Here, the authors show that activation of EGFR induces phosphorylation of this enzyme at Y481 to activate the pentose phosphate pathway, which consequently reduces ROS and accelerates DNA synthesis to promote tumor growth and radioresistance.

Area selective atomic layer deposition (AS-ALD) has been recently proposed as a controlled growth method, but the patterning resolution and selectivity require improvements. Here, the authors report a superlattice-based AS-ALD method to deposit various materials onto 2D MoS₂-MoSe₂ lateral superlattices, with a minimum half-pitch size of ~ 10 nm.

This study presents a stable and efficient photoelectrochemical system for nitrate reduction to ammonia using metal catalysts on GaN/Si photoelectrodes, offering valuable insights into catalyst design for sustainable ammonia production driven by solar energy.

Supported noble metal nanoclusters and single-metal-sites catalysts are inclined to aggregate into particles. Here, the authors report a general method with CO and CH₃I to disperse the metal nanoparticles of Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Ir and Pt completely into single atoms with loading up to 5 wt%.

The authors demonstrate that a cell’s external environment can physically control its genes. Osmotic pressure alters intranuclear crowding, shifting the equilibrium of proteins binding to dCas9-SunTag complex and thereby regulating gene expression.

Saturated N-heterocycles are ubiquitous structures among natural products and biologically active compounds, but methods to edit the ring size of these substructures are scarce. Now the ring expansion of unactivated cyclic amines has been achieved via sequential Ru-catalysed C‒C bond formation, retro-aza-Michael addition and a lactamization process to construct synthetically challenging medium-sized azacycles.

DNA is well-documented to stimulate immune response. Here the authors show that the activation of cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS) depends on DNA mechanical flexibility, itself determined by DNA-sequence, damage and length.

Biomass valorization is a way to promote the ‘waste-to-wealth’ concept, which is a prerequisite condition for a future sustainable lifestyle. Here, the authors demonstrate a methodology to prepare chitin-derived supramolecular nanowires-stabilized single-atom site platinum catalysts.

Understanding of the structures and roles of catalyst promoters markedly lags behind the understanding of the structures and roles of catalytic sites. Here, the authors address this challenge by incorporating a single-site promoter—tin—on a TiO₂ surface to enhance the catalytic activity of various metals on the TiO₂ in selective hydrogenation of nitroarenes.

CO electroreduction offers a sustainable route to acetate production but remains mechanistically unclear. Here, the authors develop an active learning multiscale framework revealing CH* binding strength as the key descriptor, predicting Cu/Pd and Cu/Ag as optimal catalysts.

Resonant inelastic X-ray scattering at the 4d-edge reveals dispersive magnetic excitations in SrRu₂O₆, providing insight into the origin of its high Néel temperature.

Electrocatalysis offers a route to improving the treatment of wastewater, yet the need for supporting electrolytes complicates the purification of products. Here a cell is designed based on a porous solid electrolyte layer with a cation shuttling strategy that allows direct conversion of nitrate-containing wastewater into NH₃(g) and purified water.

The application of DNA phosphates to mediate asymmetric reactions is underdeveloped in synthetic chemistry. Now, DNA phosphates are designed to catalyse enantioselective fluorination, Mannich and photo-induced cross-dehydrogenative coupling reactions in water driven by ion-pairing interactions.

Metal single-atom catalysts offer great potential in bridging the gap between heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis. Here the authors demonstrate a multilayer stabilization strategy for fabricating high-loading single-atom catalysts including non-precious and noble metals.

CH₄ selectivity in CO₂ photoreduction is a kinetic challenge as a result of the complex pathway involving many intermediates. Here, the authors present dual-metal-site pairs embedded in a metal-organic framework structure with flexible adaptive active sites leading to high CH₄ activity and selectivity.

The spin Hall-induced bilinear magnetoelectric resistance is a general phenomenon that arises in three-dimensional systems, particularly playing a crucial role in antiferromagnetic spintronics.

The authors report a study increasing hydrogen peroxide electrosynthesis kinetics over a Ni(OH)₂/CNT material. They show that the catalyst enhances H₂O dissociation and proton transfer in neutral media.

