SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3584-3
Sutures, as necessary medical devices for postoperative treatment, are no longer merely supportive but are required to have advanced functions to promote repair. Here, we report an absorbable self-powered electrical stimulation suture (SES-suture). The suture is composed entirely of absorbable materials (magnesium, polylactic acid, and polycaprolactone) and can be used in vivo for incision closure and repair. The suture has the capacity to generate spontaneous electrical stimulation in response to body movement, allowing for accelerated tissue reconstruction. An in vivo muscle incision repair model in rabbits demonstrated that the wound healing rate under treatment with this suture was 1.6 times faster than that of commercial sutures, proving its postoperative therapeutic capability. Immunofluorescence and quantitative analyses showed that SES-sutures significantly increased α-SMA and CD31 expression, with levels approximately 2.8 and 3.2 times higher than the blank group, respectively, indicating enhanced angiogenesis and muscle regeneration. The SES-suture exhibited excellent mechanical properties, sustained electrical output, structural and functional stability after implantation, and good biocompatibility. This large animal approach offers crucial translational evidence for potential human applications, addressing the limitations of rodent models due to differences in biomechanics and regeneration rates. While the biosafety profile requires further long-term evaluation, the findings strongly suggest that SES-sutures represent a promising therapeutic strategy for enhancing tissue regeneration and functional recovery.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3821-2
Stimuli-responsive chiral materials hold significant potential for applications in smart photonic devices, chiral sensors, and data storage. Chiral supramolecular smart responsive materials based on azobenzene (Azo) self-assembly systems have attracted considerable attention due to their dynamic and reversible chirality regulation under external stimuli. This review systematically summarizes recent advances in the construction, regulation mechanisms, and functional applications of chiral supramolecular helical structures derived from Azo-based materials. Starting from molecular structure, assembly modes, and external stimuli responsiveness (such as light, heat, solvent, and pH), we discuss precise control over supramolecular chirality, including chiroptical switching, inversion, and asymmetric amplification. Furthermore, the potential applications of assembly materials containing Azo building units in chiroptical properties, chiral recognition, and nanoscopic/macroscopic chiral functional materials are highlighted. We hope this review will provide helpful insights for the design and fabrication of the new generation of smart chiral functional materials.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3411-3
Electrochemical valorization of ethanol to acetate offers a low-potential alternative to oxygen evolution, but industrial adoption is constrained by insufficient current density and catalyst durability. This work reports FeCoNiOx spinel oxides co-modified with Pt and Ag (FeCoNiOx-PtAg) that enhance interfacial water dissociation to generate moderate *OH coverage while suppressing *OH over-oxidation to *O. The catalyst achieves a maximum Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 98.1% for acetate at 100 mA cm−2, a peak partial current density of 291.2 mA cm−2, and stability exceeding 100 h. In-situ attenuated total reflection surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (ATR-SEIRAS) reveals that Pt and Ag co-modification regulates water dissociation, maintaining *OH at levels optimal for nucleophilic attack on CH3CO* intermediates. Techno-economic analysis confirms that the paired ethanol oxidation and hydrogen evolution system is cost-effective and low-carbon. The results establish a viable pathway for selective ethanol electrooxidation to acetate at industrially relevant current densities.