《自然》（20250220出版）一周论文导读

物理Physics

▲ 作者：Juan Carlos Sobarzo, Felix Pertl, Daniel M. Balazs, Tommaso Costanzo, Markus Sauer, Annette Foelske, Markus Ostermann, Christian M. Pichler, Yongkang Wang, Yuki Nagata, Mischa Bonn & Scott Waitukaitis

▲ 链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08530-6

▲ 摘要：

当两种绝缘的中性材料接触并分离时，会交换电荷。长期以来的实验表明，这种“接触电气化”是可传递的，不同的材料根据所获得的电荷的符号排列成“摩擦电系列”。与此同时，这种效果也受到不可预测性的困扰，无法就其机制达成共识，并使人们对剧集所隐含的韵律和原因产生怀疑。

在这里，研究者揭示了接触电气化的不可预测性和顺序之间的意想不到的联系：名义上相同的材料最初随机和非传递地交换电荷，但经过反复的实验，有序地变成了摩擦电系列。他们发现这种演变是由接触本身的行为驱动的——历史上接触较多的样本对接触较少的样本负电荷。

通过在最小模型中捕获这种“接触偏差”，研究者在数值模拟中重建了初始随机性和最终顺序，并在实验中使用它来强制出现我们选择的摩擦电系列。通过一系列表面敏感技术来寻找接触产生的潜在变化，他们只发现了纳米级形态变化的证据，指出了一种与力学紧密结合的机制。研究结果强调了接触史在接触电气化中的中心地位，并指出关注长期困扰这种效应的不可预测性，可能是理解这种效应的关键。

▲ Abstract：

When two insulating, neutral materials are contacted and separated, they exchange electrical charge. Experiments have long suggested that this 'contact electrification' is transitive, with different materials ordering into 'triboelectric series' based on the sign of charge acquired. At the same time, the effect is plagued by unpredictability, preventing consensus on the mechanism and casting doubt on the rhyme and reason that series imply. Here we expose an unanticipated connection between the unpredictability and order in contact electrification: nominally identical materials initially exchange charge randomly and intransitively, but—over repeated experiments—order into triboelectric series. We find that this evolution is driven by the act of contact itself—samples with more contacts in their history charge negatively to ones with fewer contacts. Capturing this 'contact bias' in a minimal model, we recreate both the initial randomness and ultimate order in numerical simulations and use it experimentally to force the appearance of a triboelectric series of our choosing. With a set of surface-sensitive techniques to search for the underlying alterations contact creates, we only find evidence of nanoscale morphological changes, pointing to a mechanism strongly coupled with mechanics. Our results highlight the centrality of contact history in contact electrification and suggest that focusing on the unpredictability that has long plagued the effect may hold the key to understanding it.

▲ 作者：Joseph Smolsky, Kyle G. Leach, Ryan Abells, Pedro Amaro, Adrien Andoche, Keith Borbridge, Connor Bray, Robin Cantor, David Diercks, Spencer Fretwell, Stephan Friedrich, Abigail Gillespie, Mauro Guerra, Ad Hall, Cameron N. Harris, Jackson T. Harris, Leendert M. Hayen, Paul-Antoine Hervieux, Calvin Hinkle, Geon-Bo Kim, Inwook Kim, Amii Lamm, Annika Lennarz, Vincenzo Lordi, William K. Warburton

▲ 链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08479-6

▲ 摘要：

尽管中微子在宇宙中相对丰富，但却是自然界中最不为人所知的基本粒子。事实上，在实验相关源中发射的中微子的量子特性在理论上是有争议的，并且中微子波包的空间范围仅受反应堆中微子振荡数据的松散约束，其传播范围为13个数量级。

在这里，研究者提出了一种方法，即通过精确测量铍-7放射性衰变中释放的反冲子核的能量宽度，来直接获得相关量。衰变过程的最终状态包含一个反冲的锂-7核，它在产生时与一个电子中微子纠缠在一起。锂-7能谱是通过直接将铍-7放射性同位素嵌入高分辨率超导隧道结（作为低温传感器操作）来高精度测量的。

