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Planetary science is a rapidly growing research field in China. In March 2025, many hundreds of early-career planetary scientists gathered in Huangshan, China, to exchange the latest findings on this topic.

Freestanding membranes of hafnium zirconium oxide can be created using pulsed laser deposition method and used as the top-gate dielectric in molybdenum disulfide transistors.

In situ methods for water quality monitoring is crucial for global water use and management, though many conventional sensors have slow response time and are non-recyclable. Here, the authors report a recyclable amphiphobic dielectric material for fast monitoring of water pollutants.

Chronic wounds typically exhibit dynamic variations within the complex wound microenvironment over time. Here, Cheng et al. develop a microenvironment-feedback hydrogel to achieve homeostatic wound pH and blood glucose levels to accelerate repair of diabetic chronic wounds.

Some rhizosphere microbes protect plants from phytopathogens through unclear molecular mechanisms. Here, Zhang et al. show that a rhizosphere bacterium displays antimicrobial activity against phytopathogenic fungi by reducing the activity of the fungal NatA acetyltransferase complex, thus inducing protein degradation and apoptosis.

Previous ophthalmic foundation models have struggled to generalize effectively to diverse and rare fundus diseases, restricting their clinical applicability. Here, the authors introduce a vision-language foundation model that demonstrates superior performance in diagnosing both common and rare fundus conditions.

Propane dehydrogenation (PDH) is critical for propylene production, yet overcoming the trade-off between activity and stability remains a challenge. Here a robust Pt@Sn-MFI catalyst is developed for PDH, leveraging the synergy between Pt and hydroxyl sites.

COPD patients are more likely to also have diabetes. Here the authors show that the use of SGLT2 inhibitors was associated with reduced all-cause mortality, hospitalization, acute exacerbations, and pneumonia in patients with COPD and diabetes.

Maintaining proper reactive oxygen species (ROS) balance is critical for cellular and individual health, yet its dynamic nature encumbers monitoring and assessment. Here the authors propose a platform using mass cytometry-based detection, termed SN-ROP, to identify distinct ROS profiles associated with specific immune cell functions and disease states.

Hydrogel materials have emerged as versatile platforms for biomedical applications. Here this group reports an mRNA lipid nanoparticle-incorporated microgel matrix for immune cell recruitment/antigen expression and presentation/cellular interaction thereby eliciting antitumor efficacy with a single dose.

The function and regulatory mechanism of mRNA acetylation modification in cancer progression remains largely unknown. Here the authors identify that targeting tumor N4-acetylcytidine (ac4C) RNA acetyltransferase NAT10 improves anti-tumor response via MYC/CDK2/DNMT1/dsRNA/type I IFN pathway, and show the synergic anti-tumor effect of NAT10 inhibition with aPD-1.

Schizophrenia exhibits significant variability in brain structures, traditionally viewed as static due to heterogeneous subgroups. Here the authors use magnetic resonance imaging data from 1,792 individuals with schizophrenia to reveal that gray matter volume variability is greater in early stages and decreases over time, highlighting dynamic brain alterations with implications for understanding disease progression.

The heterogeneity of HSPCs in response to IR stress remains poorly characterized. Here, the authors provide insights into the molecular intricacies of IR-induced BM injury and reveal the roles of BMP4-BMPR2 signaling in radiation resistance of HSCs.

Induction of hypothermia during hibernation/torpor enables certain mammals to survive under extreme conditions. Here, the authors show that the natural product P57 induces hypothermia by targeting pyridoxal kinase and has a potential application in therapeutic hypothermia.

Epstein-Barr virus is associated with increased cancer risk. Here, the authors analysed two population-based prospective cohorts in Southern China to examine the association between increased seropositivity and the risk of multiple cancer types.

Native state proteomics of PV interneurons revealed unique molecular features of high translational and metabolic activity, and enrichment of Alzheimer’s risk genes. Early amyloid pathology exerted unique effects on mitochondria, mTOR signaling and neurotransmission in PV neurons.

