Fellow is the highest membership grade of the Chinese Chemical Society, awarded to distinguished members who have made systematic and creative achievements as well as significant contributions to chemistry and related fields. Since the establishment of the Fellow system in 2019, no more than 50 Fellows have been elected each year, and there are 346 Fellows to date.

Warm congratulations to Prof. Xu!

Angew. Chem. Int. Ed.; 2026: e7355159.

Dynamic covalent chemistry has enabled adaptive behavior in organic polymer networks and molecular crystals, yet analogous control in inorganic crystalline solids remains largely unexplored. Here we show that elemental selenium can operate as a dynamic covalent inorganic crystal, whose architectural and functional adaptability arises from dynamic covalent Se─Se bonds within the trigonal selenium backbone. External mechanical (or optical) stimuli drive Se─Se bond cleavage and reformation, mediating structural reconfiguration of the crystalline framework. Embedding selenium in a crosslinked polymer matrix creates a mechanically programmable environment that exerts real-time and persistent mechanical signals in situ. Under this chemo‑mechanical coupling, crystal branching frequency and three-dimensional architecture respond to matrix stiffness and external light, and these translate directly into tunable dielectric behavior in polymer-selenium composites. This work expands dynamic covalent chemistry from organic to inorganic crystalline materials, and reveals dynamic covalent inorganic crystals as a new class of adaptive materials.

Advanced Science 2026: e00010.

Radioprotection remains a critical challenge in biomedicine and space exploration. As the fundamental building blocks of organisms, amino acids are gaining momentum in chemical design for in vivo radioprotection, yet their low atomic number (Z) and rapid metabolism restrict practical applications. This study addresses these limitations through the melanin-inspired polymerization of the higher Z-tellurocysteine. Motivated by the superior catalytic activity and higher Z of tellurium over selenium in both enzyme mimics and microbial systems, we hypothesized that tellurium-containing amino acid polymers could demonstrate enhanced photon interaction and radical scavenging. The exceptional nucleophilic substitution capability of tellurocysteine, which arises from its soft polarizable character, drives its bisubstitution with o-benzoquinone. The heteroatom enrichment and high-Z effect make the novel materials far exceed natural amino acid polymers in radiation shielding. The melanin-mimetic polymeric structure demonstrates enhanced radiation stability and broad-spectrum free radical scavenging ability. Following oral administration, the tellurocysteine-based polymers achieve prolonged intestinal retention, mitigating radiation-induced intestinal injury. Our work establishes a new paradigm in amino acid engineering, demonstrating how strategic non-metallic heavy atom incorporation can transform biological molecules into advanced radioprotective materials. This approach opens possibilities for developing next-generation, amino acid-derived agents with tailored pharmacokinetics and multifunctional activity.

Nat Commun 2026

Silicone materials are indispensable across industrial and consumer domains, yet their robust Si–O–Si backbones resist depolymerization and typically require chemical crosslinking to attain elastomeric properties. Here we report a modular synthesis to access non-carbon heteroatomic backbone polymers (PTeSiO) featuring periodic Si–O–Te–O linkages. This copolymerization merges Si–O and Te–O as building blocks, enabling a one-pot, room-temperature aqueous route to high-molecular-weight, transparent elastomers with precise control over backbone composition and side-chain architecture. Main-chain engineering via redox-labile Te–O motifs enables chemoselective backbone scission under mild reductive conditions, affording on-demand polymerization–depolymerization cycles with efficient monomer recovery. The semi-flexible backbones and chain entanglement impart elasticity, thermoplastic processability, and side-chain-dependent mechanical performance. This work establishes a modular and general chemical strategy for creating non-carbon heteroatomic backbones as a design principle for sustainable and recyclable silicone materials.

