Computational imaging fundamentally transforms conventional optical capture by combining physical light encoding with digital reconstruction algorithms. While physics-based models initially enabled functional inversion, the integration of data-driven artificial intelligence has significantly expanded reconstruction quality and feature extraction capabilities. However, deploying complex deep learning models on edge platforms introduces severe computational bottlenecks, while conventional multielement refractive optics inherently constrain physical miniaturization and high-dimensional light control. Meta-optics offers a promising hardware platform to address these physical and computational limits. By utilizing planar arrays of subwavelength nanostructures, metasurfaces modulate amplitude, phase, polarization, and orbital angular momentum within an ultra-thin footprint, enabling fast, highly parallelized optical pre-processing. This capability allows metasurfaces to execute complex spatial and spectral transformations in the optical domain, reducing the backend computational load, while digital algorithms compensate for single layer optical aberrations. Moving beyond independent component optimization, the field is evolving toward end-to-end co-design, where nanostructure parameters and neural network weights are jointly optimized through differentiable programming frameworks. This review traces the development of meta-optics-based computational imaging and outlines key directions for compact, multifunctional sensing architectures.

High-temperature infrared low-emissivity coatings are attractive for thermal protection, energy conservation, and suppression of radiative heat loss from industrial equipment. However, conventional low-emissivity coatings may undergo metal oxidation, binder degradation, interfacial damage, and emissivity growth during thermal exposure and environmental aging. Here, a high-temperature resistant coating is developed with low emissivity by incorporating surface-modified aluminum flakes into a heat-resistant modified polyurethane matrix. The coating exhibits a uniform silver-gray surface with a preferentially parallel-aligned, near-surface aluminum-flake network that provided an infrared emissivity of 0.29±0.05. Under identical heating conditions, the measured temperature of the low-emissivity-coated sample is up to 45.74±0.46 °C higher than that of the commercial-coating. The coating retains its high infrared reflectance with negligible absolute change of less than 0.06 after 200 °C continuous high-temperature test, 1000-h ultraviolet irradiation, and 1000-h accelerated weathering test. The results demonstrate that the oriented metallic reflection network suppresses radiative heat dissipation, while the heat-resistant resin and stable interface preserve the reflective architecture during service. This work provides a practical design route for thin, weather-resistant, low-emissivity coatings in high-temperature equipment and industrial thermal management.

Ammonium-ion (NH₄⁺) supercapacitors are attractive for safe, low-cost energy storage, yet their progress is limited by modest rate capability and an incomplete picture of hydrogen-bond-mediated charge storage. Here, we report a carbon derived from zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) hosting ultrasmall Ni clusters (ZnC@Ni) that overcomes both hurdles. Relative to the corresponding Ni-free carbon (ZnC), ZnC@Ni exhibits a ~98.0% increase in specific capacitance, ~16.0% improvement in rate capability, and 93.4% capacitance retention after 10,000 cycles in a three-electrode configuration. Symmetric devices assembled from ZnC@Ni deliver 81.9 Wh kg^-1 at 922.5 W kg^-1 and retain 92.7% of their initial capacitance after 10,000 cycles. Electrochemical comparisons support improved charge-transfer behavior following Ni incorporation, while ab initio calculations suggest more favorable NH₄⁺ adsorption on the modeled ZnC@Ni surface. The calculated NH₄⁺-water association also suggests that its affinity for water may favor hydration-shell recovery following desorption into the electrolyte. These findings establish Ni-cluster-carbon architectures as an effective route to activate hydrogen-bond-assisted charge storage in NH₄⁺ supercapacitors and provide a mechanistic framework for designing high-rate, durable aqueous supercapacitors.