The development of neutral hydrogen evolution catalysts is challenging due to their sluggish kinetics. Here the authors report H_xWO₃ support which acts as proton sponge to create a local acid-like microenvironment around Ir sites, realizing acid-like hydrogen evolution rate in neutral media.

The process of CH₄ cracking into H₂ and carbon has garnered significant attention for hydrogen production, but traditional catalytic methods are hampered by severe carbon deposition. Here, a machine-learning model has been developed to expedite the screening of CH₄ cracking catalysts from 10,950 types of single-atom alloy surfaces.

A two-phase assembly approach is developed to synthesize single-unit-cell-thick perovskite chains within single-walled carbon nanotubes. A direct X-ray detector constructed with the confined perovskite chains exhibits outstanding performance and ultrahigh stability under harsh conditions.

Bicyclo[n.1.1]alkyl skeletons are of significant interest as bioisosteres of phenyl groups for lead drug modification. Common strategies for their synthesis utilize bicyclo[1.1.0]butanes, wherein the electron-withdrawing groups serve solely as activating groups to facilitate the cleavage of the bridged σ bond, leading to ring expansion by an insertion manner. Here, the authors utilize ketones in bicyclo[1.1.0]butane as both activating and reacting groups, promoting a tandem nucleophilic addition/intramolecular Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons olefination process by an exo-cyclic annulation manner.

The Macaque Biobank initiated by Zhang et al. provides a comprehensive genetic and phenotypic characterization of Chinese rhesus macaques (CRMs). This resource enhances our understanding of the genetic diversity of CRMs and holds potential for biomedical research.

Asymmetric dearomative photocycloaddition has emerged as a transformative strategy for the enantioselective construction of complex three-dimensional molecular architectures from simple planar aromatic precursors. Herein, the authors report the direct asymmetric dearomative photocycloaddition involving electron-deficient isoquinolines.

Considering the unique electronic properties of the CF2 and the CN groups, the CF2CN group has significant potential in drug and agrochemical development, as well as material sciences. Here, the authors report bromodifluoroacetonitrile (BrCF2CN) as a radical source for cyanodifluoromethylation of alkyl alkenes, aryl alkenes, alkynes, and (hetero)arenes under photocatalytic conditions.

The synthesis of aryl C-glycosides often requires manipulation of protecting groups. Here a general method to prepare aryl C-glycosides from unprotected and stable starting materials has been achieved by photoredox, Ni-catalysed cross-coupling. The protocol was also applied in the synthesis of several sugar–drug conjugates and gliflozin drug molecules.

Silicon solar cells with hybrid interdigitated back contacts have a power conversion efficiency approaching 95% of the theoretical limit and a fill factor approaching 98% of the theoretical limit.

Nonheme Fe enzymes with open coordination sites hold the potential for advancing new-to-nature reactions. Here a plant-derived nonheme Fe enzyme, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid oxidase, is evolved and repurposed to catalyze 1,3-nitrogen migration reactions, enabling the enantioselective synthesis of noncanonical amino acids.

Heavy-fermion materials are mostly rare-earth or actinide intermetallics with very few exceptions in d-electron systems whose underlying physical mechanism remains unclear. The authors propose a symmetry-prohibition mechanism that may enforce heavy-fermion physics in d-electron systems, thus providing a useful pathway for designing new heavy-fermion compounds.

The functions of microvesicles (MVs) in gastric cancer are less studied compared to other types of extracellular vesicles. Here, the authors report that in Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated gastric cancer (EBVaGC), Olfactomedin 4 protein is enriched in secreted MVs to promote EBVaGC progression by inhibiting the Hippo signaling in tumor cells.

A screen for protein degraders discovers hits by imaging cell survival.

Analysis of the longest-lived mammal, the bowhead whale, reveals an improved ability to repair DNA breaks, mediated by high levels of cold-inducible RNA-binding protein.   

The topological nature of the electronic structure of two-dimensional ferromagnetic SrRuO₃ and its relationship to the anomalous Hall effect is explored through transport measurements, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and theoretical modelling.

Molecularly well-defined single-site catalysts are very promising from an atom utilization perspective, as well as for a potential fine-tuning of the single-site environment. Now, high water oxidation performance is reported on a π-conjugated microporous polymer with single Co sites, which follows an intramolecular hydroxyl nucleophilic attack that promotes O–O formation.