Browse Articles
Discover research articles across all indexed journals
Geomagnetic storms caused by solar wind might be more extreme than previously thought
Encoding Biological Selectivity Through Positional Isomerism of Phosphindole Oxide AIEgens for Targeted Photodynamic Therapy
ABSTRACT Discriminating biological targets via their intrinsic biophysical signatures offers a promising alternative to classical lock‐and‐key recognition, yet remains constrained by simplistic design. Herein, we present a programmable molecular strategy that leverages configurational isomerism on a phosphindole oxide (PIO) scaffold as a decisive variable for encoding biological selectivity. Strategic substitution at geometrically defined positions generates isomeric pairs with distinct conformational preferences, aqueous self‐assembly behaviors, and surface electrostatic landscapes. These isomer‐dependent divergences translate into sharply differentiated biological staining patterns. One isomer enables selective labeling of cancer over normal mammalian cells and preferential engagement with bacterial versus mammalian cells, while its counterpart functions as a broad‐spectrum staining agent. By integrating with the inherent photodynamic activity of the PIO framework, we achieve effective tumor suppression and accelerated healing of infected wounds in vivo with favorable biosafety. This work establishes positional isomerism as a generalizable design dimension for encoding biophysical selectivity, providing molecular‐level guidance for next‐generation theranostic and precision medicine platforms.
Mediation analysis of fundamental movement skills, physical activity, fitness, and BMI in primary school children
Abstract This study aims to investigate the relationship between fundamental movement skills (FMS) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in children, with physical fitness (PF) and body mass index (BMI) as potential mediating factors. The sample included 1014 Portuguese children (540 girls) aged 6–10 years from the REACT project. MVPA was measured using wrist-worn accelerometers over 7 days. BMI z-scores were calculated. PF assessment included: standing long jump, handgrip strength, shuttle-run, 50-yard dash, and pacer; all test scores were standardized and summed to generate an overall PF score. The Meu Educativo platform was used to assess five object control FMS. FMS were factor analyzed and derived factor scores were standardized to generate an overall FMS score. A serial mediation model was tested. Showed a significant total effect of FMS on MVPA (b = 10.574, SE = 1.059, p < 0.001). PF was the principal specific mediator of the FMS-MVPA relationship (b = 2.748, SE = 0.559, p < 0.001). BMI did not mediate this association independently (b=-0.181, SE = 0.139, p > 0.05). However, the serial pathway through PF followed by BMI (FMS -> PF -> BMI -> MVPA) was statistically significant, though smaller in magnitude (b = 0.395, SE = 0.134, p < 0.05). Together, PF and BMI mediated 28.0% of the FMS-MVPA relationship. FMS was associated with MVPA directly and indirectly, primarily through PF, with BMI playing a role only within the sequential PF-to-BMI pathway.
A radical approach to making C-glycoside molecules
Floatable and Integrated Shape‐shifting Hydrogel Carrier
ABSTRACT Aquatic interfacial materials that regulate multiphase interactions are pivotal for environmental and energetic applications, yet traditional rigid floaters lack morphological adaptability and integrated flexibility. Inspired by the active buoyancy regulation of Microcystis, we present a floatable and integrated shape‐shifting (FISS) hydrogel, combining solid‐like robustness with liquid‐like adaptability for advanced floating carriers. The in situ formation of amorphous magnesium carbonate (AMC) nanoparticles provides dynamic crosslinking points for the FISS hydrogel, and the incorporation of amino‐functionalized hollow microspheres serves a dual role as tunable buoyancy units and secondary crosslinking hubs. This microstructural engineering establishes a thermodynamically stable state of “limited fluidity,” allowing the hydrogel to adopt a hydrostatic equilibrium on water surfaces while preventing uncontrolled dissipation. Based on its flexibility and deformability, FISS hydrogel exhibits versatile interfacial functions, including evaporation suppression, pollution shielding, biomimetic underwater gas capture, etc. Through the assembly by interfacial adhesion of FISS hydrogel, the carrier diversity is further demonstrated as an attitude‐tunable evaporator and a light‐driven flexible detector. This work presents a design strategy for a hydrogel‐based floater exhibiting flexibility and integrability, which can extend the application scenarios of hydrogel materials.
