The global burden of oral health issues is becoming increasingly severe, with approximately 3.5 billion people affected by various oral diseases. Common conditions such as dental caries, periodontitis, and oral cancer not only directly impair oral functions, including chewing and speech, but are also closely associated with systemic diseases such as cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, and respiratory infections, representing a major public health challenge that cannot be overlooked. Current conventional oral treatments exhibit significant limitations in terms of lesion targeting, local drug retention, and microbial drug resistance, falling short of meeting the demands of precision medicine and long-term health management. Against this backdrop, engineered nucleic acid nanomaterials offer a breakthrough tool for constructing a new generation of intelligent oral diagnosis and treatment platforms, leveraging their programmable self-assembly capability, molecular-level precision recognition, favorable biocompatibility, and environmental responsiveness. This review systematically elaborates on nucleic acid nanostructures—including DNA aptamers, DNA origami, tetrahedral framework nucleic acids, DNA polyhedra, and spherical nucleic acids—which enable precise design and functional integration at the molecular scale, demonstrating broad application potential in several key areas of oral medicine. They can guide the ordered regeneration of dental and periodontal tissues, achieve sensitive detection and efficient antibacterial action against pathogenic bacteria while modulating inflammatory microenvironments, integrate diagnostic and therapeutic functions in oral cancer management for early identification and targeted treatment, and bridge oral and systemic health by regulating oral microbiota and immune responses, thereby driving the transformation of oral medicine toward precision, minimally invasive, and regenerative approaches. Although challenges remain in large-scale preparation, long-term stability, and clinical translation pathways, the deep integration of these materials with cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence is propelling their development into a powerful platform technology for systemic health management—not only in oral health but also beyond—promising revolutionary prospects for the future prevention, treatment, and health promotion of oral diseases.
Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), as quasi-one-dimensional graphene nanostructures, constitute a highly tunable platform for next-generation electronics and spintronics. A variety of precision GNRs with well-defined edge and backbone structures have been synthesized via bottom-up approaches, driving forward research into their applications in fields such as single-molecule devices and quantum information processing. However, achieving precise and uniform length control remains a significant challenge. This control is essential not only for tuning fundamental properties such as charge carrier mobility and device performance, but also for meeting key practical requirements such as device integration and operational stability. To address this, synthetic strategies including stepwise and chain-growth methods have been developed, enabling the controlled fabrication of GNRs with defined lengths and topologies and thus facilitating systematic property investigation. This review first provides a concise overview of bottom-up synthesis methods and representative GNR structures. Building on these advances, we focus on strategies for achieving length control that enable the fabrication of GNRs with defined lengths and narrow dispersity. We further discuss how such synthetic precision deepens the understanding of structure-property relationships, particularly the influence of length on optoelectronic and quantum transport behaviors. By integrating controlled synthesis with property exploration, these developments lay the groundwork for advancing GNRs toward practical nanotechnology applications.
Direct deracemization of racemates presents an ideal access to acquire highly enantioenriched molecules. Research in photocatalytic deracemization, since its first demonstration in 2018, has been advancing steadily and witnessed explosive growth in 2025, becoming a more diverse and active field. This review comprehensively summarizes recent advances in photocatalytic deracemization by categorizing the catalytic systems employed, including organocatalysis, metal catalysis, biocatalysis, or cooperative strategies, with a focus on their evolution and mechanisms. The diversification of catalytic systems has advanced the understanding of photochemical stereocontrol and offered useful guidance for the development of novel catalysts and the optimization of reaction systems. Moreover, these advances have laid a solid foundation for the preparation of valuable chiral compounds, enabling their broader application in pharmaceutical development and materials science.
Thrombotic disorders remain a major global health burden, yet conventional small-molecule anticoagulants often lack safety and specific reversibility. Nucleic acid aptamers offer a precise targeting coagulation with the unique advantage of “built-in” reversibility via complementary antidotes. This review examines the landscape of anticoagulant aptamers, highlighting the shift from bench discovery to reversible clinical applications. We critically analyzed translational obstacles using the clinical termination of the REG1 system as a major example, as well as other representative clinical cases, to illustrate challenges regarding nuclease stability, immunogenicity and production cost. Finally, we discuss emerging engineering strategies, such as novel conjugation strategies and enzymatic cyclization, to overcome these barriers, paving the way for next-generation systems that combine potent anticoagulation with rapid, programmable control.