在这种方法下，研究者设定了6.2 pm反冲子的海森堡空间不确定性的下限，这意味着最终状态系统的局域尺度比原子核本身大一千倍以上。从这个测量中，中微子波包的空间范围的直接下限首席被提取出来。这些结果可能会在几个领域产生影响，包括对中微子性质的理论理解，弱核衰变中的局域化性质以及中微子物理数据的解释。

▲ Abstract：

Despite their high relative abundance in our Universe, neutrinos are the least understood fundamental particles of nature. In fact, the quantum properties of neutrinos emitted in experimentally relevant sources are theoretically contested and the spatial extent of the neutrino wavepacket is only loosely constrained by reactor neutrino oscillation data with a spread of 13 orders of magnitude.

Here we present a method to directly access this quantity by precisely measuring the energy width of the recoil daughter nucleus emitted in the radioactive decay of beryllium-7. The final state in the decay process contains a recoiling lithium-7 nucleus, which is entangled with an electron neutrino at creation. The lithium-7 energy spectrum is measured to high precision by directly embedding beryllium-7 radioisotopes into a high-resolution superconducting tunnel junction that is operated as a cryogenic sensor.

Under this approach, we set a lower limit on the Heisenberg spatial uncertainty of the recoil daughter of 6.2 pm, which implies that the final-state system is localized at a scale more than a thousand times larger than the nucleus itself. From this measurement, the first, to our knowledge, direct lower limit on the spatial extent of a neutrino wavepacket is extracted. These results may have implications in several areas including the theoretical understanding of neutrino properties, the nature of localization in weak nuclear decays and the interpretation of neutrino physics data.

物理化学Physical Chemistry

▲ 作者：Shu Chen, Guanbin Wu, Haibo Jiang, Jifeng Wang, Tiantian Chen, Chenyang Han, Wenwen Wang, Rongchen Yang, Jiahua Zhao, Zhihang Tang, Xiaocheng Gong, Chuanfa Li, Mengyao Zhu, Kun Zhang, Yifei Xu, Ying Wang, Zhe Hu, Peining Chen, Bingjie Wang, Kai Zhang, Yongyao Xia, Huisheng Peng & Yue Gao

▲ 链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08465-y

▲ 摘要：

锂离子是可充电电池储能功能的核心。目前的技术依赖于复杂的含锂电极材料来提供锂离子，以确保更长的使用寿命。因此，锂贫乏材料被排除在电池设计之外，当活性锂离子被消耗时，电池就会失效。

这项研究通过新的锂电供应策略打破了这一限制。包括在外部将有机锂盐添加到组装的电池中，在电池形成过程中分解，释放锂离子并以气体形式排出有机配体。这种非侵入性和快速的过程保持了电池的完整性，而无需拆卸。

研究者利用机器学习来发现这些功能盐，并确定了具有最佳电化学活性、电势、产物形成、电解质溶解度和比容量的三氟甲烷磺酸锂（LiSO₂CF₃）。与传统锂离子电池相比，该系统具有更高的能量密度、更强的可持续性和更低的成本。此外，商用LiFePO₄电池的寿命至少延长了一个数量级。在重复的外部锂供应下，商用石墨LiFePO₄电池在11818次循环后的容量保持率为96.0%。

▲ Abstract：

Lithium (Li) ions are central to the energy storing functionality of rechargeable batteries1. Present technology relies on sophisticated Li-inclusive electrode materials to provide Li ions and exactingly protect them to ensure a decent lifetime. Li-deficient materials are thus excluded from battery design, and the battery fails when active Li ions are consumed. Our study breaks this limit by means of a cell-level Li supply strategy. This involves externally adding an organic Li salt into an assembled cell, which decomposes during cell formation, liberating Li ions and expelling organic ligands as gases. This non-invasive and rapid process preserves cell integrity without necessitating disassembly. We leveraged machine learning to discover such functional salts and identified lithium trifluoromethanesulfinate (LiSO₂CF₃) with optimal electrochemical activity, potential, product formation, electrolyte solubility and specific capacity. As a proof-of-concept, we demonstrated a 3.0 V, 1,192 Wh kg⁻¹ Li-free cathode, chromium oxide, in the anode-less cell, as well as an organic sulfurized polyacrylonitrile cathode incorporated in a 388 Wh kg⁻¹ pouch cell with a 440-cycle life. These systems exhibit improved energy density, enhanced sustainability and reduced cost compared with conventional Li-ion batteries. Furthermore, the lifetime of commercial LiFePO₄ batteries was extended by at least an order of magnitude. With repeated external Li supplies, a commercial graphite LiFePO₄ cell displayed a capacity retention of 96.0% after 11,818 cycles.