Cellular senescence plays a context-dependent dual role in tumor progression. Transitioning from a tumor-suppressive barrier in premalignant stages to a tumor-promoting driver during progression, and further to double-edged effects in therapy, its functional shift involves complex molecular mechanisms and microenvironmental interactions. This review outlines the relationship between aging and cancer; describes the characteristics, functions, and clinical potential of cellular senescence in cancer; and the transition from tumor suppression to tumor promotion. Specifically, we examine how this transition is driven by immune clearance failure, NOTCH1-regulated SASP shifts, the positive feedback loop between senescence accumulation and immunosuppression, and mesenchymal drift. We also discuss the possibility that senescent cells act as a reservoir for malignant transformation, and that tumor cells escaping clearance may retain a “reversible senescence memory.” Finally, we highlight current therapeutic strategies targeting senescence, including senolytics and senomorphics, and critically assess the risks of improper senolytic use. Together, these insights offer new perspectives on the central role of senescence in tumorigenesis and progression.

Long-term glucocorticoid medication is indispensable for controlling inflammatory, autoimmune, allergic, neurologic and oncologic diseases, yet its cumulative toxicity resembles accelerated biological aging. We develop the concept that systemic glucocorticoids can cause iatrogenic aging by activating the acyl-CoA binding protein/diazepam-binding inhibitor (ACBP/DBI)-gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor axis. ACBP/DBI has emerged as a circulating biomarker of biological aging and age-related diseases in human cohorts, and as a driver of pathological aging in rodent models. Extracellular ACBP/DBI acts on a subset of GABAA receptors containing the gamma-2 subunit, overlapping with the benzodiazepine-sensitive receptor system. Epidemiological associations between chronic benzodiazepine exposure and dementia, cancer, cardiovascular events, infections and immune dysfunction therefore provide a pharmacological parallel to persistent ACBP/DBI signaling. Among endocrine stimuli, glucocorticoids are the strongest inducers of ACBP/DBI expression and secretion. Glucocorticoid receptor activation stimulates hepatocyte-derived ACBP/DBI release, converting endocrine stress into ACBP/DBI-mediated systemic autophagy inhibition, metabolic dysfunction and immunosuppression. In mice, genetic deletion, antibody-mediated neutralization or receptor-level interruption of ACBP/DBI signaling attenuates multiple features of glucocorticoid excess, including obesity, diabetes, dyslipidemia, sarcopenia, osteoporosis and impaired anticancer immunity. In sharp contrast, ACBP/DBI neutralization does not interfere with the anti-inflammatory action of glucocorticoids. Clinically, chronic endogenous or exogenous glucocorticoid exposure is associated with metabolic syndrome, unfavorable body-composition changes, osteoporosis, sarcopenia, cardiovascular disease, neurocognitive decline and infection susceptibility. In this Perspective, we propose that protracted systemic glucocorticoid therapy represents a paradigmatic form of iatrogenic aging that activates a stress-endocrine ACBP/DBI-GABAA receptor program. In practice, we strongly recommend avoiding chronic, high-dose glucocorticoid medications, whenever possible.

Electrospun piezoelectric nanofibers offer flexibility and structural tunability for sensing and energy harvesting. This review links molecular, fiber, and network structures to the mechanisms governing device-level mechanoelectrical performance. It examines how crystalline phase and molecular conformation, fiber geometry and alignment, and interfacial coupling regulate polarization, stress transfer, and charge transport. Device architecture, charge collection, measurement conditions, and performance metrics are assessed to clarify the relationship between material properties and reported outputs and support meaningful comparison across studies. Applications in energy harvesting, wearable health monitoring, and human-machine interfaces illustrate progress from individual sensing elements toward intelligent systems. Challenges in scalable fabrication, standardized evaluation, long-term reliability, and system integration are discussed. The resulting analysis guides material selection, fiber-network design, and device evaluation for specific applications.

Aims: Type 1 conventional dendritic cells (cDC1s) are critical for initiating adaptive immune responses through the cross-priming of CD8⁺ T cells against antigens from tumor or virus-infected cells. This function depends on specialized cross-presentation pathways that allow cDC1s to process phagocytosed cell debris and present peptide–MHC I complexes and efficient interaction between cDC1 and CD8+ T cells. In this study, we aim at evaluating the role of Rab32, a small GTPase highly expressed in cDC1s in the cross-priming pathway.

Methods: We have characterized cDC1 from Rab32 deficient mice and evaluated the ability of Rab32 deficient dendritic cells to activate CD8+ T cell responses against cell-associated antigens, including tumor-associated antigens.

