Pub Date : 2025-11-11DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00775-7
Emmanuel Adu Fosu, Jindou Yang
Developing universal machine learning potentials for heterogeneous catalysis still presents challenges. Recently, an element-based potential using random exploration via imaginary chemicals was developed and predicts reactions accurately across various scenarios related to catalytic systems and materials science.
{"title":"Machine-made chemistry","authors":"Emmanuel Adu Fosu, Jindou Yang","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00775-7","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00775-7","url":null,"abstract":"Developing universal machine learning potentials for heterogeneous catalysis still presents challenges. Recently, an element-based potential using random exploration via imaginary chemicals was developed and predicts reactions accurately across various scenarios related to catalytic systems and materials science.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 12","pages":"806-806"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145495797","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-10DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00777-5
Lidia Morawska, Stephanie Greed
Ahead of her 73rd birthday, Lidia Morawska, Distinguished Professor at Queensland University of Technology, discusses her life as a researcher and advocate of clean air.
{"title":"Meditations from an air quality master","authors":"Lidia Morawska, Stephanie Greed","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00777-5","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00777-5","url":null,"abstract":"Ahead of her 73rd birthday, Lidia Morawska, Distinguished Professor at Queensland University of Technology, discusses her life as a researcher and advocate of clean air.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 12","pages":"803-804"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145478092","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-04DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00772-w
Andrew V. Stachulski, Christopher J. Schofield
Fifty years ago, researchers from Beecham Pharmaceuticals reported on the structure of clavulanic acid. Itself only a weak antibiotic, clavulanic acid inhibits serine β-lactamases and thus this work pioneered combination therapy to protect antibiotics against the development of resistance.
{"title":"Small but powerful","authors":"Andrew V. Stachulski, Christopher J. Schofield","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00772-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00772-w","url":null,"abstract":"Fifty years ago, researchers from Beecham Pharmaceuticals reported on the structure of clavulanic acid. Itself only a weak antibiotic, clavulanic acid inhibits serine β-lactamases and thus this work pioneered combination therapy to protect antibiotics against the development of resistance.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 12","pages":"807-808"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145445413","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-29DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00768-6
Eric L. Adams, Andrew C. McGovern, Victor So, Sneha Srinivasan, Alexander Deiters, Jason Lohmueller
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy is a ‘living drug’ in which the T cells of patients are genetically engineered with an artificial receptor that directs them to attack diseased cells. CAR T cell therapies have had remarkable impact, curing subsets of patients with previously untreatable, late-stage cancers. However, limitations persist, including severe toxicities, limited survival of engineered cells, and therapeutic resistance. Genetically encoded small-molecule control systems have been developed to address these limitations. They can halt toxicities by eliminating CAR T cells or switching off their function. Furthermore, they can enhance therapy by directly targeting antigens or broadening cell killing ability through cytotoxic pro-drug activation. Small-molecule controllers include protease inhibitors, protein dimerizers, protein degraders, bi-specific adaptors and conditionally activated chemotherapeutics. Here, we outline small-molecule-based control approaches, categorizing them by function and detailing their molecular mechanisms. We emphasize systems in the clinic and highlight emerging applications and unmet areas. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells are a promising and effective cancer therapy but are difficult to regulate once implanted. This Review covers an emerging wave of small-molecule-based systems developed to control, augment and direct CAR T cell therapeutics.
{"title":"Small-molecule control of CAR T cells","authors":"Eric L. Adams, Andrew C. McGovern, Victor So, Sneha Srinivasan, Alexander Deiters, Jason Lohmueller","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00768-6","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00768-6","url":null,"abstract":"Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy is a ‘living drug’ in which the T cells of patients are genetically engineered with an artificial receptor that directs them to attack diseased cells. CAR T cell therapies have had remarkable impact, curing subsets of patients with previously untreatable, late-stage cancers. However, limitations persist, including severe toxicities, limited survival of engineered cells, and therapeutic resistance. Genetically encoded small-molecule control systems have been developed to address these limitations. They can halt toxicities by eliminating CAR T cells or switching off their function. Furthermore, they can enhance therapy by directly targeting antigens or broadening cell killing ability through cytotoxic pro-drug activation. Small-molecule controllers include protease inhibitors, protein dimerizers, protein degraders, bi-specific adaptors and conditionally activated chemotherapeutics. Here, we outline small-molecule-based control approaches, categorizing them by function and detailing their molecular mechanisms. We emphasize systems in the clinic and highlight emerging applications and unmet areas. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells are a promising and effective cancer therapy but are difficult to regulate once implanted. This Review covers an emerging wave of small-molecule-based systems developed to control, augment and direct CAR T cell therapeutics.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 12","pages":"809-825"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145382242","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-22DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00765-9
Daniyal Kiani, Ross Eaglesfield, James H. May, Allison Z. Werner, Eugene Y.-X. Chen, Yuriy Román-Leshkov, Yomaira J. Pagán-Torres, Gregg T. Beckham
To create a circular plastics economy, new polymers are being developed that can be chemically recycled. Circular polyesters are of particular interest and to this end, lactones are ideal monomers. This Review examines catalytic routes to convert diols, hydroxy acids, and dicarboxylic acids to lactones, focusing on the development of scalable, atom-economic, and energy-efficient conversions of bio-derived feedstocks. Free energy analysis is used to inform process choices, such as reactor type, reaction phase, and use of solvent. Catalyst design principles are summarized for both direct (bio-substrate to lactone) and indirect (bio-substrate to intermediate to lactone) routes. Finally, we summarize literature that shows that many lactone precursors are readily accessible from various metabolic and chemo-catalytic pathways. Transitioning to bio-based monomers offers an opportunity to reduce reliance on fossil carbon resources, but requires advanced catalytic processes informed by mechanistic insights. Catalytic methods for converting bio-derived feedstocks into lactones are reviewed, emphasizing scalable, energy-efficient processes. Free energy analysis guides process design and pathway selection, whereas literature highlights accessible lactone precursors from various metabolic and chemo-catalytic pathways.
