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Organic phosphorescence materials offer advantages for bioimaging applications, but most of them are excited exclusively by ultraviolet light, which poses risks to living organisms. Here, the author report doped materials with white-light activated phosphorescence activity, and a bioimaging mode in which these phosphorescent materials are first concentrated within the organism and then excited.

Nanoparticles with dynamic patches can form reversible self-assembled structures in aqueous solution that become topologically more connected on dilution.

Molecular motors and switches change conformation under the influence of an external stimulus and can be incorporated into functional systems, allowing the construction of adaptive materials and switchable catalysts. Here, the authors present two molecular motor-functionalized porphyrin macrocycles for future photo-switchable catalysis.

Porous liquids promise to combine the advantages of the porosity of solids with those of the fluidity of liquids. Now, a permanently porous ionic-liquid coordination cage has been assembled that encapsulates isomers of butanol and propanol with some size and shape selectivity, as well as three gaseous chlorofluorocarbons with a size-dependent affinity.

Selective binding of multiple guests within cages could lead to new applications in catalysis and sensing. This Review discusses the design of synthetic cages with the aim of developing and controlling guest–guest chemistry.

Synthetic framework materials are appealing candidates for the fabrication of separation membranes but realizing precise control of aperture distribution and separation threshold remains challenging. Here, the authors show a two-dimensional processible supramolecular framework which can be used in the fabrication of separation membranes by integrating directional organic host-guest motifs and inorganic functional polyanionic clusters.

Elemental barium at high pressure presents many complex crystal structures that have yet to be determined. The most complex of these crystal structures (phase Ba-IVc at 19 GPa) has now been solved and consists of a commensurate host–guest structure with 768 atoms in the basic unit, where the relative alignment of the guest-atom chains can be represented as a two-dimensional pattern with repeating interlocking motifs.

In micro-nano polymeric composites, the modulation of phosphorescent emission performance through macroscopic electrostatic interactions not only significantly enhances emission intensity but also effectively extends the phosphorescence lifetime.

Metal nanoclusters exhibit size-dependent photoluminescence, but a quantitative link between structure and emission is rare. Here, the authors tune Cu-Cu bond distances in Cu₆(SR)₆ clusters and show a direct exponential relationship to quantum yield.

Room temperature phosphorescent polymers have potential in a range of applications, but achieving the desired properties can be challenging. Here, the authors report the development of such polymer materials by doping with polyaromatic hydrocarbons.

Hierarchical non-intertwined ring-in-ring complexes are intriguing but challenging supramolecular targets. Here, the authors describe a box-in-box assembly based on radical-pairing interactions between two rigid diradical dicationic cyclophanes; the inner box can further accommodate guests to form Russian doll-like assemblies.

Whether paternal pre-conceptual SARS-CoV-2 infection impacts sperm RNA content, or effects offspring phenotypes, has not been previously investigated. Here authors report changes in sperm noncoding RNAs in SARS-CoV-2 infected sires and increased anxiety-like behaviors in offspring.

Separation of CO₂ from gas mixtures is a major application focus for porous materials. Now it has been shown that fluorinated non-porous crystalline materials can uptake CO₂ via mobile perfluoroalkyl regions, a process resembling the dissolution of CO₂ in perfluoroalkanes, while CH₄ uptake is hindered. In situ X-ray diffraction data provide insight into the sorption process.

Although hydrogen gas could serve as a promising future fuel, its high-capacity storage is a challenge. Now, a nanoporous magnesium borohydride framework is shown to store hydrogen as densely packed penta-dihydrogen clusters having well-defined orientations and directional interactions with the framework.

Understanding precise structures of two-/three- dimensional covalent organic polymers through single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis is interesting however, to grow high-quality single crystals of these materials is challenging. Here, the authors incorporate tellurium into the backbones covalent organic polymers as a concise and fast method to grow large single crystals.

