Cryogenic electron microscopy (cryoEM) faces challenges such as particle aggregation, preferential orientation, and loss at the air-water interface (AWI), particularly for membrane proteins like the ClC-1 channel. This study demonstrates that particles migrate to the AWI to minimize surface energy, a behavior mitigated by adding surfactants to reduce surface tension. CryoET and single-particle cryoEM experiments with GroEL revealed that surfactants reduce AWI adsorption from >90% to <20% while preserving structural integrity (≤3 Å resolution). Applied to the ClC-1 channel, this approach enabled its first near-atomic structure determination (3.8 Å), resolving ion transport mechanisms. The surfactant-based strategy provides a simple, universal solution to AWI artifacts, expanding cryoEM’s applicability to previously intractable targets.

Mid-infrared spectroscopy, with its molecular fingerprint recognition capability, plays a crucial role in environmental monitoring, biomedical diagnosis, and industrial chemical analysis. However, traditional spectrometers suffer from drawbacks such as large size, system complexity, high cost, and operational difficulty. The research team led by Prof. Qin Chen at Jinan University has developed a chip-scale mid-infrared spectral sensing technology that pioneers a light source-side regulation strategy in contrast to dispersion element and photodetector regulartions in literature. By employing metasurface arrays as wavelength-selective thermal emission sources, the system enables "instant-camera"-style substance sensing through thermal imaging encoding/decoding, moreover, achieving an exceptional angular tolerance exceeding ±40 degrees. This innovative approach successfully integrates three key components -- light source, collimation unit, and dispersive element -- into a single platform, offering a novel solution for portable mid-infrared spectral detection.