Soft robots demonstrate significant potential for applications in complex environments due to their remarkable flexibility; however, the efficient integration of multiple responsive modes remains a major challenge. The team led by Prof. Chen Xin and Prof. Chen Yun at Guangdong University of Technology, in collaboration with Dr. Guo Yuanhui from Guangdong Polytechnic Normal University, has developed an amphibious soft robot that responds to temperature, humidity, and magnetic fields. This work introduces a novel approach in soft robotics with its capability to operate in multiple modes, which is anticipated to find applications in practical situations like search, rescue, and smart logistics.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) represents a paradigm of targeted therapy in hematologic malignancies. Once regarded as the most fatal form of leukemia due to its rapid onset and severe hemorrhagic risk, APL was fundamentally transformed in the 20th century when Dr. Tingdong Zhang from Harbin Medical University, China discovered that arsenic trioxide (ATO) could effectively treat patients, achieving remission rates of up to 90% and converting it into the most curable acute leukemia. Extensive mechanistic studies have demonstrated that ATO exerts therapeutic effects by inducing apoptosis and promoting differentiation of APL cells. More recently, a study published in Science Bulletin using single-cell sequencing further revealed that ATO not only directly eliminates leukemic cells but also reshapes the tumor microenvironment through modulation of lymphocyte activity, underscoring its multifaceted role in APL treatment.

This study innovatively proposes using oxalic acid, a mild organic acid, as an activator to convert waste lignin into a high-performance metal-free porous carbon catalyst (OAL) via a one-step pyrolysis process. The goal is to investigate the performance and mechanism of OAL in activating PMS to degrade SMX, hoping to provide a new, efficient, safe, and sustainable approach to water pollution control, achieving "waste-to-waste" solutions.

The brain, one of the most sophisticated and complex organs, remains a mystery in many aspects of its function. Scientists in Switzerland and China developed a groundbreaking hybrid imaging platform—HyFMRI—to simultaneously capture the dynamic activity of neurons, astrocytes, and hemodynamic responses. The technology, demonstrated in a mouse model, enables unprecedented studies of brain activity, opening new frontiers for understanding neuro-glial-vascular coupling in health and disease.

This study provides valuable insights into the variability of tumor immune microenvironment across individuals and highlights the potential to enhance antitumor efficacy by targeting immunosenescence.

Flexible fiber sensors, with their excellent wearability and biocompatibility, are essential components of flexible electronics. However, traditional methods face challenges in fabricating low-cost, large-scale fiber sensors. In recent years, the thermal drawing process has rapidly advanced, offering a novel approach to flexible fiber sensors. Through the preform-to-fiber manufacturing technique, a variety of fiber sensors with complex functionalities spanning from the nanoscale to kilometer scale can be automated in a short time. Examples include temperature, acoustic, mechanical, chemical, biological, optoelectronic, and multifunctional sensors, which operate on diverse sensing principles such as resistance, capacitance, piezoelectricity, triboelectricity, photoelectricity, and thermoelectricity. This review outlines the principles of the thermal drawing process and provides a detailed overview of the latest advancements in various thermally drawn fiber sensors. Finally, the future developments of thermally drawn fiber sensors are discussed.

A research team from the South China University of Technology has developed an innovative statistical modeling approach that accelerates the development of advanced rare-earth-doped laser glasses. Applying neighboring glassy compounds (NGCs) model, the team accurately predicted the local structural environments and luminescence properties of complex glass systems, reducing experimental trial-and-error. The NGCs model was used to establish the composition-structure relationship and populate the composition-property space. Finally, multi-luminescence property charts are generated to select compositions that satisfy multiple constraints, thus facilitating the rational design of chemically complex laser glasses for targeted applications. This versatile methodology paves the way for discovering next-generation laser materials with superior performance, expanding the horizons of glass science and technology.

A research paper by scientists at The University of New South Wales presented a new hydraulic-driven dual soft robotic system featuring a 3 DOF-soft cutting arm (SCA) and a 3-jaw teleoperated soft grasper system (TSGS).

The research paper was published on Jun. 12, 2025 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems.