Shining light on diselenide bonds

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 06 February 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-023-01134-zPost-translational modification of proteins is widely used for studying biological processes; however, competing reactions can provide numerous challenges. Now, a visible-light photocatalytic diselenide contraction enables the highly chemoselective functionalization...

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Withstanding winter with mushroom therapy

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 06 February 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01129-2Winter brings a spike in mortality rates, but rather than simply having more parties to divert our attention, Bruce Gibb suggests that perhaps we should be looking to the misunderstood mushroom to give us a boost.

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Selective cycloadditions

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 30 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01123-82+2-cycloaddition reactions have long been considered key transformations in the biosynthesis of cyclobutane-containing natural products, but enzymes for these reactions have not yet been identified. Now, a 2+2 cyclase has been discovered, characterized and bioengineered...

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High-throughput phase elucidation of polycrystalline materials using serial rotation electron diffraction

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 30 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01131-8X-ray diffraction is crucial for the phase elucidation of polycrystalline materials but remains challenging for complex multiphase systems. Now serial rotation electron diffraction has been shown to enable rapid, reliable and semiquantitative phase analysis of such systems,...

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Flammable ice of profit and doom

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 30 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01132-7Methane hydrate clogs pipelines, is difficult to extract profitably, and exists in quantities sufficient to screw up Earth’s climate. Brett Thornton and Christian Stranne consider this confounding cage compound.

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Interlocked structures on active duty

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 26 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01130-9Interlocking macrocyclic carbon nanomaterials is an exciting way to tune their molecular properties, but all-conjugated catenanes and rotaxanes are extremely challenging to make. Now, fully π-conjugated [2]- and [3]catenanes as well as a [3]rotaxane have been prepared...

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Plasmonic visible–near infrared photothermal activation of olefin metathesis enabling photoresponsive materials

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 26 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01124-7Current strategies for photoinduced olefin metathesis lack wavelength tunability. Now, plasmonic nanoparticles have been used to activate latent ruthenium catalysts, enabling light-induced olefin metathesis in the infrared range with several advantages when compared with...

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No man is an island

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 26 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01125-6Amilra Prasanna (AP) de Silva talks to Nature Chemistry about his path in chemistry, from photochemistry to sodium sensors to logic gates, through connections between people and between two places that share more than it may seem, Sri Lanka and Northern Ireland.

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Chiral sulfinyls from sulfones

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 26 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01122-9The selective removal of one oxygen atom from sulfones, without over-reduction to sulfide, is a challenging task. Now, through organocatalysis and incorporation of a cyano group into the sulfone, an asymmetric deoxygenation strategy has been developed, providing an efficient...

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Photoswitching neutral homoaromatic hydrocarbons

Nature Chemistry, Published online: 26 January 2023; doi:10.1038/s41557-022-01121-wNeutral homoaromatic hydrocarbons—which possess an interrupted π-system yet display aromatic properties owing to through-space or through-bond interactions—have remained rare as they are typically unstable. Now a class of stable neutral homoaromatic homoannulenes has...

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