{"title":"Production of bio-based lactones as monomers for a circular polymer economy","authors":"Daniyal Kiani, Ross Eaglesfield, James H. May, Allison Z. Werner, Eugene Y.-X. Chen, Yuriy Román-Leshkov, Yomaira J. Pagán-Torres, Gregg T. Beckham","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00765-9","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00765-9","url":null,"abstract":"To create a circular plastics economy, new polymers are being developed that can be chemically recycled. Circular polyesters are of particular interest and to this end, lactones are ideal monomers. This Review examines catalytic routes to convert diols, hydroxy acids, and dicarboxylic acids to lactones, focusing on the development of scalable, atom-economic, and energy-efficient conversions of bio-derived feedstocks. Free energy analysis is used to inform process choices, such as reactor type, reaction phase, and use of solvent. Catalyst design principles are summarized for both direct (bio-substrate to lactone) and indirect (bio-substrate to intermediate to lactone) routes. Finally, we summarize literature that shows that many lactone precursors are readily accessible from various metabolic and chemo-catalytic pathways. Transitioning to bio-based monomers offers an opportunity to reduce reliance on fossil carbon resources, but requires advanced catalytic processes informed by mechanistic insights. Catalytic methods for converting bio-derived feedstocks into lactones are reviewed, emphasizing scalable, energy-efficient processes. Free energy analysis guides process design and pathway selection, whereas literature highlights accessible lactone precursors from various metabolic and chemo-catalytic pathways.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 11","pages":"749-765"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145338996","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-21DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00769-5
Judith Howard, Stephanie Greed
Ahead of her 80th birthday, Judith Howard discussed her life in science, including the importance of women in crystallography from its inception, and her favourite breakthroughs in this field.
{"title":"Chronicles from the crystallography connoisseur","authors":"Judith Howard, Stephanie Greed","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00769-5","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00769-5","url":null,"abstract":"Ahead of her 80th birthday, Judith Howard discussed her life in science, including the importance of women in crystallography from its inception, and her favourite breakthroughs in this field.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 11","pages":"730-731"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145337089","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Electrochemical organic oxidation reactions (OORs) play a pivotal role in various industrial processes and sustainable chemical production, transforming small molecules into value-added products. Understanding electrode surface dynamics, catalyst structures, reaction intermediates and product selectivity during OOR is crucial for both fundamental knowledge and the design of high-performance electrocatalysts and economically valuable reactions. The advancement of in situ and operando techniques, especially X-ray absorption and Raman and infrared spectroscopies, as well as differential electrochemical mass spectrometry, provide powerful tools for studying OORs. In situ methods reveal catalyst structural changes under applied bias and reaction-relevant conditions, whereas operando techniques simultaneously monitor both structure and activity in real operating conditions. This Review addresses the achievements towards closing the knowledge gap between fundamental, lab-scale studies and industrial, large-scale applications using in situ and operando techniques to uncover bulk catalyst structures, catalyst–surface–electrolyte dynamics and local transient product formation during anodic OORs. It also highlights the underlying principles of these techniques, offering perspectives on future prospects and challenges for advancing OOR applications, particularly in discovering next-generation efficient catalysts. This Review discusses the advancements and challenges of in situ and operando techniques for deciphering electrochemical organic oxidation reactions, focusing on the structural evolution of catalysts, adsorbed intermediates, transient product species, and the prospects for enhancing mechanistic understanding and catalyst development.