Here, the authors develop an antiferromagnet/topological insulator heterostructure, MnSe/(Bi,Sb)₂Te₃, to obtain laser-induced transient magnetic moment and optically controllable circularly polarized ultrafast terahertz pulse generation, under zero external magnetic field.

Artificial intelligence-based detection of gastric cancer at different stages from noncontrast computed tomography is suggested to be feasible in a retrospective analysis of large and diverse cohorts, including real-world populations in opportunistic and targeted screening scenarios.

The development of vertical p-i-n junctions has been hindered by complex fabrication techniques and performance trade-off between responsivity and speed. Here, authors employ WSe₂ thin layers to construct photodiode, reporting responsivity of 0.388 A/W and response time down to sub-10 picoseconds.

DNA Damage Regulated Autophagy Modulator 1 (DRAM1) plays pivotal roles in autophagy regulation. Here, the authors show that DRAM1 stabilizes lysosomal VAMP8, thereby promoting autolysosome maturation. Furthermore, they establish that DRAM1–VAMP8 axis enhances autophagic flux and facilitates hepatocellular carcinoma extravasation, as validated in both zebrafish xenograft and mouse metastatic models.

A reinforcement learning-based virtual reality system, implementing a series of sport sessions with coaching, was as effective as standard physical activity in reducing fat mass in adolescents, with positive effects on cognition.

2D semiconductors are attracting attention as a potential alternative for post-silicon electronics, but the fabrication of high-performance 2D p-type transistors remains a challenge. Here, the authors report the realization of bilayer WSe₂ p-type transistor arrays with on-state currents up to 421 μA/μm, on/off ratios exceeding 10⁷ and subthreshold swings as low as 75 mV/decade.

Using two cohorts, Liu, Ge, Xiao, Lu and colleagues perform plasma metabolomics and lipidomics, linking reduced sarcosine to sarcopenia diagnosis. In mice, they demonstrate that sarcosine enhances muscle repair, boosts adipose thermogenesis and preserves muscle mass via macrophage modulation.

Diffusion models have shown promise in content generation, however, like many forms of generative AI, this comes with high computation cost, exacerbated by standard von Neuman computing architectures. Here, Cheng et al present a magnetoelectric memory for in-memory computing and demonstrate diffusion-based image generation on an 80×80 array.

NIPBL perturbation activates long terminal repeat (LTR)-derived alternative promoters due to reorganization of chromatin’s hierarchical structure, leading to LTR co-option and oncogene activation in melanoma cell lines.

The authors demonstrate a simple direct-current-measurement characterization of a quarter-wavelength superconducting coplanar waveguide resonator using an on-chip bolometer. This approach offers simpler experimental instrumentation and much larger frequency range of operation compared to traditional RF techniques.

NatD is an acetyltransferase responsible for N-α-terminal acetylation of the histone H4 and H2A and has been linked to cell growth. Here the authors show that NatD-mediated acetylation of histone H4 serine 1 competes with the phosphorylation by CK2α at the same residue thus leading to the upregulation of Slug and tumor progression.

T-cell enrichment has attracted great interest but currently fails to fully replicate the complex natural immune interactions. Here, the authors report on magnetic polymerised antigen-presenting cells that mimic natural interactions to isolate rare tumour-reactive T cells, offering a platform for enhancing cancer immunotherapy and neoantigen discovery.

Cao and colleagues show that the RNA-binding E3 ligase MKRN2 selectively inhibits the translation of Il6 messenger RNA in activated macrophages.

Understanding how copper nanoparticles evolve under electrochemical conditions is crucial for the development of selective CO₂ reduction electrocatalysts. Here the authors prepare well-defined nanocrystals and use advanced operando imaging and spectroscopic techniques to reveal the Cu–CO species-driven dynamic evolution of Cu electrodes.

