Even a local mRNA injection can produce unwanted expression in the liver. Researchers have redesigned the lipid nanoparticles that carry mRNA to reduce this spillover in mice while preserving expression in injected muscle. The formulation also supports repeated dosing and improves the confinement of expression after local brain and eye delivery.

Umbilical cord blood is more than a source of stem cells for transplantation. A review in Science China Life Sciences examines how its diverse cells and bioactive components are being explored for cancer immunotherapy, inherited disorders and tissue repair. The authors connect these opportunities with advances in cell expansion, gene engineering and manufacturing, while identifying barriers to clinical translation. They emphasize that many emerging applications still require further evidence of safety, effectiveness and durable benefit.

A recent study published in National Science Review has revealed silicate magma can store far more oxygen than its chemically allows. In high-pressure experiments, silicate melt can store up to about 5 wt.% excess oxygen, which is released as the magma rising. The findings suggest that oxygen-rich magmas could carry oxidizing power from Earth’s interior toward the surface, and may explain links between large-scale magmatism episodes and atmospheric oxidation in Earth’s history.

Researchers in China functionally characterized the branching habit regulatory gene AhPILS in peanut through MutMap analysis. This gene encodes a PIN-like protein that mediates polar auxin transport, thereby establishing an auxin gradient at the base of lateral branches. The formed auxin gradient potentially promotes cell elongation, which facilitates the morphological transition of peanut lateral branches from a spreading growth habit to an upright growth habit. This study identifies a novel functional gene, reveals key insights into the molecular regulatory mechanism of peanut branching habit, and provides elite germplasm resources for the molecular breeding of peanut cultivars with ideal plant architecture.

Researchers in China uncovered how cold priming leaves a lasting molecular memory in wheat, helping plants cope better when chilling returns. They found that the recovery phase is a critical window in which stress-responsive genes are reprogrammed and histone modifications are reshaped, while primed plants maintain better photosystem performance and show a reduced need for photosystem repair during later chilling. The findings reveal a key role for post-stress recovery in maintaining cold memory and provide new insight into how wheat adapts to repeated low-temperature stress.

Researchers have identified rainbow trout blood as a promising platform for monitoring the biological hazards of biodegradable microplastics. By combining advanced fluorescence imaging with single-cell analysis, the study reveals how these particles interact with circulating blood cells and disrupt immune-related processes. The findings also highlight an overlooked concern: environmental aging may alter and potentially intensify the harmful effects of plastics designed to biodegrade.

Subcutaneous immunization with live influenza virus in mice provided durable protection against lethal flu, outperforming intramuscular or inactivated vaccines. The virus remained restricted to the injection site and lymph nodes without causing lung damage. A single dose gave 100% protection for 277 days through strong germinal center responses.

A research team at the Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, has used scanning nitrogen-vacancy microscopy and vector magnetic field reconstruction to demonstrate at the nanoscale that zigzag graphene nanoribbons embedded in hexagonal boron nitride exhibit strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. The work was published in the Journal of Functional Materials and Devices.

In a paper published in Earth and Planetary Physics,a research team of seismologists explores strong earthquake hazards along major active faults on the western Ordos margin using multiple seismological methods. The sparse earthquake segments overlapping low b-value anomalies mark stress-loaded locked fault patches, interpreted as potential seismogenic asperities. Theoretical magnitudes estimated from the spatial extents of these sparse segments along the faults are broadly consistent with the magnitude range of historical strong earthquakes.

A Chinese research team has shown that a self-developed, transportable cold atom gravimeter can measure the strength of Earth's gravity as accurately as the world's mainstream laser-interferometer instruments. During a two-month comparison organized by China's Crustal Movement Observation Network (CMONOC) in Wuhan, the atom-based instrument, WAG-H5-2#2508, was tested side by side with eight conventional absolute gravimeters. Its result differed from the group consensus value by only 1.4 microGal, about one billionth of the surface gravity, confirming that mechanically wear-free atom interferometry is now ready for high-precision, long-term gravity monitoring.

In a comprehensive review published in Earth and Planetary Physics, researchers from Wuhan University synthesize recent advances in the climatological variations and complex driving mechanisms of the equatorial electrojet (EEJ). The study highlights how the daytime EEJ responds to E-region conductivity, atmospheric tides, and intense mid- and high-latitude electrodynamic disturbances.

A research team at the Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has proposed a method for optimizing superconducting integrated circuits based on “time scaling”. By constructing a dual-active-device layer within a single wafer, the researchers successfully transformed key logic paths from planar structures into vertically compressed ones, significantly reducing pulse propagation time and paving a new path for superconducting computing in the post-Moore’s Law era.