Researchers from Wuhan University of Science and Technology and the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences have jointly published a paper in Research entitled “Mechanistic Insight into Serine Flux Regulation through Nanoscale Organization of Glucose and Serine Transporters by Substrate Probe-based dSTORM Imaging.” The study developed a small-molecule substrate-based fluorescent probe (Ser-probe) derived from the structure of serine.

With growing concerns over fossil fuel depletion and the environmental impacts of petrochemical production, scientists are actively exploring renewable strategies to produce essential industrial chemicals. A collaborative research team—led by Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee, Senior Vice President for Research, from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, together with Professor Sunkyu Han from the Department of Chemistry at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)—has developed an integrated chemobiological platform that converts renewable carbon sources such as glucose and glycerol into oxygenated precursors, which are subsequently deoxygenated in the same solvent system to yield benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and p-xylene (BTEX), which are fundamental aromatic hydrocarbons used in fuels, polymers, and consumer products.

Laser-driven near-infrared II (NIR-II) light sources comprising luminescent ceramics represent a promising research frontier. A non-equivalent cation substitution strategy was presented to fabricate high-efficiency translucent MgO:Ni²⁺,Cr³⁺ NIR-II luminescent ceramics. The co-doping of Cr³⁺ induces structural distortion at Ni²⁺-occupied octahedral sites, effectively breaking the parity-forbidden d-d transition constraint while enabling efficient energy transfer from Cr³⁺ to Ni²⁺. When integrated into laser-driven NIR-II light sources, the system achieves record-breaking performance of 214 mW output power under 21.43 W/mm² blue laser excitation.

Researchers have found a new way to turn low-frequency light into higher-frequency terahertz waves using special quantum materials called topological insulators. By placing these materials inside tiny ring-shaped structures that boost light signals, they created both even and odd harmonics—something rarely seen before. This breakthrough could lead to better ways of generating terahertz light, which is useful for imaging, communication, and exploring new physical effects in advanced materials.

In a study published in Advanced Materials, a research team led by Academician YU Shuhong from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences reported a structure-function integrated design of nacre-mimetic alumina (Al2O3)-based (NMA) composites. This NMA composite material not only has unique color tunability and excellent wave transparency, but also achieves lightweight, high strength, high toughness, and outstanding impact resistance.

A research team from Yunnan University has developed a novel liquid metal-assisted heteroepitaxy method to grow high-quality perovskite crystals within mesoporous scaffolds. This breakthrough enables printable mesoscopic perovskite solar cells to reach a champion efficiency of 20.2% while maintaining 97% performance after 3000 hours under harsh conditions. The approach offers a scalable pathway to efficient, stable, and low-cost printable photovoltaics.

This study provides structural insights that inform the design and development of next-gen antidiabetic drug.