Promoters are key DNA regions that control gene transcription, but their activity varies greatly across different cell types. This heterogeneity makes it difficult for existing computational methods to identify promoters reliably. A team led by Professors Zhangyu Mei and Hao Wu from Shandong University, China, has developed MuSE‑Promoter, a deep ensemble learning framework that combines multi‑scale feature fusion, transformer attention, and a learnable weighted ensemble of neural network and random forest. The system outperforms state‑of‑the‑art methods on human cell lines from different tissues and on Arabidopsis thaliana datasets, and shows excellent generalization in cross‑cell‑line and promoter–enhancer discrimination tasks.

A genetic study suggests that earlier age at first sexual intercourse may be linked to less favorable aging outcomes later in life. The research found associations with poorer multidimensional aging profiles, shorter lifespan-related measures, and greater frailty, and identified frailty, low mood, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as possible pathways connecting early-life behavior with later-life aging.

Researchers have developed an ultrathin yet ultrastrong hydrogel membrane that enables robust and conformal integration between electronic devices and biological tissues. The ~10 μm-thick material combines high strength, exceptional toughness, and tissue-like softness through a biomimetic microfibrillar network design. It supports multimodal sensing and stimulation while maintaining stable contact with complex 3D tissues, offering new opportunities for wearable and implantable bioelectronics.

Researchers have developed a copper-based metal-organic framework that converts CO₂ into N-formamides in a fully light-driven tandem process. The system combines CO₂ reduction and C-N coupling without Pd metal, external heating or high pressure.

Dendritic mesoporous silica-lanthanide fluoride (DMS-CeF₃:Tb) nanocomposites with a pomegranate-like architecture have been fabricated through a facile in situ enrichment strategy. The strong single-particle luminescence and long photoluminescence lifetime of DMS-CeF₃:Tb nanoprobes enabled an ultrasensitive immunoassay for prostate specific antigen (PSA) with a detection limit of 41 fg mL^-1, which represents a 976-fold improvement over a commercial PSA enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Validation with PCa serum samples revealed a strong correlation with the hospital’s electrochemiluminescence immunoassay, confirming the clinical applicability of the nanoprobes. Additionally, targeted imaging and in vitro detection of cervical cancer cells were realized utilizing biotinylated DMS-CeF₃:Tb nanoprobes, enabling rapid cancer screening. These findings reveal the great potential of DMS-CeF₃:Tb as an efficient nano-bioprobe for early cancer diagnosis.

In a new study published in China Welding, researchers have optimized pulse frequency in local dry underwater laser welding (LDU-LW) of Q355B steel. The optimized pulsed laser process significantly improves weld formation, mechanical properties and corrosion resistance, offering a reliable solution for underwater repair and manufacturing of marine engineering structures.