▲ 作者：Xun Xiao, Niansheng Xu, Xueyu Tian, Tiankai Zhang, Bingzheng Wang, Xiaoming Wang, Yeming Xian, Chunyuan Lu, Xiangyu Ou, Yanfa Yan, Licheng Sun, Fengqi You & Feng Gao

▲ 链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08408-7

▲ 摘要：

越来越多的硅光伏（PV）废物表明，需要在新兴光伏技术商业化之前考虑废物回收的重要性。钙钛矿光伏是一种很有前途的下一代技术，回收其报废废物可以减少有毒废物并保留资源。

在这里，研究者报告了一种低成本、绿色溶剂的整体回收策略，可以从钙钛矿光伏废料中恢复所有有价值的成分。他们开发了一种高效的水基钙钛矿回收方法，也可以使降解的钙钛矿恢复活力。他们进一步将回收范围扩展到电荷传输层，衬底，覆盖玻璃和金属电极。经过多次降解回收处理，回收装置的效率和稳定性与新鲜装置相当。

与填埋处理相比，这项研究的整体回收策略减少了96.6%的资源消耗和68.8%的与钙钛矿PV相关的人类毒性（癌症效应）影响。有了回收，公用事业和住宅系统的电力成本也降低了。这项研究强调了钙钛矿PV在整体回收方面的独特机会，并为可持续的钙钛矿太阳能经济铺平了道路。

▲ Abstract：

Cumulative silicon photovoltaic (PV) waste highlights the importance of considering waste recycling before the commercialization of emerging PV technologies. Perovskite PVs are a promising next-generation technology, in which recycling their end-of-life waste can reduce the toxic waste and retain resources. Here we report a low-cost, green-solvent-based holistic recycling strategy to restore all valuable components from perovskite PV waste. We develop an efficient aqueous-based perovskite recycling approach that can also rejuvenate degraded perovskites. We further extend the scope of recycling to charge-transport layers, substrates, cover glasses and metal electrodes. After repeated degradation–recycling processes, the recycled devices show similar efficiency and stability compared with the fresh devices. Our holistic recycling strategy reduces by 96.6% resource depletion and by 68.8% human toxicity (cancer effects) impacts associated with perovskite PVs compared with the landfill treatment. With recycling, the levelized cost of electricity also decreases for both utility-scale and residential systems. This study highlights unique opportunities of perovskite PVs for holistic recycling and paves the way for a sustainable perovskite solar economy.

生命科学Life Science

▲ 作者：Zachary T. Berndsen & C. Keith Cassidy

▲ 链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08467-w

▲ 摘要：

低密度脂蛋白（LDL）在脂质和胆固醇代谢中起核心作用，是动脉粥样硬化发生和发展的关键因素，动脉粥样硬化是世界范围内导致死亡的主要原因。载脂蛋白B100（apoB100）是基因组中最大的蛋白质之一，是低密度脂蛋白的主要结构和功能成分，但其大小和复杂的脂质关联给结构研究带来了重大挑战。

研究者使用冷冻电子显微镜、AlphaFold24和基于分子动力学的改进的综合方法，在大多数区域展示了亚纳米分辨率的apoB100的结构。该结构由一个大的球状N端结构域和一个约61纳米长的连续两亲β片组成，该β片像带一样包裹着LDL颗粒。准对称分布在β带两侧的是9个战略性的链间插入物，它们延伸到脂质表面，通过远程相互作用的网络提供额外的结构支持。