To correlate the microstructure of flexible covalent organic frameworks with their flexibility is challenging. Here, the authors visually track the deformation behaviors of single covalent organic framework particles with dark-field microscopy discovering that their flexibility is dictated by the pedal motion around rigid imine bonds.

The study introduces radio interferometric multiplexed spectroscopy (RIMS), a method designed to efficiently monitor the radio emissions of massive samples of stars. Applying it to LOFAR data, the authors identify stellar bursts, offering clues to possible star–planet magnetic interactions.

Organic nonlinear optical materials have potential in applications such as bioimaging, but tend to have low photoluminescent quantum yields and are prone to aggregation-caused quenching. Here, the authors report a host-guest approach for improving the luminescent properties of these materials.

Centring structure-directing agents govern structure assembly to consistently obtain sodalite topology backbone, yielding more than 20 isoreticular zeolite-like metal–organic frameworks with tailored pore apertures and porosity.

Porous materials show potential in various technological fields but processing of these materials remains challenging which hampers their application. Here the authors demonstrate an organic/inorganic framework composed of a supramolecular gel as processable porous material.

A family of dipeptide-based metal–organic frameworks has been shown to respond to the presence of guests in a cooperative manner controlled by one amino acid residue. When the linker features a serine residue, guest removal enables the formation of hydrogen bonds between the residue's side-chains, causing a conformational change that closes the MOF's porous domain.

Water plays an active role in modulating guest recognition by both artificial and biological hosts, but how this role can be controlled is unclear. Now, the de-wetting of the non-polar pockets of cavitands is shown to be affected by the orientation of methyl groups encircling the portal, which moderate the enthalpic and entropic contributions driving recognition.

Despite its application in functional materials, covalent peptide modification and controlling peptide self-assembly remains challenging. Here the authors report a programmable supramolecular peptide by pillararene-based noncovalent interactions with multiple self-assembly morphologies and application in PDT.

Constructing cross-linked networks with different topologies is attractive but challenging. Here the authors present mechanically interlocked networks cross-linked by a molecular necklace whose peculiar architectural and dynamic features endow the materials with robust yet mechanically adaptive properties.

Phosphorescence resonance energy transfer systems have potential in light-harvesting and bioimaging, but host-guest systems are rarely explored. Here, the authors report the development of a macrocyclic host-guest system for targeted cell imaging.

The structural stability is challenging for 1T-MoS2 based catalysts. Here, authors report that p-block In-O atoms stabilize the 1T-MoS2 matrix via interface orbital coupling. In-O also enables epitaxial growth of Ru nanoparticles from the MoS2 lattice, enhancing performance in Li | |O2 batteries.

Room temperature phosphorescence materials have been widely investigated, but promotion of the triplet exciton is still challenging. Here, the authors report an in-situ derivation strategy to promote the generation and stabilization of triplet excitons.

Identifying jets originating from heavy quarks plays a fundamental role in hadronic collider experiments. In this work, the ATLAS Collaboration describes and tests a transformer-based neural network architecture for jet flavour tagging based on low-level input and physics-inspired constraints.

What happens to a crystal placed under a huge pressure? In the case of aluminium, it is now shown that the standard, low-pressure close-packed structure transforms into an open one, with incommensurate host–guest arrangement. The findings could have important implications for a wider range of elements.

Mechanically interlocked structures in polymer backbones can give interesting functionality, but can be challenging to prepare and control. Here, the authors report the development of polymers with a daisy chain unit in the backbone that are capable of shape memory behaviour.

The separation of high purity ethene from the mixed gaseous products of cracking poses significant obstacles. Here, the authors present a metal-organic framework which, in contrast to most absorbents, selectively binds the less polar ethane thus allowing the efficient collection of the target product.

The distribution of dihedral angles in film state has significant influence on excited state lifetimes of thermally activated delayed fluorescence emitters. Here authors report conformation distribution confinement strategy to achieve fast spin-flipping for efficient organic light-emitting diodes.