Results: While cDC1s from Rab32-deficient mice develop normally and can respond to maturation signals, their capacity to activate CD8⁺ T cells in vivo is impaired. Notably, Rab32-deficient cDC1s retain the ability to stimulate high affinity TCR transgenic CD8⁺ T cells ex vivo using both cell-associated antigens and MHC I-binding peptides of varying affinity. However, in vivo, Rab32 is essential for effective CD8⁺ T cell responses to cell-associated antigens, and plays a role outside of the T cell compartment. Importantly, Rab32-mediated cross-priming is required for the efficient expansion of tumor-specific CD8⁺ T cells into solid tumors.

Conclusion: These findings underscore a critical role for Rab32 in the cross-priming of cell associated antigens.

Current humanoid robots face persistent mechanical challenges in combining load-bearing capacity, dexterity, and compliance within compact structures, limiting their ability to perform versatile tasks and interact safely with humans. As the foundation of upper limb movement, the shoulder joint is critical to humanoid robots to perform manipulation, human-robot interaction, and other complex tasks. In this review, we outline the biological principle of human shoulder joints and critically review the research progress of robotic shoulder joints, with particular attention to their flexibility and stability. Based on the system architecture, we propose a clear taxonomy classifying robotic shoulder joints into drive-transmission integrated and drive-transmission separated systems, analyzing the benefits and drawbacks of different architectures. By comparing current robotic shoulder joints against the biological human shoulder joint, we ultimately identify core challenges and potential design trends for next-generation bionic shoulder joints intended for humanoid robots.

Aging is a major risk factor for chronic diseases, and reliable biomarkers are urgently needed to improve healthspan. Nuclear condensates (NCs), membraneless organelles formed via liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), regulate essential nuclear functions including transcription, DNA repair, and RNA processing. This review summarizes recent advances in NC biology, focusing on their dynamic changes during cellular senescence and their dysregulation in major aging-related diseases, including neurodegeneration, cancer, progeroid syndromes, and cardiovascular diseases. Canonical NCs such as nucleoli, Cajal bodies, PML-NBs, nuclear speckles, paraspeckles, and heterochromatin domains undergo structural and functional remodeling with aging, and their dysregulation, manifested as morphological alterations, aberrant phase transitions, or mislocalization of components, contributes to disease pathogenesis. We also discuss the emerging, though still largely exploratory, potential of NCs as diagnostic biomarkers, highlighting both imaging and molecular strategies for clinical translation as well as the substantial challenges that remain. Finally, we outline key unanswered questions and future directions, with an emphasis on the need for standardized methodologies, causal mechanistic studies, and validated clinical assays. Collectively, this review suggests that NCs may offer new conceptual and therapeutic angles on aging-related diseases.

Flexible lead zirconate titanate (PZT) piezoelectric sensing technology combines high electromechanical coupling with mechanical conformability, enabling high-sensitivity perception of dynamic mechanical stimuli across broad frequency ranges. By integrating high-performance PZT materials with flexible substrates and high-density sensor arrays, this technology supports wearable physiological monitoring, tactile and structural sensing, acoustic detection, ultrasonic imaging and multimodal perception. The central challenge lies in simultaneously optimizing piezoelectric response, signal fidelity, long-term reliability and integration feasibility. A key tension arises from the need to reconcile the intrinsically high piezoelectric coefficients and strong electromechanical coupling of PZT with the mechanical compliance and low-temperature processability required by flexible substrates. This trade-off ultimately governs device sensitivity, conformability and manufacturing scalability. Recent advances in material modification, interfacial engineering, strain-transfer enhancement and signal conditioning are improving sensing sensitivity, bandwidth, spatial resolution and dynamic-event recognition. This review systematically examines the electromechanical transduction mechanisms, flexible fabrication strategies, performance-enhancement approaches and cross-frequency-domain applications of flexible PZT sensors. Rather than focusing primarily on material properties or individual sensors, it further highlights co-optimization strategies involving materials, mechanical coupling and signal conditioning, providing a system-level roadmap for developing stable, broadband and intelligent flexible PZT sensing systems for complex dynamic environments.

