A new catalyst design offers a cleaner route for removing phenolic pollutants from water by changing not only how fast contaminants disappear, but also what happens to them during treatment.

A recent perspective published in eGastroenterology, Professor Wen-Xing Ding and colleagues from The University of Kansas Medical Center highlights emerging evidence that megamitochondria in alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) may initially function as adaptive metabolic responses rather than merely pathological structures. The article summarizes groundbreaking mechanistic studies linking impaired mitochondrial fission, mtDNA release, cGAS–STING activation, and altered pyrimidine metabolism to ALD progression and liver tumorigenesis. These findings redefine the role of mitochondrial dynamics in chronic liver disease and suggest novel therapeutic opportunities for ALD and hepatocellular carcinoma.

Metabolic dysfunction‐associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and intrapancreatic fat deposition (IPFD) are disorders associated with dysfunctional lipid metabolism and obesity.  In a recent study, researchers have reviewed and compared the definition, causes, diagnostic methods, and emerging treatments of MASLD and IPFD that could help improve patients’ outcomes. In addition, they shed light on recent advances in artificial intelligence applications and presented personalized therapy integrated with the liver‐pancreas axis, providing novel insights for disease management.

As global climate change intensifies and agricultural environments become increasingly arid, understanding the adaptive mechanisms of terrestrial plants is critical for global food security. Plant cuticular wax forms a vital hydrophobic barrier that protects crops from severe water loss, UV radiation, and pathogen infection. Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench), a major drought-tolerant crop, is valued for its thick cuticular wax layer, which markedly enhances resilience to abiotic stresses. However, the key regulatory mechanisms governing cuticular wax accumulation and very-long-chain fatty acid (VLCFA) biosynthesis have remained largely uncharacterized.

A new study shows that fish embryo toxicity tests using the Chinese rare minnow may provide a promising alternative to conventional acute fish toxicity tests. By testing 26 fragrance ingredients, researchers found that malformation-based endpoints in rare minnow embryos were more closely aligned with juvenile fish toxicity than lethality-based endpoints, supporting the use of embryo tests to reduce animal use in chemical registration and ecotoxicological assessment.

A research team has developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled method that can map river depth across long reach with high sediment concentration, where conventional satellite bathymetry often struggles.