Month: July 2026

Avalanche-like intercalation and intraparticle correlations in graphite

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10862-4Operando optical microscopy shows avalanche-like lithium deintercalation (intercalation) processes as the dilute stages of graphite are emptied (filled), showing how…

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10862-4

Operando optical microscopy shows avalanche-like lithium deintercalation (intercalation) processes as the dilute stages of graphite are emptied (filled), showing how local disorder governs phase-transition dynamics and ion transport in lithium-ion battery electrodes.

The piezochiral effect

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10845-5The piezochiral effect, a new member of the family of strain-responsive functionalities alongside piezoelectricity and piezomagnetism, is introduced, enabling contro…

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10845-5

The piezochiral effect, a new member of the family of strain-responsive functionalities alongside piezoelectricity and piezomagnetism, is introduced, enabling control of chirality through mechanical strain, with future applications in photonics, spintronics, biosensing and quantum information.

Mitochondrial metabolism and epigenetic crosstalk drive SASP

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10791-2In senescent cells, mitochondria-derived acetyl-CoA promotes histone acetylation and increases chromatin accessibility at inflammatory gene loci. Inhibition of SLC25…

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10791-2

In senescent cells, mitochondria-derived acetyl-CoA promotes histone acetylation and increases chromatin accessibility at inflammatory gene loci. Inhibition of SLC25A1 attenuates these effects, underscoring the therapeutic potential of targeting mitochondrial metabolism and its epigenetic crosstalk to delay age-related functional decline.

Diverse bacterial pattern recognition receptors sense the core phage proteome

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10852-6Systematic analysis of prokaryotic STAND NTPases — relatives of animal and plant immune receptors — uncovers diverse antiviral sensors that detect most of the core s…

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10852-6

Systematic analysis of prokaryotic STAND NTPases — relatives of animal and plant immune receptors — uncovers diverse antiviral sensors that detect most of the core structural and replicative proteins of bacteriophages.

Electric dipoles go sideways in thin ferroelectric film

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02127-xCoupling between horizontal and vertical electric polarization enables an unconventional ferroelectric material to be controlled using standard device geometry.

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02127-x

Coupling between horizontal and vertical electric polarization enables an unconventional ferroelectric material to be controlled using standard device geometry.

Alternating CO<sub>2</sub> and bicycloalkane copolymerization to circular polyesters

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10848-2A simple organic catalyst enables direct alternating copolymerization of CO2 with bicycloalkanes to produce high-performance polyesters that can be selectively depol…

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10848-2

A simple organic catalyst enables direct alternating copolymerization of CO2 with bicycloalkanes to produce high-performance polyesters that can be selectively depolymerized and recycled in a closed-loop lifecycle.

The first known cephalopod was only a millimetre long and lived about 520 million years ago

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02319-5The locomotion of modern cephalopods, such as squid and cuttlefish, relies on buoyancy control achieved mainly by a specialized structure called a siphuncle. The dis…

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02319-5

The locomotion of modern cephalopods, such as squid and cuttlefish, relies on buoyancy control achieved mainly by a specialized structure called a siphuncle. The discovery of fossils of Eoceras — a millimetre-sized cephalopod with a siphuncle — suggests that the group had already emerged in the early Cambrian, around 520 million years ago.

Relapsed childhood cancers show genomic scars left by previous therapy

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02329-3Whole-genome sequencing of hundreds of childhood tumours, enriched for pretreated, relapsed and metastatic samples, shows that cancer therapies, especially platinum-…

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02329-3

Whole-genome sequencing of hundreds of childhood tumours, enriched for pretreated, relapsed and metastatic samples, shows that cancer therapies, especially platinum-based ones, are associated with rapid acquisition of distinctive patterns of DNA damage. These mutational signatures are linked with worse outcomes and could be used to track relapses and guide treatment decisions.

How silicon-chip technology is being re-engineered for quantum computing

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02124-0Two demonstrations of silicon-based quantum processors tackle the engineering challenges of building scalable quantum computers.

Nature, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02124-0

Two demonstrations of silicon-based quantum processors tackle the engineering challenges of building scalable quantum computers.