In this work, a piezoelectric ceramic tuning fork (PCTF)-based hydrogen-induced relaxation-modulated photoacoustic spectroscopy (HIRM-PAS) method is proposed for indirect H₂ detection. C₂H₂ is employed as an infrared-active probe molecule, and H₂ concentration is retrieved from the attenuation of the C₂H₂ photoacoustic response induced by H₂-dependent collisional relaxation. A low-frequency PCTF is used as the photoacoustic transducer to construct a piezoelectric ceramic photoacoustic spectroscopy (PCPAS) system, converting the relaxation-modulated acoustic response into an electrical signal. At a fixed C₂H₂ concentration of 1.5%, the introduction of 6% H₂ reduces the PCPAS signal from 20.93 to 18.91 μV, corresponding to an attenuation of 9.65%. In contrast, the simultaneously measured photodetector signal changes by only 0.061%, indicating that the optical absorption of C₂H₂ remains nearly unchanged and that the photoacoustic attenuation is mainly attributed to H₂-induced modulation of the molecular relaxation process. The H₂ response sensitivity is approximately 0.345 μV/%, with an estimated minimum detection limit of 0.182%. In addition, the system achieves a C₂H₂ minimum detection limit of 28.6 ppm. This work demonstrates the feasibility of converting H₂-induced intermolecular relaxation into a measurable photoacoustic amplitude response, providing a new approach for indirect H₂ sensing.

How is it possible to double the lifespan of an organism already close to death? Many biological theories of aging fail to explain this phenomenon. At the Physics of Aging workshop, we used late-life lifespan extension in Caenorhabditis elegans to illustrate how a simple stochastic dynamical-systems model can naturally account for dramatic geriatric interventions. We build on a Langevin-type framework in which aging can occur in stable or unstable dynamical regimes, depending on whether slow, lifespan-determining modes are initially restoring or non-restoring. We argue that C. elegans operates in the unstable regime, a view supported independently by temporal scaling of survival curves, late-life mortality deceleration, and persistent lifespan effects following transient interventions. In the unstable regime, stochastic fluctuations are amplified over time until a failure threshold is reached as a first-passage event. The instability rate α sets the speed of this divergence, while the nonlinear feedback strength g, together with α, sets the failure boundary z_max = α/g. Auxin-induced degradation of DAF-2 in very old animals is interpreted as a late shift in dynamical parameters, and the model naturally accounts for the resulting lifespan extension without requiring reversal of accumulated structural damage. This reconciles persistent senescent pathologies with restored proteostasis and stress resilience, and suggests that altering regulatory instability, rather than reversing damage, can strongly reshape survival trajectories. More broadly, this work illustrates how low-dimensional, physics-inspired stochastic models can capture key features of aging and motivate new collaborations on late-life interventions.

Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] is a major cardiovascular risk factor. In contrast to the genetic regulation of apo(a) and its effect on Lp(a) levels, the lipidomic and proteomic properties of Lp(a) have attracted far less attention. Lp(a) is the main carrier of oxidized phospholipids (OxPL), the major portion being phosphatidylcholine residues, in particular PONPC or ALDO-PC. While Lp(a) levels increase with a reduction in saturated fat intake, findings regarding Lp(a)-OxPL concentrations have varied, some studies finding an increase and others a decrease. Lp(a)-TG levels vary substantially depending on the individual triglyceridemia status. More than 440 lipid species have been identified in Lp(a) lipidomic analyses, and 20% of these change during dietary modification, suggesting a high degree of variability in the Lp(a) lipid composition and that it is impacted by metabolic conditions. The proteomic properties of Lp(a) have been reported in several studies and while much variation in protein content is evident, a consensus Lp(a) proteome of 46 proteins can be derived. A functional network analysis of these proteins showed two major clusters, one of “plasma lipoprotein particle” proteins, and another of “complement and coagulation cascade” proteins with a third minor cluster containing “complement activation pathway” proteins. A significant number of proteins across all three clusters were classified as proinflammatory. Comparisons between the LDL and Lp(a) proteomes show Lp(a) to have a more diverse protein makeup. The Lp(a) lipidomic and proteomic properties found to date offer unique avenues to explore properties contributing to its risk factor role.