研究者进一步将该结构与200多个分子内交联的综合列表进行比较，发现两者之间存在密切的一致性。这些结果提示了apoB100的不同结构域如何协同作用以维持LDL形状和内聚在不同粒径范围内的机制。更广泛地说，它们促进了人们对低密度脂蛋白合成、形式和功能的基本理解，并将有助于加速潜在治疗方法的设计。

▲ Abstract：

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) has a central role in lipid and cholesterol metabolism and is a key agent in the development and progression of atherosclerosis, the leading cause of mortality worldwide. Apolipoprotein B100 (apoB100), one of the largest proteins in the genome, is the primary structural and functional component of LDL, yet its size and complex lipid associations have posed major challenges for structural studies. Here we present the structure of apoB100 resolved to subnanometre resolution in most regions using an integrative approach of cryo-electron microscopy, AlphaFold24 and molecular-dynamics-based refinement. The structure consists of a large globular N-terminal domain and an approximately 61-nm-long continuous amphipathic β-sheet that wraps around the LDL particle like a belt. Distributed quasi-symmetrically across the two sides of the β-belt are nine strategically located interstrand inserts that extend across the lipid surface to provide additional structural support through a network of long-range interactions. We further compare our structure to a comprehensive list of more than 200 intramolecular cross-links and find close agreement between the two. These results suggest a mechanism for how the various domains of apoB100 act in concert to maintain LDL shape and cohesion across a range of particle sizes. More generally, they advance our fundamental understanding of LDL synthesis, form and function, and will help to accelerate the design of potential therapeutics.

▲ 作者：Dan I. Piraner, Mohamad H. Abedi, Maria J. Duran Gonzalez, Adam Chazin-Gray, Annie Lin, Iowis Zhu, Pavithran T. Ravindran, Thomas Schlichthaerle, Buwei Huang, Tyler H. Bearchild, David Lee, Sarah Wyman, Young-wook Jun, David Baker & Kole T. Roybal

▲ 链接：

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08366-0

▲ 摘要：

哺乳动物合成生物学领域最近取得了一些进展，但仍然缺乏模块化的合成受体，这些受体可以对可溶性配体做出强有力的反应，进而激活定制的细胞功能。这些受体在调节工程治疗细胞的活性方面具有广泛的临床潜力，但到目前为止，只有针对细胞表面靶点的受体已接近临床转化。

为了解决这一差距，研究者采用了一种称为合成膜内蛋白水解受体（SNIPR）的受体结构，用于可溶性配体的激活。SNIPR平台可以被天然和合成的可溶性因子激活，具有明显的低基线活性和高折叠激活性。研究者通过将嵌合抗原受体（CAR）T细胞的活性定位于可溶性疾病相关因子表达的实体肿瘤，从而绕过了在旁观者器官中靶外肿瘤毒性的主要障碍，证明了受体平台的治疗能力。

研究者进一步应用SNIPR平台设计与自然信号通路正交的细胞之间的完全合成信号网络，扩大合成生物学的范围。其设计框架使细胞通信和环境相互作用成为可能，扩展了临床和研究环境中合成细胞网络的能力。

▲ Abstract：

Despite recent advances in mammalian synthetic biology, there remains a lack of modular synthetic receptors that can robustly respond to soluble ligands and, in turn, activate bespoke cellular functions. Such receptors would have extensive clinical potential to regulate the activity of engineered therapeutic cells, but so far only receptors against cell-surface targets have approached clinical translation1. To address this gap, here we adapt a receptor architecture called the synthetic intramembrane proteolysis receptor (SNIPR) for activation by soluble ligands. Our SNIPR platform can be activated by both natural and synthetic soluble factors, with notably low baseline activity and high fold activation, through an endocytic, pH-dependent cleavage mechanism. We demonstrate the therapeutic capabilities of the receptor platform by localizing the activity of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells to solid tumours in which soluble disease-associated factors are expressed, bypassing the major hurdle of on-target off-tumour toxicity in bystander organs. We further apply the SNIPR platform to engineer fully synthetic signalling networks between cells orthogonal to natural signalling pathways, expanding the scope of synthetic biology. Our design framework enables cellular communication and environmental interactions, extending the capabilities of synthetic cellular networking in clinical and research contexts.