Correction: Transcription factor CEBPA suppresses sepsis induced lung injury by activating SIRT4 transcription
Insulator-free topological photonic multi-lane highways
Multifunctional Flexible Phase Change Composites With High Thermal Conductivity and Electromagnetic Interference Shielding
ABSTRACT Flexible phase change materials (PCMs) offer a promising strategy for addressing cross‐interface heat transfer and enabling efficient temperature regulation in electronic devices. However, their practical application is hindered by intrinsically low thermal conductivity. Herein, we develop a multifunctional flexible PCM by integrating intrinsically flexible solid‐solid PCM with multidimensional thermally conductive network. Through rational design of the solid‐solid PCMs structure and thermodynamic properties, construction of an efficient heat transfer network, and optimization of the component ratios, the thermodynamic properties, flexibility, and thermal management performance of the multifunctional PCM are systematically balanced. The resulting composite achieves high thermal conductivity of 5.1 W m − 1 K − 1 , satisfactory latent heat density of 63.9 J g − 1 , excellent cycling stability over 1000 heating/cooling cycles, and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness up to 74.31 dB, outperforming most previously reported multifunctional flexible PCMs. Moreover, when employed as a thermal interface material in a cooling system, the multifunctional PCM/FAN reduces the device temperature by 27°C, demonstrating a synergistic cooling effect through latent heat storage and enhanced thermal conduction. This work presents high‐performance, multifunctional flexible PCM with integrated thermal management and EMI shielding functionalities, providing a feasible strategy for optimizing the composition and performance balance of flexible PCMs.
Numerical investigation of pore-scale heat conduction in rock matrix blocks subject to time-dependent fracture thermal conditions
A vector-based strategy for olfactory navigation in Drosophila
Abstract For many species, odours serve as key navigational cues 1,2 . Although tracking an odour plume has been modelled as a reflexive process 3–5 , it remains unclear whether animals can use memories of their past odour encounters to infer the spatial structure of their chemical environment or their location within it. Here we developed a virtual-reality olfactory paradigm that allows head-fixed Drosophila to explore structured chemical landscapes, offering insight into how memory mechanisms shape their navigational strategies. We found that flies track an appetitive odour corridor by following its boundary, alternating between rapid counter-turns to exit the plume and directed returns to its edge. Using a combination of behavioural modelling, functional calcium imaging and neural perturbations, we show that this ‘edge tracking’ strategy relies on vector-based computations within the Drosophila central complex, in which flies store and dynamically update memories of the direction to return to the plume’s boundary. Consistent with this, we find that FC2 neurons within the fan-shaped body, which encode a fly’s navigational goal 6 , signal the direction back to the odour boundary when flies are outside the plume. Plume tracking thus engages components of a conserved navigational toolkit, in which flies can use directional memories to navigate through complex and shifting chemical landscapes.
A Geometrically Transient Platform for Bioelectronic Implants
ABSTRACT The outstanding barrier properties of skin make it difficult to obtain reliable physiological information (especially chemical) without the use of implantable bioelectronic sensing devices to directly access the internal biology. The clinical utility of bioelectronic implants, however, hinges on a key geometrical optimization problem: devices must scale down in size to reduce surgical invasiveness while also creating enough space to integrate electronics for wireless power delivery, data exchange, and electrical/electrochemical monitoring. Here, we present a minimally invasive bioelectronic implant with a transient geometry that can be inserted subcutaneously and measures important markers, such as pH, temperature, cardiac and respiratory activity, and lithium dynamics, an important element for medical applications. To produce this new class of minimally invasive and foldable implantable sensors, we developed a fabrication method that works with highly flexible substrates to enable multiple‐fold miniaturization during implantation. After implantation, the implant autonomously unfolds back to its planar form for continuous wireless operation. We demonstrate proof‐of‐concept for the key concepts concerning implantation, operation, and removal through extensive in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo animal experiments. Ultimately, our approach could provide multiplexed monitoring using quick and suture‐free insertion procedures, which may provide a unique advantage in the transition toward personalized healthcare.