Structured light controls the spatial, spectral, polarization, and temporal degrees of freedom of optical fields to tailor propagation and light-matter interactions. Airy beams established a widely used route to self-acceleration, self-healing, and caustic focusing. Building on this foundation, two finite-energy Airyprime constructions reported in 2022 introduced derivative-field sources in Cartesian and circular geometries. The two branches share Airy-derivative building blocks but are mathematically non-equivalent. Their importance lies in showing how derivative placement, coordinate geometry, and finite-energy apodization reorganize the source field and thereby alter coherent energy redistribution, abrupt autofocusing, and the response to subsequent field engineering. This Review develops a claim-centered synthesis of Airyprime beams from source construction to potential application. It distinguishes intrinsic propagation physics from amplitude, phase, spectral, topological, coordinate, hybrid, and coherent-array control; separates measured optical fields from calculated responses and functional demonstrations; and evaluates performance through matched normalization, power, aperture, focal metrics, efficiency, recovery, and uncertainty. The available evidence supports functional laboratory demonstrations in selected particle-manipulation and vortex-parameter-detection tasks, while most communication, vectorial, spatiotemporal, nonlinear, fractional, and complex-medium concepts remain theoretical, numerical, or optical-field demonstrations. Practical Airyprime systems will require reproducible generation, common benchmarking conditions, compact implementation, and end-to-end validation under realistic operating conditions.

Multiband-regulating electrochromic smart windows (MRESWs) extend electrochromic control across the visible, near-infrared, and mid-infrared regions, enabling coordinated control of daylight, solar heat gain, and thermal radiation. Recent advances in materials, device architectures, and spectral regulation have demonstrated their considerable potential for building energy management. However, translating these laboratory achievements into practical window products remains challenging, particularly in material and device design, large-area manufacturing, long-term reliability, and building-level economic viability. This perspective discusses these key barriers and proposes a chemical product engineering strategy for the future development of MRESWs. In this framework, building requirements are first translated into product specifications, which subsequently guide material selection, device architecture, manufacturing, and reliability design, while building performance and economic evaluation provide feedback for further optimization. Integrating these considerations throughout the development process may accelerate the transition of MRESWs from advanced spectral regulation toward scalable and practical building products.

Living systems possess intrinsic homochirality, yet this stereochemical characteristic is frequently neglected in conventional nanomedicine design. Chiral assemblies are capable of regulating nano-bio interactions in an enantioselective fashion, offering a promising strategy to boost anticancer therapeutic efficacy. This review systematically outlines recent progress in chiral assemblies, with a core focus on the enantioselective modulation of nano-bio interfacial affinity across three key aspects: biomolecule recognition, protein adsorption, cellular uptake and subcellular organelle targeting. We further summarize chirality-dependent anticancer modalities, including catalytic therapy, chemotherapy, phototherapy, and immunotherapy. Overall, the discussed studies illustrate how interfacial stereochemical effects can influence therapeutic outcomes, while also highlighting the remaining challenges in translating these concepts into practical nanomedicine.

The catalytic asymmetric construction of heteroatom-centered stereogenic units has significantly expanded the scope of modern asymmetric catalysis beyond carbon-centered chirality. In stark contrast to sulfur-, phosphorus-, and silicon-stereogenic frameworks, the enantioselective formation of nitrogen-centered chirality remains one of the most fundamental and unresolved challenges in synthetic catalysis, wherein broadly applicable catalyst-controlled strategies for their asymmetric synthesis are still scarce. This Review provides a comprehensive overview of recent advances in the catalytic asymmetric construction of nitrogen-centered chiral compounds. Emphasis is placed on catalyst design, modes of activation, mechanistic principles, and stereochemical control. The discussion is organized by catalyst class, encompassing transition-metal catalysis, organocatalysis, and bio-catalysis, and further classified by the structural nature of the nitrogen stereogenic unit, including chiral tertiary amines, N(V)-chiral N-oxides, and chiral ammonium ions. This Review aims to establish a unified framework for understanding nitrogen-centered stereochemistry and to stimulate future methodological innovations in this long-standing yet rapidly evolving field.