]]> http://xuslab.com/recyclable-thermoplastic-silicone-elastomers-from-non-carbon-heteroatomic-polymer-backbones/feed/ 0 http://xuslab.com/tsinghua-ku-leuven-bilateral-mini-symposium-on-frontiers-of-chemistry/ http://xuslab.com/tsinghua-ku-leuven-bilateral-mini-symposium-on-frontiers-of-chemistry/#comments Wed, 25 Mar 2026 06:11:04 +0000 http://xuslab.com/?p=3306 The Tsinghua-KU Leuven Bilateral Mini-Symposium on Frontiers of Chemistry was held at Tsinghua University on March 25, 2026. Prof. Huaping Xu served as the chairman of the symposium. The event brought together distinguished researchers from both institutions. From KU Leuven, Prof. Johan Hofkens, Prof. Maarten Roeffaers, and Associate Prof. Elke Debroye delivered insightful talks. From Tsinghua University, Associate Prof. Hao Zhang and Associate Prof. Dongxin Ma also presented their latest research findings. The content of the symposium is as follows：

The symposium provided a valuable platform for academic exchange and fostered further collaboration between the two universities in the field of chemistry.

Adv. Funct. Mater. 2026: e74749.

Early burst ion release of biodegradable alloys, such as Zn²⁺, often triggers inflammation and impairs bone formation, which affects the clinical application of biodegradable alloys. Here, a multifunctional hydrophilic selenium-containing polyurea (SePUA) is designed with a tunable ratio of selenium-containing groups to hydrophilic groups. The SePUA can form stable Se-metal coordination, achieving controlled ion release of biodegradable alloys, and simultaneously leverages the biological functions of selenium to realize immuno-osteogenic synergistic modulation. Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals that SePUA accelerates the shift from acute inflammation to a healing-permissive immune environment. It reduces early Zn²⁺ release and achieves controllable selenium release, thereby suppressing neutrophil chemotaxis and maturation, recruiting macrophages, activating the KEAP1-NRF2-SEPP1 pathway to decrease intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and drive M2 polarization. Simultaneously, SePUA upregulates the stemness-associated NR2F2-SOX2/NANOG axis in MSCs and enhances their osteogenic differentiation capacity, thereby promoting new bone formation around the implants. This work develops a facile, multifunctional bioactive hydrophilic SePUA for the coating of biodegradable alloys that integrates ion release control, immunomodulation, and osteogenesis, offering critical support for the clinical translation of biodegradable alloys.

Adv.  Mater.; 2026: e23642.

The construction and integration of curvature govern the structure and function of materials based on 2D sheets, yet achieving ultrafast and scalable curvature programming remains a major challenge. We rapidly generate large stress mismatches by combining an ultrafast stress-relaxing diselenide-containing polyurethane with an ultraslow stress-relaxing disulfide-containing polyurethane. Coupled with modular components and compression, this mismatch enables localized, directional loading of high stress with excellent scalability. Using this strategy, 2D polymer sheets achieve 180° bending within 10 s of UV irradiation, yielding a curvature-programming rate 15-fold faster than state-of-the-art methods. Furthermore, origami modules, which display a 37-fold enhancement in compressive performance, can be obtained through mass production and assembled into complex 3D architectures. This rapid, high-curvature programming approach offers efficiency, mechanical robustness, and scalability, advancing the practical deployment of origami-based metamaterials.

Biomaterials, 2026: p. 124099.

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) have emerged as a promising immunotherapeutic target in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the indiscriminate cytotoxicity of chemotherapies and the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment paradoxically impede this potential. To overcome these limitations, we engineered β-selenoester–crosslinked nanocapsules delivering Gefitinib, designed to induce opposite cell fates in cancer cells and macrophages. In cancer cells, the Se-C bond in β-selenoester is ultrasensitive under the intrinsic reactive oxygen species (ROS) level. It generates acrylates through selenoxide elimination reaction, which further depletes intracellular GSH to regenerate cytotoxic ROS. The ROS-triggered positive-feedback induces nanocapsule disassembly, enabling rapid Gefitinib release and apoptosis induction. The released Gefitinib also disrupts the CD47-SIRPα “don’t eat me” axis to enhance macrophage phagocytic activity. In macrophages, low ROS level limits Gefitinib exposure, but the selenium metabolites generated from the elimination reaction are sufficient to promote macrophage activation. This selective cell fate programming yielded no macrophage toxicity at cancer-cell IC₅₀ levels and a 91.1 % tumor suppression in vivo. Collectively, this work demonstrates a divergent cell fate induction strategy based on β-selenoester–crosslinking for integrated TAM-mediated immunotherapy.