Enhanced piezoelectric response of polyvinylidene fluoride/Cloisite 30B nanofiber actuators
Eyes upturned towards infinity
Parity‐Anomaly Quantum Anomalous Hall State in Mechanically Assembled Topological Insulator/Magnet Heterostructures
ABSTRACT The family of quantized anomalous Hall effects provides remarkable electronic properties—for example, current flow perpendicular to the voltage and, in some cases, dissipationless edge states even with zero applied magnetic field, B —but their development is limited by their realization only at very low temperatures. The state of the art in magnetically‐doped topological insulators (TIs) currently allows quantized Hall conductivities to persist up to temperatures of several Kelvin. An alternative approach, proximity‐coupled TI/magnet heterostructures made using a chemically separate magnet, has up until now been more limited, with Hall quantization either completely absent or present only below 100 mK at B = 0. Here, we demonstrate one in the family of quantized anomalous Hall effects, the parity anomaly state (with Hall conductivity e 2 /2h) at temperatures up to 10 K in TI/magnet bilayers made by mechanical assembly of van der Waals layers. This represents an enhancement by a factor of 100 compared to previous proximity‐coupled heterostructures grown by deposition.
Guiding neurosurgical intervention in tuberculous meningitis: evaluation of clinical features, laboratory parameters, and outcomes with a treatment algorithm
How to use AI to make a graphical abstract in minutes
Hierarchical Coordination Polymer–Polymer Composites for Robust, Programmable Photomechanical Actuation
ABSTRACT Photoresponsive coordination polymers offer precise molecular‐to‐macroscopic control of mechanical motion, yet their brittleness and limited processability constrain practical implementation. Here we report a hierarchical composite strategy that embeds a one‐dimensional Zn(II) coordination polymer capable of topochemical [2+2] cycloaddition within a poly(vinyl alcohol) matrix and coats it with poly(ε‐caprolactone), yielding mechanically robust, scalable, and water‐stable photomechanical films. The composites exhibit wavelength‐selective activation and expansion‐programmable deformation, enabling dual‐stage bending and radial expansion with actuation fidelity exceeding 98% over extended storage and radial strengths approaching those of load‐bearing polymeric systems. Comparative analysis across representative photoactuating materials identifies a distinct regime combining crystalline photochemical precision with macroscopic mechanical resilience. These results establish general design principles—topochemical preorganization, hierarchical stress transfer, and protective coating—for translating lattice‐confined photochemistry into durable, expansion‐programmable mechanical actuation, providing a foundation for next‐generation adaptive and deployable material systems.
Mapping the Heart–Brain Continuum beyond Heart Failure: Why Neurology Matters
To investigate whether cardiac dysfunction predicts further gray matter (GM) microstructural integrity and whether this integrity mediates the association with cognitive performance, we conducted a prospective observational cohort study of 73 patients (20 females and 53 males; mean age 54.8 years) from the Leipzig Heart Study. We performed baseline cardiac assessments followed by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and cognitive testing after a follow-up of 3.5 years. Participants included patients with established heart failure (HF) and matched patients without HF presenting with suspected coronary artery disease. We assessed baseline cardiac biomarkers including left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) and N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide. The main outcomes were GM microstructural integrity [mean diffusivity (MD)] and cognitive performance. Mediation analysis evaluated whether regional MD mediated the association between cardiac function and cognition. Across all 73 participants, a lower baseline EF predicted greater future GM MD even in patients without clinical HF, acting as an early-stage indicator. Conversely, higher natriuretic peptide levels predicted extensive microstructural damage exclusively in the established HF group. Notably, increased MD in Alzheimer's disease-vulnerable regions (specifically the cingulate and lingual gyri) significantly mediated the association between cardiac health and subsequent memory performance. In conclusion, cardiac dysfunction is associated with a predictable continuum of brain microstructural damage where conventional imaging previously failed. Crucially, this microstructural degradation mediates the link to memory decline, identifying brain microstructural integrity as a high-priority target for upstream intervention aimed at preserving cognitive health.