Luminescent metal-organic frameworks (LMOFs) combine the multi-response informational properties of optics and the high porosity, and tunability properties of framework materials. They exhibit behavior similar to that of neuronal olfactory receptors (ORs) in terms of their structure and signal response properties, therefore making them a promising candidate materials for the construction of bionic olfactory systems. The sensitive and diverse responses of LMOFs to the composition and concentration of gaseous environments originate from their ordered porous structures, tunable and diverse luminescent sensing pathways, and host-guest interaction behaviors, enabling their widespread application in the construction of bionic olfactory systems for environmental and industrial monitoring, breath and biomarker detection, the food industry, and high-risk environments. This paper adopts a bottom-up perspective to systematically review design strategies for bionic ORs from the standpoint of functional group sensitivity in odor molecules. These strategies include methods for the preparation and modulation of LMOFs, signal transduction mechanisms, and luminescent sensing pathways, as well as the diverse design and material selection of ORs. This perspective not only offers new insights into the design and selection of odor-sensing materials but also provides a reference and basis for the design of bionic olfactory systems through the intrinsic connection between microscopic luminescent sensing mechanisms and signal transduction mechanisms. This paper provides a review and discusses the prospects for the design of bionic olfactory ORs, promoting the development of this field from basic research on sensor materials toward application-oriented bionic olfactory systems, and extending the transition from artificial intelligence to embodied intelligence to the field of olfaction.

Quantum key distribution (QKD) is moving from laboratory demonstrations toward network deployment, and integrated photonic chips provide a hardware route for compact, stable and scalable systems. This review summarizes progress in integrated photonic chips for QKD from protocol requirements to deployable systems. It first examines how decoy-state BB84, measurement-device-independent QKD (MDI-QKD), twin-field QKD (TF-QKD), continuous-variable QKD (CV-QKD) and device-independent QKD (DI-QKD) constrain chip metrics such as loss, modulation accuracy, state indistinguishability, phase stability, synchronization and security monitoring. It then compares planar lightwave circuit (PLC), silicon photonics, silicon nitride, thin-film lithium niobate, indium phosphide (InP) and heterogeneous platforms in terms of routing loss, modulation speed, stable interference, source integration and detector interfaces. Transmitter and receiver architectures, coherent detection, single-photon detection interfaces and on-chip monitoring are discussed as system-level building blocks. The review further analyses phase stability, packaging coupling, thermal management, polarization control, network coexistence and reliability, emphasizing that deployable QKD chips must remain calibratable and compatible with security models under realistic operation. Finally, system demonstrations, network deployment and practical security are discussed within a unified evaluation framework. Throughout, we argue that integration benefits QKD only when compact routing, stable interference, calibration access and manufacturable packaging jointly keep the device inside the assumptions of its security proof; accordingly, chip performance should be judged by mapped, calibratable security parameters rather than by integration density alone.

Cryopreservation technologies have important applications in healthcare, biodiversity, and food sustainability, but post-rewarming viability in preserved biosystems is limited by ice-induced damage and cryoprotective agent toxicity. Vitrification, also known as ‘ice-free’ cryopreservation, suppresses ice formation and offers significant promise, but typically requires rapid heat transfer, high cryoprotective agent concentrations, or both. Recent success using a “cryomesh” approach can cryopreserve both organisms and organoids in a vitrified state through improved heat transfer. This perspective presents a materials-centered framework for designing next-generation cryomesh to further improve cryopreservation efficacy. Building on established mechanisms, cryomesh performance and post-rewarming viability could be further improved through material selection, hierarchical microstructures, and surface engineering. Proposed strategies include thermally conductive materials, wettable coatings, and stimuli-responsive materials for controlled, automated sample recovery. We emphasize the critical importance of device-level validation under relevant conditions rather than evaluation by thermal conductivity or function alone. By integrating heat transfer, interfacial phenomena, and sample handling, this perspective outlines design priorities for scalable, high-throughput cryopreservation.

