The development of ferroptosis-based nanotherapeutics is generally limited by poor penetration depth into tumors and potential systemic toxicity. 

In a recent issue of International Journal of Extreme Manufacturing, Tu and coworkers from Southern Medical University addressed these challenges by proposing the design and fabrication of self-propelled ferroptosis nanoinducers, composed of only two endogenous proteins with natural bioactivity.

This work offers a strategy for constructing a biocompatible cancer treatment paradigm with enhanced diffusion to achieve deeper penetration into tumor tissues, centered around the concept of ferroptosis.

The entry of quantum computers into society is currently hindered by their sensitivity to disturbances in the environment. Researchers from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, and Aalto University and the University of Helsinki in Finland, now present a new type of exotic quantum material, and a method that uses magnetism to create stability. This breakthrough can make quantum computers significantly more resilient – paving the way for them to be robust enough to tackle quantum calculations in practice.

The fluorescence lidar technology does not only enable a better determination of the origin of particles in the atmosphere. The method can also visualise particle layers that were previously practically invisible. This is the conclusion drawn by a team from the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS) from the evaluation of 250 hours of lidar measurements over Leipzig in 2022 and 2023. The researchers had repeatedly observed very thin layers of smoke at high altitudes, which originated from forest fires in Canada but could not be seen using conventional methods. This suggests that the upper troposphere over Europe may be more polluted than previously assumed, especially during the summer forest fire season, the research team writes in the journal Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. The observations suggest that thin layers of smoke can favour the formation of ice clouds. The fluorescence method offers great opportunities for a more detailed investigation of such interactions between aerosols and clouds.

The measurements in Leipzig are once again showing wildfire smoke from Canada. This smoke is therefore not only visible on satellite images, but can now be analysed in more detail using fluorescence lidar technology.

Imagine seeing the world through a cloudy glass plate. Is it possible, in principle, to reconstruct a true image of the world from the distorted data you get? Researchers have derived the limits of image precision - and they developed an AI which comes very close to what's physically possible.

Guaiazulene is a compound that gives off a beautiful blue colour, and it is often found in topical creams for skincare. It has also been touted as a potential food coloring agent. Yet this has been stymied because of its poor water solubility and color degradation under acidic conditions. A group of researchers overcame this common stumbling block by introducing guaiazulene into a hydrophilic poly(allylamine). 

Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, have discovered the importance of the microscopic structural ordering of water in ice nucleation, in which an ice crystal forms and grows near a solid surface. The nucleation pathway depends strongly on surface hydrophilicity, with intermediate values of hydrophilicity corresponding to the highest nucleation rates. These findings demonstrate how surfaces can be used to control crystallization, which could have profound industrial applications.

Attosecond light sources serve as advanced optical tools that are crucial for investigating electron dynamics at the subfemtosecond scale in quantum systems. However, generating high-intensity isolated X-ray pulses remains a significant scientific challenge. X-ray free-electron lasers (FELs) are advanced light sources based on linear accelerators, capable of generating ultrashort and ultra-intense laser pulses. Enhanced Self-Amplified Spontaneous Emission (ESASE) serves as an effective method for producing ultrashort pulses in FELs by locally enhancing the peak current of electron beams. However, obtaining isolated current spikes has remained a critical challenge for ESASE, which directly determines the signal-to-noise ratio of ultrafast FEL pulses.