RSC Adv. 2026 Sep 15. doi: 10.1039/d6ra06805g. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Indigo carmine (IC) persists in aquatic environments due to its high solubility, aromatic stability, and sulfonated structure, raising toxicity concerns and inducing the formation of harmful oxidative intermediates. This review critically summarizes the information on IC and provides a mechanistic evaluation of its…

ACS Nano. 2026 Sep 1;20(34):23893-23906. doi: 10.1021/acsnano.6c07948. ABSTRACT Direct solar-to-chemical conversion offers a compelling route to clean, dispatchable energy. Photosystem I (PSI), an evolutionarily optimized light-driven oxidoreductase, can be repurposed for solar-fuel production by coupling its photochemistry to catalytic interfaces. However, the molecular determinants that govern productive electron transfer to abiotic catalysts remain poorly understood.…

Nat Commun. 2026 Aug 5;17(1):9427. doi: 10.1038/s41467-026-76316-7. ABSTRACT Light-dependent protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase (LPOR) is a light-driven enzyme in flowering plants. It is involved in chlorophyll biosynthesis while also reorganizing membrane lipids into the cubic membrane network that supports chloroplast development. However, the structural basis of these two activities and their relationship have remained unclear. Here, cryo-electron…

Small. 2026 Sep 2:e75590. doi: 10.1002/smll.75590. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Oscillatory fluid flows underpin transport, mixing, and signal propagation in living systems, yet artificial microfluidic platforms rely almost extensively on external power or chemically driven gradients to reproduce such dynamics. Here, we introduce a fuel-free strategy based on photo-mechanical transduction, in which light is…

Methods Mol Biol. 2026;3032:47-67. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-5257-2_4. ABSTRACT Photobiocatalysis, an interdisciplinary frontier integrating chemistry, biology, and catalysis, drives enzymatic catalysis from natural reactions to new-to-nature transformations via protein engineering and photochemistry. This review centers on enzyme classes, covering nine key families: fatty acid photodecarboxylases (FAPs), nicotinamide-dependent reductases, flavin-dependent “ene”-reductases (EREDs), and others like artificial photoenzymes. We…

Methods Mol Biol. 2026;3032:47-67. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-5257-2_4. ABSTRACT Photobiocatalysis, an interdisciplinary frontier integrating chemistry, biology, and catalysis, drives enzymatic catalysis from natural reactions to new-to-nature transformations via protein engineering and photochemistry. This review centers on enzyme classes, covering nine key families: fatty acid photodecarboxylases (FAPs), nicotinamide-dependent reductases, flavin-dependent “ene”-reductases (EREDs), and others like artificial photoenzymes. We…

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2026 Aug 28:e5856873. doi: 10.1002/anie.5856873. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Light-driven photoredox catalysis can shift intracellular NADH/NAD+ balance by oxidizing NADH, but intracellular NADH pools are dynamically replenished through enzyme-coupled redox metabolism. We show that ALDH-mediated restoration of NADH/NAD+ balance can buffer photoredox-induced NADH depletion, providing a design rationale for…

Molecules. 2026 Aug 13;31(16):2830. doi: 10.3390/molecules31162830. ABSTRACT A light-promoted C-H/C-H coupling of imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines with 5-(hetero)aryl-1,2,5-oxadiazolo[3,4-b]pyrazines was developed using a heterogeneous oxidative photocatalytic system based on molecular oxygen, nanosized TiO2, and light irradiation. The method provides direct access to C3-heteroarylated imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines under metal-free conditions and expands the synthetic utility of electron-deficient oxadiazolopyrazine partners in the construction…

Nature. 2026 Jul 27. doi: 10.1038/s41586-026-10930-9. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Non-native photoenzymes have enabled myriad asymmetric bond-forming events that are otherwise challenging or at present impossible with small-molecule catalysis1,2. These reactions require enzymes with cofactors that are strong absorbers in the visible region with reasonably long-lived excited states, such as flavin and nicotinamide. However,…

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2026 Aug 25:e8631704. doi: 10.1002/anie.8631704. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Photocatalytic NADH regeneration is limited by poor recovery of the rhodium mediator (Rh*) and enzyme deactivation caused by free Rh* species and photogenerated holes. In this study, we introduce poly(acrylic acid) brushes grafted onto conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs) to anchor…