Lan et al. demonstrate the high performance of plasma p-tau217 in detecting and tracking multiple aspects of Alzheimer’s disease pathology, outperforming other plasma tau biomarkers across two Chinese cohorts (GHABS and Huashan) and the North American ADNI cohort.

DeepRETStroke is a deep learning system using retinal photographs to detect silent brain infarction and predict future stroke events.

Post-translational modifications regulate tumorigenesis and cancer therapy sensitivity. Here, the authors show that N-glycosylation defective Interleukin-6 (deNG-IL6) switches downstream signalling pathway from JAK-STAT3 to SRC-YAP axis and lung cancer cells secrete deNG-IL6 to promote metastasis and tyrosine kinase inhibitor resistance.

Chen et al. report all-site alloying for 3D perovskites where B-site strontium doping retards the crystallisation and induces sequential A-site doping with annealing. The controllable crystallisation enables blue LEDs with peak efficiency of 23.3% at 487 nm and tuneable emission to 463 nm.

The methyltransferase OsPRMT6b is found to act as an ABA responsive factor to finely turn down ABA signaling via methylation of ABA receptor, thus facilitating growth recovery as high-temperature stress subsides.

Kondo interaction can mediate intertwined charge and magnetic orders in 2D d-electron systems. Here, using scanning tunneling microscopy, the authors reveal that Fe(I) atoms mediate atomic scale √3x√3 spatial coherence among charge density wave, Kondo physics, and ferromagnetism in the 2D ferromagnet Fe₅GeTe₂.

Multimodal large language models (MLLMs) hold promise for a range of medical applications. Here, the authors use MLLMs for 3D brain CT radiology report generation, demonstrating that combining anatomy-aware model fine-tuning with robust evaluation metrics establishes a comprehensive and effective framework.

Here, based on single-pass intestinal perfusion platform, the authors establish a microbiota-based drug permeability screening framework to compare perfusion and metabolomic profiles of 32 orally administered drugs in germ-free rats, and show that increased permeability of N-Acetylcysteine is mediated by cysteine-3-ketosphinganine of Bacteroides.

Previous studies have proposed conflicting models of visual perceptual learning. Leveraging deep neural network modelling, human functional MRI imaging and multiunit recordings in macaques, Cheng et al. introduce a neural geometry approach to reconcile past findings. They propose a unified theory of visual perceptual learning.

While Bell inequalities have been violated several times—mostly in photonic systems—their violations within particle physics experiments are less explored. Here, the BESIII Collaboration showcases Bell-violating nonlocal correlations between entangled hyperon pairs.

Tirzepatide has shown promise for treatment of obesity but its effects in heart failure are unknown. Using real-world data from over 14,000 patients, the authors show that tirzepatide is associated with lower risks of death, heart failure worsening, cardiovascular events, and kidney complications in people with preserved ejection fraction heart failure.

Land surface modelling suggests that preserving woody debris in managed forests could remove 769–937 GtCO₂ from the atmosphere between 2025 and 2100.

Effective lossless compression requires that frequent patterns in the data can be identified. Li et al. explore using deep learning models to more effectively compress text, audio and video data.

Here the authors uncover an epigenetic mechanism regulating pancreatic β-cell adaptation during pregnancy in mice involving ACSS2 and STAT3 coordinated histone acetylation. These findings provide clues into gestational diabetes mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets.

Transition-metal-catalyzed asymmetric multicomponent reactions with two similar substrates often suffer from the lack of strategies to control the chemo-, regio-, and stereoselectivity. Here, the authors report a Cu(I)-catalyzed asymmetric radical 1,2-carboalkynylation of two different terminal alkynes and alkyl halides with chemo-, regio-, and stereoselectivity.

This study designed a microsphere-constituted contact lens to provide ultralow-threshold infrared vision by directional photofield enhancement, demonstrating improvement in dark-light imaging and restoration of mammalian dark vision.