SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-026-4441-7
Early detection of kidney injury remains difficult because routine clinical indicators often lag behind tissue damage. Here we report uNP-CH1055, an ultrasmall renal-clearable NIR-II fluorescent nanoprobe for non-invasive imaging of kidney injury in vivo. uNP-CH1055 formed stable nanoparticles with a hydrodynamic diameter of 3.3 nm, showed good photostability, enabled low-background imaging under a 1200 nm long-pass filter, and underwent rapid renal clearance after intravenous administration. It also exhibited favorable biocompatibility in both cellular and animal studies. In three mechanistically distinct models of renal injury, cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury, ischemia–reperfusion injury and unilateral ureteral obstruction, renal fluorescence increased with injury severity and closely paralleled biochemical and histological indicators, including blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, KIM-1 and TUNEL-based readouts. These results identify uNP-CH1055 as a renal-clearable NIR-II probe for early and quantitative assessment of kidney injury across different pathological settings.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3865-1
Seawater electrolysis (SWE) is a reusable and convenient avenue for producing hydrogen, offering a promising solution to the energy crisis and global warming. However, poor electrolytic efficiency and irreversible corrosion caused by high concentrations of chlorine severely hinder the commercialization of SWE. To address these challenges, numerous strategies have been proposed in recent years, involving theoretical innovations, directional catalyst design, and electrolyser modification. This review provides a systematic summary of the chlorine-related challenges and solutions encountered in SWE. The chlorine-related theoretical knowledge and challenges in SWE systems are first emphasized. Subsequently, multiple anodic chloride suppression strategies are introduced from three aspects: directional regulation of oxygen evolution catalysts, optimization of electrolyte compositions, and ingenious upgrades of electrolytic cells. Finally, future challenges and development directions for large-scale application of SWE technology are explored. This review offers an in-depth analysis of the chlorine-related challenges encountered in the industrialization of SWE, aiming to accelerate the advancement of this technology toward practical applications.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3937-7
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) remains a formidable clinical challenge due to its high invasiveness and adaptive resistance. We report a bio-mimetic nanoplatform (HMPB-GOx@HSA-Cu2+) integrating starvation therapy, Fenton/Fenton-like catalysis, and mild photothermal therapy (mPTT) for synergistic TNBC treatment. The nanoreactor comprises a hollow mesoporous Prussian blue (HMPB) core loaded with glucose oxidase (GOx), encapsulated in a human serum albumin (HSA) shell covalently functionalized with Cu2+ ions. This design enables spatiotemporal control of Cu2+-mediated Fenton catalysis, responding to the tumor microenvironment (TME) to generate cytotoxic hydroxyl radicals (·OH). GOx catalyzes glucose depletion, elevating H2O2 levels and acidity, thereby enhancing catalytic efficiency. Concurrently, mPTT at ~43–45°C accelerates the Fenton reaction and suppresses heat shock protein (HSP) expression, overcoming thermal tolerance via ATP depletion. In vitro and in vivo studies demonstrate significant anti-tumor efficacy through reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and metabolic disruption, with excellent biocompatibility. This work presents a highly integrated strategy for precise TNBC therapy, addressing limitations of conventional monotherapies.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-4035-5
Electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to formate offers a promising pathway for storing renewable electricity in chemical fuels and enabling carbon recycling. The development of efficient and stable catalysts for this specific pathway, however, remains a central challenge. Heteroatom doping can significantly tune the interaction between active sites and key intermediates, boosting catalytic performance. Conventional doping in Bi-based catalysts often relies on uncontrollable in-situ electrochemical processes, leading to ineffective bulk incorporation. Here, we present a simple pre-doping strategy that enables precise doping at surface active sites, thereby enhancing electrochemical performance. The resulting catalyst achieves >95% Faradaic efficiency for formate across 100–500 mA cm−2 in a flow cell and maintains >95% efficiency for over 70 h at 100 mA cm−2 in a membrane electrode assembly, outperforming pure Bi and Bi2S3. A solar-driven system further demonstrates a 4.4% solar-to-formate conversion efficiency. Mechanistic studies reveal that sulfur doping increases electron density, stabilizes the key *OCHO intermediate, and suppresses hydrogen evolution. These findings provide valuable insights into the precise pre-doping modulation of surface active sites for designing highly efficient and stable CO2RR catalysts.