An interconverting system of three distinct stereoisomers of a cuboctahedral Co^II-based cage is able to regulate the binding affinities of large anionic guests. Through cooperative templation with fullerene guests, the cage converts into a desymmetrized cage that in turn exhibits positive cooperativity in binding of an icosahedral anion; this interaction is anti-cooperative in the fullerene-free parent.

Assembly of MOF-on-MOF hybrids with complex structures and properties is of interest, but achieving sophisticated ternary heterostructures is challenging. Here, the authors synthesize three types of ternary MOF-on-MOF heterostructures with tunable complexity via a multiple selective assembly strategy.

Suppressing deep-level defects at the perovskite bulk and surface is critical to reduce the non-radiative recombination losses in perovskite solar cells. Here, authors employ concave-shaped chalcogen molecules for defect passivation, achieving certified efficiency of 25.18% for stable n-i-p devices.

3-Hydroxypropionic acid (3HP) is a top Department of Energy value-added chemical and precursor to bioplastics, yet cost-effective microbial bioproduction remains elusive. Here the authors establish efficient 3HP production in an acid tolerant yeast and validate its financially viability.

Polyamines are essential for cell growth and are frequently increased in concentration in cancer cells. Here, the authors use a macrocycle to generate a supramolecular trap, which depletes the polyamines in cells, induces apoptosis and reduces cancer cell growth in mice.

The separation and purification of C6 cyclic hydrocarbons by thermal distillation is an energy intensive process which may be replaced by alternative energy-efficient adsorptive techniques. Here, the authors report a chain-like coordination polymer which facilitates complete separation of benzene, cyclohexene, and cyclohexane via an ideal molecular sieving mechanism.

To overcome mass transport limitations in zeolite-catalysed reactions, scientists must often resort to hierarchical or nanosized zeolites; however, the synthesis of such materials remains challenging. Here the authors disclose a one-pot method for the preparation of Si-zoned MFI-type catalysts with improved diffusion properties for the methanol-to hydrocarbon reaction.

How the pulvinar represents complex visual information, its functional topography, and its relationship to cortical processing of visually presented objects remains unclear. Here authors show that responses to natural scenes in the human pulvinar reveal organized spatial maps for both low-level visual features, such as local contrast, as well as high-level visual features, such as bodies and faces.

Bottom-up assembly of protocells into networking superstructures represents a further key step towards rudimentary formation of life. Now it has been shown that a pool of biomolecules can self-organize into an interactive binary population of protocell coacervates with a self-sorting chain-like configuration, allowing for biomolecular extraction, translocation and macroscale separation.

PFAS poses significant threats to human health and aquatic ecosystems. Here, a fluoroamine-functionalized QFgel is proposed and exhibits high selectivity and removal efficiency for 17 PFAS in water at environmentally relevant concentrations.

The defects at the perovskite/carrier transport layer interface pose significant challenges to the performance of perovskite solar cells. Here, the authors introduce a dual host-guest complexation strategy with Cs-crown-ether and ammonium salt, achieving a high PCE of 25.9% with superior stability.

Porosity of zeolitic imidazolate frameworks can be preserved beyond glass transition and melt processing. Here centimetre-scale porous glasses are demonstrated, whereas liquid processing enables fine-tuning of the size of the gas-transporting channels for molecular sieving.

It is vital to unveil the effects of extracellular matrix cues on endothelial cell (EC) outgrowth for desirably governing vasculature formation, but the role of matrix plasticity on EC outgrowth is elusive. Here, the authors develop hydrogels with tunable mechanical plasticity independent of stiffness, and elucidate the plasticity-mediated responses of ECs during vasculogenesis and angiogenesis.

The efficient removal of SO₂ from flue gas remains a considerable challenge. Now a flexible hydrogen-bonded organic framework has been developed that exhibits high selectivity for SO₂ capture from flue gas mixtures, enabled by the material’s guest-adaptive behaviour and shape-memory properties.

Membranes can be used for energy efficient organic liquid mixture separations. Here the authors use machine learning and transport simulations to predict the separation of complex mixtures such as crude oils by any linear polymer membrane.