Reversible electrodeposition (RED) electrochromic technology offers a promising approach to achieving deep privacy states with visible-light transmittance below 0.1% by electrically controlling the reversible formation and dissolution of electrodeposited layers. However, when dark-state transmittance approaches zero, dense and continuous metallic layers may reflect part of the blocked visible light back into the external environment because of their strong specular reflection, potentially leading to glare and light pollution. Therefore, the future development of RED smart windows should shift from simply minimizing dark-state transmittance toward coordinated management of transmission, reflection, and absorption, with particular emphasis on suppressing specular reflection while maintaining deep light blocking. In this Perspective, we discuss future directions for low-reflection light management in next-generation RED smart windows. Three possible strategies are proposed: controlling deposit morphology through morphology engineering and deposition kinetics to enhance light absorption and scattering while maintaining high surface coverage; introducing absorbing electrodeposition materials and multicomponent synergy to strengthen optical absorption; and using multilayer structures to spatially distribute optical functions along the light-propagation direction. These strategies are expected to enable ultralow transmittance while reducing specular reflection, thereby improving glare control in RED smart windows.

Civil infrastructure is continuously exposed to low-frequency mechanical excitations from vehicles, pedestrians, wind vibration, and water flow during service, making in situ mechanical energy harvesting a promising route for self-powered structural health monitoring and cathodic protection. However, conventional cement-based triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) are limited by intrinsic brittleness, poor cycling stability, and inefficient charge transfer, which restrict their practical application in civil engineering environments. Herein, a carbon black (CB)-modified engineered cementitious composite (ECC) triboelectric nanogenerator, denoted as CBECC-TENGs, is developed by incorporating conductive CB into a highly ductile cement-based matrix. The optimized CB content synergistically regulates the surface roughness, pore structure, and electrical conductivity of ECC, thereby enhancing interfacial contact electrification, charge transport, and triboelectric output. COMSOL simulations reveal the potential evolution and charge transfer behavior during the contact-separation process. The CBECC-TENGs retain approximately 90% of their initial output after 5,000 cycles, indicating promising preliminary cycling stability. Moreover, the self-powered cathodic protection system shifts the open-circuit potential of carbon steel in chloride solution from -0.28 to -0.33 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) and effectively suppresses rust formation. This work provides a feasible strategy for developing ductile, durable, and energy-harvesting cement-based TENGs for smart civil infrastructure.

Janus and core-shell structures are among the most fundamental dual-chamber architectures for advanced functional materials. However, compared to electrospun core-shell nanofibers, electrospun Janus nanofibers have been extremely limited over the past three decades. This commentary examines the evolution of side-by-side electrospinning and Janus nanofibers. This limitation stems from the electrostatic repulsion between working fluids, posing a significant challenge to the formation of integrated Janus nanofibers. As increasing efforts have been devoted to this issue, new insights have emerged for resolving it through rational spinneret design and modifications to electrospinning processes. To bridge this gap in Janus-nanofiber-based devices and products, several key directions are proposed: (i) designing novel spinneret structures as templates for Janus nanofibers; (ii) scaled-up production via the newly developed "needle-in-hole" electrospinning technique; (iii) strategies for large-scale manufacturing of potential commercial products; and (iv) novel complex tri-chamber architectures.

Recent breakthroughs in computing and machine learning models spurred advancements in the social eXtended Reality (XR), yet current systems remain limited in their ability to support authentic human embodiment and socio-motor interaction. We argue that value-driven progress in social XR is no longer solely constrained by isolated technical barriers, but by a lack of integration across three interdependent dimensions: technological development, scientific validity, and ethical responsibility. Drawing on the combined expertise of an interdisciplinary consortium, we identify a set of critical challenges which gatekeep the future of social XR. These include limitations in multimodal movement sensing and representation, unresolved questions about the measurement and interpretation of social interaction (e.g., synchrony, embodiment, and presence), introduction of AI-driven autonomous virtual characters and emerging ethical risks related to behavioural data, automation, and algorithmic mediation of social experience by digital tools. This article offers a structured perspective on the overcoming bottlenecks for the value-driven progress in the field. We unpack key tensions we encountered such as computational efficiency and sustainability, openness and data-sharing versus privacy, autonomy versus human agency. Our goal is to reframe social XR as an interdisciplinary problem requiring coordinated advances across engineering, movement science, and ethics.

