The explosive growth of data has intensified challenges to information security, spurring a critical need for advanced encryption technologies, and relying solely on digital encryption still leaves information vulnerable to interception and leakage during transmission. Therefore, encryption technologies that combine digital algorithms with physical keys to further enhance information security are widely studied. In this work, we present an angle- and polarization-selective dual-wavelength long-wavelength infrared narrowband thermal emitter for infrared encryption–decryption applications. The thermal emitter is composed of an epsilon-near-zero material upon a metallic layer, designed to enable the excitation of the Berreman mode and asymmetric Fabry–Pérot resonance simultaneously. Numerical simulations combined with the transfer matrix method are employed to analytically investigate the optical responses, demonstrating good agreement with experimental results. Moreover, a robust multilevel cryptographic communication system is developed, utilizing the thermal emitter's imaging results as the physical-layer key to enable highly efficient information encryption and decryption. We anticipate that the proposed thermal emitters will pave the way for realizing relevant applications in various information encryption devices.

Advancing targeted cancer immunotherapy is pivotal for overcoming distant metastasis and tumor relapse. The recent study in Nature Cancer by Sanlorenzo et al. demonstrates a breakthrough strategy combining systemic type I interferon with topical Toll-like receptor 7/8 agonists, where oral imiquimod primes plasmacytoid dendritic cells (DCs) to produce type I interferon, thereby sensitizing conventional DCs in tumors to local Toll-like receptor 7 activation. This approach triggers c-Jun-dependent IL-12 production and CCL2-mediated plasmacytoid DC recruitment, enabling localized and systemic tumor suppression. Importantly, the therapy synergizes with PD-1 blockade to prevent recurrence, representing a significant advance in DC-targeted cancer immunotherapy.

The first challenge in building a living robotic system inspired by life evolution is how to replicate the original form of life—the cell. However, current microrobots mimic cell motion control but fail to replicate the functional biological activities of cellular systems. Here, we propose a strategy that programs microparticle swarms encapsulated in droplets at an air/liquid interface to create cell-mimetic droplet microrobots with vitality by employing alternating magnetic fields. Through the design of algorithms and spontaneous interface waves, our collective system embodies reversible transitions between gas, chain, array, and disk-like collective modes, and emulates various complex activities of living cells in nature, including division and exocytosis. Based on these 2 capabilities learned from living cells, the cell-mimetic microrobots navigate the bile duct to the gallbladder under the guidance and control of magnetic fields, completing the drug release task. This cell-mimetic microrobots may provide a fundamental understanding of cellular life and pave the way for the construction of artificial living systems. Furthermore, they hold substantial potential for medical and environmental applications.

Understanding the impacts of anthropogenic activities on groundwater is crucial for its management and utilization. However, predicting anthropogenic impacts on groundwater remains challenging due to their complexity. As any anthropogenic activity generates carbon emissions, we employed carbon emissions to characterize the intensity of anthropogenic activities to predict groundwater storage variations. Carbon emission–groundwater machine learning models indicate that groundwater storage will increase in Rhine Valley (7.3% ± 1.9%), the Great Lakes Basin (6.7% ± 4.3%), and Pearl River catchments (1.8% ± 1.5%) in the next 3 decades, but it will continue to decline in Yangtze River catchments (−13.7% ± 3.4%), with R² ranging from 0.916 to 0.995. Furthermore, the existing groundwater protection measures of Yangtze River catchments will not be sufficient to compensate for future declines in groundwater storage caused by anthropogenic activities (5.9% ± 4% decrease in 2050), indicating the necessity of more effective measures. This study developed a method to predict the impacts of anthropogenic activities on groundwater, thus overcoming an important obstacle in predicting groundwater behavior, which is crucial for the utilization and management of groundwater resources. The methodology developed in this study for predicting the impacts of anthropogenic activities on groundwater will raise awareness of the link between anthropogenic activities and groundwater and lead to in-depth research on anthropogenically driven groundwater prediction studies. This will overcome substantial barriers to predicting groundwater behavior, which is critical for groundwater resource use and management.

Protein kinases are key mediators of cellular signaling and control cell functions through the phosphorylation of target proteins. They have become major targets for therapeutic agents aimed at treating human diseases, particularly cancer. Protein kinase inhibitors (PKIs) have emerged at the forefront of drug development, and their investigations continue to be intense, with several candidates undergoing clinical trials and persistent endeavors to identify new chemical scaffolds. The main focus is still on developing isoform-selective compounds, which are inhibitors designed to target certain protein kinases, specifically isoforms, for more precise treatment. The identification and advancement of versatile inhibitor scaffolds that more effectively target individual kinases is essential for minimizing off-target effects and resistance. This review highlights important progress in PKI therapy, emphasizing the expansion of treatments for cancer, inflammatory diseases, and neurodegenerative diseases. Future efforts should focus on improving the specificity of inhibitors via mechanistic insights, developing combination therapies, establishing novel strategies, such as CRISPR-Cas9 integration with artificial intelligence-driven drug design, and overcoming resistance to enhance clinical treatment outcomes. Clinical case stories show the challenges and possible opportunities in this quickly evolving area.

