Non-thermal plasma enables direct methane conversion to valuable C₂ hydrocarbons, but selectivity is hindered by C₂H₆ formation and over-dehydrogenation. Here, the authors present a shielded bifunctional nanoreactor with a hollow, mesoporous design that curbs CH₄ overactivation and enhances selective C₂H₂ and C₂H₄ production under plasma activation.

Aqueous Zn-halogen batteries suffer from efficiency loss due to polyhalide shuttling and chaotic Zn plating. Here, authors demonstrate a cation-anion synergy strategy that suppresses shuttling and directs uniform Zn deposition, achieving 95.2% high energy efficiency.

Penketh et al. develop an approach for mapping the frequency response of thousands of meta-atoms in a microwave metasurface simultaneously, leading to the formation of detailed hyperspectral images. The approach—applicable to a wide range of metasurfaces - may overcome fabrication challenges for translation of such metasurfaces to real-world devices.

Carbon fibre is a lightweight next-generation material with various applications, but its production often requires expensive and toxic organic solvents, as well as highly energy-intensive heating processes. Here, the authors describe the polymerisation and spinning of carbon fibre using water, along with the implementation of a rapid heating process to reduce energy consumption.

Penketh et al. develop an approach for mapping the frequency response of thousands of meta-atoms in a microwave metasurface simultaneously, leading to the formation of detailed hyperspectral images. The approach – applicable to a wide range of metasurfaces – may overcome fabrication challenges for translation of such metasurfaces to real-world devices.

Low-carbon lifestyles could reduce global carbon footprints by 10.4 gigatons CO₂e by targeting the top 23.7% of emitting households. This study quantifies 21 low-carbon expenditures while noting potential rebound effects that may offset carbon savings.

Radiometric dating and oxygen isotopes of Pilbara Craton zircons reveal early continent formation via seafloor hydrothermal alteration and subsequent shallow depth partial melting of mafic protcrust some 3565 million years ago.

Arctic marine ecosystems have experienced significant change through the Holocene. Here, the authors used sedaDNA from Northern Greenland to reconstruct marine mammal occurrence, demonstrating the impact of air temperature and sea ice cover over the past 12000 years.

Some autistic individuals experience aversion to social touch. Authors use Neuropixels probes and demonstrate that unlike wild type mice, Fmr1 knockout mice find social and non-social interactions equally aversive, and their cortical and striatal neurons are less able to discriminate social valence.

Cui et al. present CREATE, a platform for the identification of multi-class cell-type-specific CREs by integrating multi-omics data. CREATE interpretably extracts discrete CRE embeddings, quantitatively unveils CRE-specific features, and effectively enables large scale prediction of CREs.

Transcription-replication conflicts (TRCs) promote tumor aggressiveness by affecting genome stability. Here, the authors identify ANP32E as driver of TRCs in breast cancer, causing R-loop accumulation and genomic instability, which elicit vulnerability to ATR inhibition.

Gunawan et al. propose an Extensible Immunofluorescence (ExIF) strategy that integrates distinct 4-plex image panels from routine fluorescence microscopy into multiplexed datasets enabling quantitative interrogation of complex, multimolecular single-cell processes.

Artificial transcription factors (ATFs) are core elements of customized circuits responsible for signal output and event transformation. Here, the authors report the design of a protease-responsive conformationally inhibited system (PRCIS) in responsiveness to multiple proteases and chemical inducers.

Kidney transplantation usually relies on hypothermia to safely preserve the graft. Here, the authors show that keeping kidneys at 37°C, using a machine to supply them with blood, oxygen, and nutrition, is feasible for up to 24 hours, and may be useful for testing and treating them pre-transplant.

The mechanism of HBsAg antigen presentation to T cells during liver HBV infection is incompletely understood. Here, the authors show that in mice, intrahepatic type I dendritic cells acquire HBsAg by MHC-I complexes through cross-dressing for CD8⁺ T cell priming, whereas CD4⁺ T cell responses rely on MHC-II-dependent antigen presentation by B cells in secondary lymphoid tissues.

Neoadjuvant cancer therapeutic strategy has been explored in phase I/II clinical studies for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Here this group reports a single-arm, phase II clinical trial evaluating the neoadjuvant radiotherapy plus PD-1 inhibitor tislelizumab combined with paclitaxel and cisplatin, followed by radical surgical resection on 28 patients with untreated stage III-IVB head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

In this study, Thakur et al determined cryo-EM structures of receptor-bound HIV-1 envelope (Env) to track how the fusion peptide transitions from being antibody accessible prior to receptor binding to becoming inaccessible in receptor-bound Env.

Leveraging genomic and epidemiological surveillance data, the authors show that flu epidemics in the US arise from independent outbreaks in different states that spread from state to state through commuting and compete for susceptible hosts.

Low-carbon lifestyles could reduce global carbon footprints by 10.4 gigatons CO₂e by targeting the top 23.7% of emitting households. This study quantifies 21 low-carbon expenditures while noting potential rebound effects that may offset carbon savings.

A globally interconnected solar-wind power system can meet future electricity demand while lowering costs, enhancing resilience, and supporting a stable, sustainable transition to net-zero emissions.

The authors examine the genetic and environmental contributions to socioeconomic status (SES) in Norway using a large, population-wide dataset and four different heritability estimation methods. They find that genetic factors explain more variance in education and occupational prestige, while shared environmental factors are more influential for education and wealth, highlighting the complexity and context-dependence of SES determinants.

This paper uses satellite data from 2001 to 2022 to analyze soil exposure in croplands. It shows that while soil exposure duration declined in 57% of croplands, 86% face more climate extremes, threatening soil health.

Global catastrophes such as nuclear war can generate soot that reduces the amount of light reaching the earth’s surface. Here the authors model how this kind of catastrophe would impact common crop growth, recommending increased crop diversity for agricultural resilience.