Digital cytopathology links specimen preparation, staining, imaging, quality control, and artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted interpretation. This narrative review compares how equipment conditions, annotation levels, and aggregation mechanisms affect model performance and its clinical interpretation. Recent studies cover cervical screening as well as thyroid, urinary, pancreatic, and effusion cytology, but differences in specimen types, reference standards, and validation designs limit direct comparisons. We explain detection and segmentation, weakly supervised aggregation, self-supervised adaptation, and multimodal fusion, distinguishing technical endpoints from reader performance and patient benefit. Preparation-dependent morphology, sparse abnormal cells, overlapping groups, and focal-plane selection constrain transfer between laboratories. An equipment–quality control–AI–human review framework can organize error-specific corrective actions, but its overall safety and cost-effectiveness require prospective evaluation. Deployment must match the validated specimen, population, and assistive or autonomous role.

Relapsed and refractory paediatric brain tumors—including high-grade gliomas (HGG) such as diffuse hemispheric glioma, diffuse midline glioma (DMG), diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), and atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumors (AT/RT), medulloblastoma (MB) and ependymoma (EPN)—remain among the most treatment-resistant childhood malignancies. Despite multimodal therapy combining maximal safe resection, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, long-term survival after relapse is exceedingly rare. The limitations of conventional cytotoxic regimens and the largely immune-silent nature of these tumors have driven interest in therapeutic vaccination as a strategy to induce durable, antigen-specific immune responses. Advances in molecular profiling and immunopeptidomics have enabled the identification of tumor-exclusive peptides, even within the low-mutational landscape typical of paediatric gliomas. Preclinical investigations demonstrate that dendritic-cell- (DC), peptide-, or mRNA-based vaccines can elicit tumor-specific cytotoxic T-cell responses and modify the tumor microenvironment. Early clinical experiences in relapsed paediatric HGG and DMG indicate safety and feasibility, with emerging evidence of immune activation and prolongation of survival. Features of paediatric immunity render children particularly responsive to cancer vaccines and insights from paediatric trials may prove valuable for the design of immunotherapeutic strategies in aging-related cancers. This review summarizes current preclinical and clinical developments in paediatric brain-tumor vaccination, focusing on antigen discovery, immunologic mechanisms, vaccine platforms, and translational challenges that define this evolving frontier in paediatric neuro-oncology.

C-N chiral axes are prevalent in natural products, bioactive molecules, and chiral ligands. The development of synthetic methodologies for constructing C-N chiral axes has attracted considerable interest among chemists. Herein, we review advances in the construction of C-N axial chirality via asymmetric C-H activation, a strategy with high atom- and step-economy. This review covers the literature from 2019 to 2026, categorizing the transformations into annulation, alkynylation, alkenylation, alkylation, arylation, borylation and imidoylation. The representative products, reaction mechanisms, and the application of products are demonstrated. We hope this review will serve as a useful guide for chemists interested in this field and stimulate further progress in this area.

The transcription factor p53, widely known as the “guardian of the genome”, is a central tumour suppressor that coordinates cellular responses to stress. Upon DNA damage and other perturbations, p53 activates transcriptional programs that promote cell-cycle arrest, senescence, and apoptosis. However, it has become increasingly clear that these canonical pathways alone do not fully account for the tumour-suppressive functions of p53. A growing body of evidence instead highlights metabolic regulation as a major component of the p53 network. p53 coordinates cellular metabolism to preserve genomic and redox homeostasis, regulate adaptation to metabolic stress, and influence cell-fate decisions through multiple forms of regulated cell death. Beyond cell-intrinsic effects, p53-dependent metabolic programs also shape the tumour microenvironment by modulating nutrient availability, immune-cell function, and intercellular signalling. In this review, we discuss how p53 regulates metabolism at both cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic levels and how these functions contribute to tumour suppression. We further examine how distinct p53 mutations reprogram metabolic pathways and alter the tumour-suppressive activities of wild-type p53, emphasizing the context dependence and functional heterogeneity of mutant p53. Together, these findings position metabolic regulation as a central and multifaceted component of p53 biology with important implications for understanding tumour development and therapeutic vulnerability.