Precise combinatorial cell recognition is limited by the slow, diffusion-limited kinetics of DNA circuits in complex physiological environments. Here, we report a surface-confined synthetic DNA circuit that overcomes this limitation by anchoring programmable DNA logic modules onto liposome membranes. This spatial confinement reduces the reaction space from 3D to 2D, driving proximity-enhanced interactions that dramatically accelerate reaction kinetics. The circuit executes a sequential YES-AND logic operation triggered by specific cell-surface receptors, enabling stringent discrimination of target cells from off-target populations. Notably, the platform identifies rare target cancer cells (as low as 0.1
Precise stereochemical control in heterogeneous catalysts remains fundamentally constrained because catalytic sites typically emerge only after framework assembly, intrinsically coupling their spatial definition to pore architecture. This limitation is particularly severe in mesoporous metal-organic frame-works, where enlarged pores enhance accessibility but weaken stereochemical discrimination. Here, we report a reticular design strategy in which the complete catalytic site architecture is molecularly encoded within a building unit prior to framework formation. A bifunctional BINOL-derived phosphate-carboxylate ligand integrates Lewis acid functionality and a spatially defined chiral environment in a fixed geometric relationship. Assembly with Zn2+ generates a mesoporous chiral framework with ∼23 Å channels while preserving structurally locked Zn-phosphate catalytic sites embedded within preorganized chiral pockets, as confirmed by single-crystal analysis. Catalytic and control studies suggest a direct correlation between encoded site geometry and enantioselectivity, demonstrating a general strategy for programming catalytic function in crystalline porous materials.
Nanogap-induced surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) represents an advanced platform for ultrasensitive, non-destructive molecular detection. But the detection sensitivity and reproducibility are compromised because only 0.1
This study introduces a nitrite-driven hydrochemical regulation strategy to reconfigure the ligand environment of ruthenium (Ru), transforming it from heterogeneous species into a uniform and stable anionic complex, [Ru(NO)(NO2)x(OH)5−x]2−. This transformation significantly enhances the homogeneity and reactivity of Ru, enabling highly efficient separation from high-level liquid waste (HLLW) using a pyridine-based resin. Combined density functional theory (DFT) and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) analyses identified the dominant complex as [Ru(NO)(NO2)2.2(ONO)1.8(OH)]2−. To counteract the inherent instability of the nitrite-nitric acid system, a silicon-based composite adsorbent (N3/SiO2) was developed, providing protective barriers against deterioration. Under optimized conditions, the adsorbent achieved a maximum capacity of 69.20 mg/g at 298 K—a 65
The renewable energy-driven electrocatalytic nitric oxide reduction reaction (NORR) is a win-win strategy for ammonia (NH3) synthesis and pollution management. Yet the frequently used supporting electrolyte is accompanied by a product separation issue, which is often overlooked. The operation of NORR under acidic conditions can realize the direct utilization of ammonium (NH 4 + ) fertilizers/salts without separation. However, severe metal corrosion and the competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) pose important difficulties for the highly stable and selective conversion of NO to ammonia. In this work, a graphene-encapsulated Cu nanoparticle catalyst (defined as Cu@C NPs) is designed for stable NORR within a duration of 100 h. A high Faradaic efficiency (98.7
With the advancement of 5G technology, the design of low-frequency electromagnetic wave absorbing (EMWA) materials still lacks high-performance solutions. Theoretically, a rational heterostructure integrating both magnetic and electrical materials can significantly enhance EMW absorption performance through the interface polarization relaxation effect. However, achieving a balance between magnetic loss and dielectric loss in porous homogeneous heterostructures remains a significant challenge. In this work, a heterogeneous core-shell structured Ni3(HITP)2@CoFe2O4 (NCFs) composite with electromagnetic coupling behavior was successfully constructed in situ via a simple solvothermal method, integrating the dual contributions of dielectric loss and magnetic loss. Based on the interface-induced pinning effect, N–Co and N–Fe bonds act as pinning centers, establishing stable interface coupling and defect-mediated multiple polarization relaxation between conductive and magnetic components, alongside multiple reflection/scattering mechanisms and an effectively extended EMW propagation path. The resulting NCFs materials achieve a minimum reflection loss of −53.4 dB at 4.8 GHz, outperforming most low-frequency EMWA materials to date. Furthermore, radar cross-section simulations visually confirm the effectiveness of NCFs as high-performance EMW absorbing materials under practical conditions. This work provides a novel strategy for the design of low-frequency EMWA materials.
