News from Science China Press

Neurodegenerative diseases, cerebrovascular disorders and other age-related neurological conditions are major causes of long-term disability. A review published in SCIENCE CHINA Life Sciences by researchers from Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, examines how damaged nuclear DNA and mitochondrial DNA can become immune danger signals. The authors highlight cGAS-STING as a key molecular hub linking cellular damage, inflammaging and neuroimmune dysfunction, and discuss opportunities for more precise therapeutic intervention.

Transition-metal sulfides can accelerate sulfur reactions in all-solid-state lithium-sulfur batteries, but their own stability during cycling has received less attention. Researchers uncovered two major catalyst failure pathways and used these insights to develop a compositionally disordered catalyst. The new design suppresses phase separation and transition metal migration while maintaining carrier transport, enabling efficient sulfur conversion under demanding battery conditions.

Researchers have uncovered how compressive strain and oxygen contents drive Ruddlesden–Popper nickelate thin films toward superconductivity. X-ray reveals that key electronic orbitals become increasingly delocalized while long-range magnetic order is suppressed, yet short-range magnetic excitations remain robust. The findings identify an orbital-selective pathway toward high-temperature superconductivity in Ruddlesden–Popper nickelates.

Researchers have uncovered an unexpected antiviral role for PGK1, an enzyme best known for its function in glucose metabolism. Acting through its non-canonical protein kinase activity, PGK1 phosphorylates the host protein heat shock protein 90-alpha (HSP90AA1), reduces its chaperone function, and promotes its proteasomal degradation. The resulting loss of viral protein stability restricts the replication of several RNA and DNA viruses, highlighting a potential host-directed antiviral strategy.

A new hydrogel electrolyte controls water reactivity and stabilizes both electrodes in aqueous zinc-iodine batteries. Laboratory cells operated from minus 40 to 90 °C Celsius, while a 120 mAh pouch cell retained about 83% capacity after 2,300 cycles.

Researchers have developed an orally administered chirality-engineered nanozyme that protects the heart from chemotherapy-induced damage by targeting the gut rather than the heart itself. The nanozyme reshapes gut microbiota and host metabolism through the gut-heart axis, significantly alleviating doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity while preserving the anticancer efficacy of doxorubicin. The study highlights stereochemical engineering as a promising strategy for designing next-generation nanozyme therapeutics.

By pre-programming dense stacking faults into diamond, researchers have created a material that stays ultrahard (140 GPa) yet resists cracking, with toughness improved by 120%. The defects actively respond to crack-tip stress, triggering local phase transformations that absorb energy from the very moment a crack starts. This strategy offers a new path to alleviate the hardness–toughness trade-off in superhard materials.