{"title":"Dynamics in electrochemical organic oxidation reactions from in situ and operando techniques","authors":"Basundhara Dasgupta, Debabrata Bagchi, Tobias Sontheimer, Matthias Driess, Prashanth W. Menezes","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00767-7","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00767-7","url":null,"abstract":"Electrochemical organic oxidation reactions (OORs) play a pivotal role in various industrial processes and sustainable chemical production, transforming small molecules into value-added products. Understanding electrode surface dynamics, catalyst structures, reaction intermediates and product selectivity during OOR is crucial for both fundamental knowledge and the design of high-performance electrocatalysts and economically valuable reactions. The advancement of in situ and operando techniques, especially X-ray absorption and Raman and infrared spectroscopies, as well as differential electrochemical mass spectrometry, provide powerful tools for studying OORs. In situ methods reveal catalyst structural changes under applied bias and reaction-relevant conditions, whereas operando techniques simultaneously monitor both structure and activity in real operating conditions. This Review addresses the achievements towards closing the knowledge gap between fundamental, lab-scale studies and industrial, large-scale applications using in situ and operando techniques to uncover bulk catalyst structures, catalyst–surface–electrolyte dynamics and local transient product formation during anodic OORs. It also highlights the underlying principles of these techniques, offering perspectives on future prospects and challenges for advancing OOR applications, particularly in discovering next-generation efficient catalysts. This Review discusses the advancements and challenges of in situ and operando techniques for deciphering electrochemical organic oxidation reactions, focusing on the structural evolution of catalysts, adsorbed intermediates, transient product species, and the prospects for enhancing mechanistic understanding and catalyst development.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 11","pages":"766-789"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145331658","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-16DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00764-w
Sumit Kumar Pramanik, Sreejesh Sreedharan, Noufal Kandoth, Jorge Bernardino de la Serna, Amitava Das, Jim A. Thomas
The suite of techniques encompassing optical super-resolution microscopy can facilitate detailed visualization of biological structures and biochemical transformations at unprecedented levels of resolution and contrast; however, they depend on imaging probes with specific biophysical and photophysical properties. In this context, metal complexes with tuneable photo-excited states and stability towards photobleaching are promising candidates for advanced imaging techniques. This Review illustrates how, by selecting appropriate optical properties and luminescence responses, metal complexes can be utilized as probes for a range of super-resolution microscopy techniques, including multimodal imaging, to study subcellular architecture and dynamics with nanoscale resolution. Limitations and challenges of the existing molecular probes are also discussed. By highlighting these recent innovations and providing suggestions for future directions, this Review further underscores the importance of optical probes in pushing the boundaries of super-resolution microscopy and advancing our understanding of complex biological systems. Super-resolution microscopy techniques can break conventional optical diffraction limits, but their performance can only be optimized by using probes with appropriate biophysical and photophysical properties. This Review highlights how transition metal complexes are being designed to meet these challenges.
{"title":"Transition metal complexes as optical probes for super-resolution microscopy","authors":"Sumit Kumar Pramanik, Sreejesh Sreedharan, Noufal Kandoth, Jorge Bernardino de la Serna, Amitava Das, Jim A. Thomas","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00764-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00764-w","url":null,"abstract":"The suite of techniques encompassing optical super-resolution microscopy can facilitate detailed visualization of biological structures and biochemical transformations at unprecedented levels of resolution and contrast; however, they depend on imaging probes with specific biophysical and photophysical properties. In this context, metal complexes with tuneable photo-excited states and stability towards photobleaching are promising candidates for advanced imaging techniques. This Review illustrates how, by selecting appropriate optical properties and luminescence responses, metal complexes can be utilized as probes for a range of super-resolution microscopy techniques, including multimodal imaging, to study subcellular architecture and dynamics with nanoscale resolution. Limitations and challenges of the existing molecular probes are also discussed. By highlighting these recent innovations and providing suggestions for future directions, this Review further underscores the importance of optical probes in pushing the boundaries of super-resolution microscopy and advancing our understanding of complex biological systems. Super-resolution microscopy techniques can break conventional optical diffraction limits, but their performance can only be optimized by using probes with appropriate biophysical and photophysical properties. This Review highlights how transition metal complexes are being designed to meet these challenges.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 11","pages":"733-748"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145305541","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-13DOI: 10.1038/s41570-025-00766-8
João Avó, Carina I. C. Crucho
The periodic table is not only a foundational tool of chemistry, but also a strategic map of the elements. Here we trace how the value of elements has shifted through history — shaping war, trade, and diplomacy — and call for consideration on how to manage growing global competition over critical materials.
{"title":"Bringing geopolitics to the periodic table","authors":"João Avó, Carina I. C. Crucho","doi":"10.1038/s41570-025-00766-8","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41570-025-00766-8","url":null,"abstract":"The periodic table is not only a foundational tool of chemistry, but also a strategic map of the elements. Here we trace how the value of elements has shifted through history — shaping war, trade, and diplomacy — and call for consideration on how to manage growing global competition over critical materials.","PeriodicalId":18849,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews. Chemistry","volume":"9 11","pages":"725-727"},"PeriodicalIF":51.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145286596","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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