Layered Ni-rich oxide cathodes in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) often struggle with poor thermal safety and capacity fade. Xin and colleagues’ studies in Nature and Nature Energy demonstrate a novel high-entropy (compositionally complex) doping strategy, introducing “cocktail effects” from multiple constituents. This approach substantially improves cycling performance and stability, reduces material cost, and may pave the way toward the development of advanced electrodes for next-generation LIBs.

This commentary underscores the importance and implications of the study “Biomolecular condensates with complex architectures via controlled nucleation,” led by Jan C. M. van Hest and Tuomas P. J. Knowles, published in Nature Chemical Engineering. The research team developed a novel system to investigate the structure of biological condensates using quaternized amylose, carboxymethylated amylose, and single-stranded DNA. They successfully created multiphase droplets with distinct dense phases and demonstrated that droplet architecture can be controlled through temperature and salt concentration adjustments. This study offers valuable insights into the formation and function of membraneless organelles in cells and suggests promising applications for designing biomimetic materials and therapeutic strategies.

Ion selectivity is a fundamental feature for designing advanced nanopores/channel systems, for example, biosensors or selectively permeable membranes. Comparison between different studies is a way to find and design the nanopore/membrane with pronounced selectivity. However, there is a huge hurdle in comparing the ion selectivities between studies, resulting from different equations from diverse scopes of science. Here, the authors from “Addressing challenges in ion-selectivity characterization in nanopores” emphasized the misinterpretation of the traditionally used Nernst and Goldman–Hodgkin–Katz equations in the previous literature and suggested the use of uniform criteria to overcome this ambiguity. We highlight the potential future applications of using uniform criteria in describing ion selectivity, which is beneficial to developing a massive AI-based databank. This databank would be advantageous for predicting and designing the ion selectivity of nanopores/nanomaterials in question for various applications in biological and material sciences.

In recent years, one-dimensional (1D) implantable sensors have received considerable attention and rapid development in the biomedical field due to their unique structural characteristics and high integration capability. These sensors can be implanted into the human body with minimal invasiveness, facilitating real-time and accurate monitoring of various physiological and pathological parameters. This review examines the latest advancements in 1D implantable sensors, focusing on the material design of sensors, device integration, implantation methods, and the construction of the stable sensor–tissue interface. Furthermore, a comprehensive overview is provided regarding the applications and future research directions for 1D implantable sensors with an ultimate aim to promote their utilization in personalized healthcare and precision medicine.

Exercise is one of the preferred management strategies for diabetic patients, but the exercise mode including type, intensity, and duration time is quite different for each patient because of individual differences. Inadequate exercise has no effect on the blood glucose control, while overexercise may cause serious side effects, such as hypoglycemia and loss of blood glucose control. In this work, we report a closed-loop feedback mode for exercise management in diabetes. A minimally invasive, biocompatible microneedle electrode patch was fabricated and used for continuously monitoring the glucose in the interstitial fluid. Further, in conjunction with using a wireless electrochemical device, the glucose signals can be analyzed to output the potency of exercise and give advice on exercise management. A custom exercise given by this closed-loop feedback mode can reduce the used dose of insulin and avoid side effect during and after exercise. We believe that this work can provide a novel comprehensive guidance for diabetic patients.