There is remarkable demand for bio-based specialty resins such as benzoxazine thermosets, but they are brittle and difficult to process. This study reports the synthesis of a processable bio-based polybenzoxazine resin via the copolymerization of rigid and soft benzoxazine dimers synthesized from bio-based phenols. The polybenzoxazine copolymer demonstrated excellent thermoplasticity and a tunable toughness in the range of 9.0 to 24.1 MJ/m³. The incorporation of soft segments and dynamic ester bonds in the polybenzoxazine notably improved its thermoplasticity compared with traditional thermosetting benzoxazine resins. The polybenzoxazine copolymer also demonstrated a dielectric constant of 2.99 and a dielectric loss of 0.019 at 3 GHz, as well as a high breakdown voltage of 27.2 kV/mm. This research highlights the promising mechanical and thermal properties of the resulting bio-based resin, as well as its tunable dielectric properties, making it a competitive candidate for various high-performance applications in the polymer industry.

Ferroptosis has promising potential for augmenting antitumor effects, but monotherapy with ferroptosis inducers in vivo has been reported to have limited efficacy in tumor management. The development of synergistic strategies with targeted capabilities is crucial for enhancing the antitumor efficacy of ferroptosis inducers. In this study, we designed and characterized a novel self-assembled nanomedicine by mixing ferrous ions (Fe²⁺) and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) in a controllable manner and encapsulating the ferroptosis inducer RSL3, named Fe-EGCG@RSL3. This multifunctional nanomedicine effectively induces ferroptosis and growth inhibition in bladder cancer cells and patient-derived organoids. In vivo, Fe-EGCG@RSL3 was enriched in the subcutaneous tumors of allogenic and xenograft mouse models, thereby substantially overcoming RSL3 resistance. Intravesical instillation of Fe-EGCG@RSL3 controls orthotopic bladder tumor progression. Furthermore, nanomedicine potentiates the therapeutic effect of anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD1) immunotherapy by increasing the cytotoxicity of CD8⁺ T cells to cancer cells and modulating the proportions of both T-cell and myeloid cell subpopulations within the tumor immune microenvironment. Overall, Fe-EGCG@RSL3 has dual functions as a multifaceted nanomedicine that integrates ferroptosis induction with immunomodulation, offering a novel and clinically translatable strategy for bladder cancer therapy.

Advanced haptic feedback interfaces are essential for human–machine interaction, particularly in assistive technologies that offer versatile commands, simplify navigation, and enhance emotional interactions for individuals with visual and hearing impairments. Current systems, primarily reliant on Braille and mechanical announcements, fall short of addressing these needs. Existing haptic interfaces, while providing various haptic feedback modes, still face challenges including rigid, strong current, or high-voltage stimulation, limiting their applicability and long-term safety for widespread use. Here, the work demonstrates a flexible, integrable, and programmable haptic interface based on elastomer actuators that utilize a unique forming process to create customized local stiffness in a multilayer elastomer by varying the cross-linking density of elastomers. Complemented by tailored software, the system delivers a 4-dimensional haptic experience within a safe voltage of less than 50 V and a frequency range of 50 to 450 Hz, enabling high-fidelity emotional and navigational feedback. Demonstrations of this system achieve an average accuracy rate of 64.6% in emotional interactions without prior training, improving to 95.8% with learning mode, along with an average accuracy rate of 94.2% for 9 directional commands in navigation interactions.

Natural killer (NK) cells, serving as pivotal mediators of innate immunity, play an important role in antitumor immunity. Immune checkpoint can be expressed on the surface of NK cells and meticulously regulates their activation states and effector functions through complex signaling networks. In recent years, tumor immunotherapy strategies focusing on NK cell immune checkpoints have demonstrated remarkable advancements. This review systematically elucidates the expression profiles, signaling pathways, and the immune checkpoint molecule regulatory mechanisms localized on the NK cell membrane (e.g., NKG2A, KIRs, and TIGIT) or intracellularly (e.g., BIM, Cbl-b, and EZH2) during tumor immune evasion. Particular attention is devoted to dissecting the regulatory mechanisms through which these immune checkpoint molecules influence NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity, cytokine secretion, proliferative capacity, and tunable modulation of NK cell immune checkpoint expression by diverse factors within the tumor microenvironment. Furthermore, this review comprehensively summarizes preclinical advancements in NK cell immune checkpoint blockade strategies, including single checkpoint blockade, combinatorial checkpoint approaches, and their integration with conventional therapeutic modalities. Additionally, emerging therapeutic advancements, such as gene-editing technologies and chimeric antigen receptor-NK (CAR-NK) cell therapy, are evaluated for their prospective applications in immunotherapy based on NK cells. By thoroughly elucidating the molecular regulatory networks underlying NK cell immune checkpoints and their mechanisms of action within the complex tumor microenvironment, this review aims to provide critical theoretical insights and translational foundations to foster the development of innovative tumor immunotherapy strategies, improvement of combination therapies, and realization of personalized precision medicine.

Cancer immunotherapy has greatly changed the therapeutic landscape for metastatic malignancies. Nevertheless, due to immune-related adverse events, drug resistance, and other factors, cancer immunotherapy remains largely untapped. Recent research has shown that the microbiota is crucial in shaping immune function and that its modulation can influence antitumor immunity. However, because of the intricate nature of the microbiome and immune system, a comprehensive mechanistic framework for understanding how the microbiota influences antitumor immune responses is still lacking. In this review, we summarize the mechanisms of the microbiota in antitumor immunity. We also comprehensively outline the methods for measuring the microbiota and their limitations. Additionally, we discuss the key challenges facing the targeting of the microbiota as a regulatory strategy for cancer immunotherapy.