Chirality plays a crucial role in life processes, chiral drug design, and functional materials. However, the precise transfer of molecular chirality to macroscopic structures remains a formidable challenge, and the control of chiral material morphology as well as the elucidation of chirality transfer mechanisms are technically demanding. In this study, D/L-cystine was employed as a chiral inducer to construct four-lobed, quadruple-rotationally symmetric copper-cystine assemblies (Cu-CST) via a facile solvothermal approach. This strategy enables precise transfer and amplification of molecular chirality into microscale architectures, providing a new model for cross-scale chiral studies. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirmed that it is Cu2+ that primarily coordinates with carboxylate O and amino N atoms and constitutes the electronic-structural basis for stable chirality transfer. The assemblies exhibited pronounced peroxidase-like activity and catalyzed the enantioselective oxidation of D/L-3,4-dihydroxy-phenylalanine (DOPA) with high efficiency and precise chiral recognition, with DFT clarifying the underlying enantioselective catalytic mechanism. This work deepens the understanding of chiral supramolecular evolution, expands the repertoire of chiral functional materials, and provides a solid foundation for addressing precise chirality transfer to macroscale and harnessing chiral effects in catalysis.
A photoredox C–H difluoroalkylation of glycine derivatives via alkene difunctionalization is presented. This three-component strategy enables rapid and modular synthesis of unnatural fluorinated α-aminoadipic acids. The protocol features metal-free conditions, a broad substrate scope, excellent functional-group tolerance, and high atom economy. Gram-scale synthesis and facile derivatization further underscore its practical utility. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that radical addition of tertiary alkyl radicals to iminium ions is the most plausible reaction pathway.
Blue phosphors present a significant challenge in the development of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). In this contribution, we designed a new class of bis-tridentate Ir(III) phosphors featuring two complementary carbene cyclometalates. They possessed efficient blue emission with short radiative lifetimes in both the solution and thin film states, which enhances the full utilization of electrically generated triplet excitons. Particularly, one PhOLED device had given an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 16.2
Developing artificial materials that achieve efficient proton transport by mimicking the Grotthuss-type hopping mechanism through ordered water chains in biological systems is crucial for energy technologies. Here, a pore-engineering strategy is demonstrated that exploits the conformational flexibility of a single building-block pair to access three polymorphic ionic hydrogen-bonded organic frameworks with distinctly different pore geometries and water-chain order. Among them, iHOF-55, featuring a linear ordered one-dimensional channel, contains a perfect biomimetic proton transport pathway constructed from sulfonate groups, protonated amidinium moieties, and ordered water chains within its pores. It exhibits an ultrahigh single-crystal proton conductivity of 0.203 S cm−1 at 90 °C and 98
Immunotherapy critically relies on sufficient release and efficient presentation of tumor antigens; however, most solid tumors undergo largely non-immunogenic cell death and harbor functionally suppressed tumor-infiltrating dendritic cells (DCs). Herein, we report a stapled oncolytic peptide-STING agonist conjugate (StTLM) that integrates a Temporin-La-derived stapled peptide (TLa-9), a glutathione-cleavable linker, and the non-nucleotide STING agonist MSA-2 into a single tumor-activated immunotherapeutic. In the reductive tumor microenvironment, StTLM is tracelessly cleaved to release TLa-9 and MSA-2. Hydrocarbon stapling endows TLa-9 with enhanced α-helicity, protease resistance, and tumor-selective membranolytic activity, thereby inducing potent immunogenic cell death with abundant release of antigenic materials. The released MSA-2 activates the STING-TBK1-IRF3 axis in DCs, promotes their maturation and boosts proin-flammatory cytokine production, thereby efficiently channeling oncolysis-derived signals into antitumor immunity. In a melanoma model, StTLM inhibits primary tumor growth by 95.9