Background: Ibrutinib, a potent Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor with marked efficacy against hematological malignancies, is associated with the heightened risk of atrial fibrillation (AF). Although ibrutinib-induced AF is linked to enhanced oxidative stress, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Objective: This research aimed to explore the molecular mechanism and regulatory target in ibrutinib-induced AF. Methods: We performed in vivo electrophysiology studies using ibrutinib-treated mice, and then employed proteomic and single-cell transcriptomic analyses to identify the underlying targets and mechanisms. The effects of A-kinase anchoring protein 1 (AKAP1) depletion on mitochondrial quality surveillance (MQS) were evaluated using both in vivo and ex vivo AKAP1 overexpression models. Results: Atrial AKAP1 expression was significantly reduced in ibrutinib-treated mice, leading to inducible AF, atrial fibrosis, and mitochondrial fragmentation. These pathological changes were effectively mitigated in an overexpression model of ibrutinib-treated mice injected with an adeno-associated virus carrying Akap1. In ibrutinib-treated atrial myocytes, AKAP1 down-regulation promoted dynamin-related protein 1 (DRP1) translocation into mitochondria by facilitating DRP1 dephosphorylation at Ser637, thereby mediating excessive mitochondrial fission. Impaired MQS was also suggested by defective mitochondrial respiration, mitochondrial metabolic reprogramming, and suppressed mitochondrial biogenesis, accompanied by excessive oxidative stress and inflammatory activation. The ibrutinib-mediated MQS disturbance can be markedly improved with the inducible expression of the AKAP1 lentiviral system. Conclusions: Our findings emphasize the key role of AKAP1-mediated MQS disruption in ibrutinib-induced AF, which explains the previously observed reactive oxygen species overproduction. Hence, AKAP1 activation can be employed to prevent and treat ibrutinib-induced AF.

To precisely and reasonably describe the contribution of interatomic and intermolecular interactions to the physicochemical properties of complex systems, a chemical message passing strategy as driven by graph neural network is proposed. Thus, by distinguishing inherent and environmental features of atoms, as well as proper delivering of these messages upon growth of systems from atoms to bulk level, the evolution of system features affords eventually the target properties like the adsorption wavelength, emission wavelength, solubility, photoluminescence quantum yield, ionization energy, and lipophilicity. Considering that such a model combines chemical principles and natural behavior of atom aggregation crossing multiple scales, most likely, it will be proven to be rational and efficient for more general aims in dealing with complex systems.

Various lipid metabolism-related factors are essential for Zika virus (ZIKV) replication. In this study, we revealed a crucial role of diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 2 (DGAT2) in ZIKV replication using a short hairpin RNA-based gene knockdown technique. The replication of ZIKV was significantly inhibited by DGAT2 depletion in multiple cell lines and restored by trans-complementation with DGAT2. Mechanistically, DGAT2 is recruited in the viral replication complex by interacting with non-structural (NS) proteins. Among them, both human and murine DGAT2s can be cleaved by NS2B3 at the ¹²²R-R-S¹²⁴ site. Interestingly, the cleavage product of DGAT2 becomes more stable and is sufficient to promote the lipid droplet (LD) formation independent of its enzymatic activity. This work identifies DGAT2 as a novel target of the viral protease NS2B3 and elucidates that DGAT2 is recruited by viral proteins into the replication complex, thereby playing a proviral role by promoting LD formation, which advances our understanding of host–flavivirus interaction.

Improving the adsorption efficiency of porous adsorbent materials for organic liquids with high viscosity is crucial for addressing oil spill incidents. In this study, a high-performance aerogel adsorbent composed of polyimide (PI), hydroxyapatite nanowires (HAPnws), and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) has been fabricated, which leverages reduced flow tortuosity through anisotropic structures and solar-assisted viscosity reduction via photothermal materials. The prepared anisotropic PI/HAP/rGO aerogel, with directional channels, shows unique mechanical properties with high stiffness along the axial direction and compressibility along the radial direction. PI/HAP/rGO, featuring vertically aligned channels, demonstrated superior adsorption efficiency (the adsorption coefficient K_s reached 0.37 kg m⁻¹ s^−1/2 for an engine oil with a viscosity of ~144 mPa·s) for oil of varying viscosities compared to similar aerogels with uniform pores, because of the substantially reduced flow tortuosity. The photothermal properties of rGO further enhance the adsorption speed of PI/HAP/rGO for viscous oil under sunlight, including crude oil with ultrahigh viscosity. In addition, PI/HAP/rGO exhibits excellent fire resistance, allowing for reusability via both adsorption–compression and adsorption–combustion cycles. The robust and compressible PI/HAP/rGO aerogels with high adsorption efficiency for viscous oil and fire resistance represent an ideal solution for practical oil spill treatment, and this approach also offers inspiration for the development of advanced adsorbent materials.