A nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube confined CuCo nanoalloy catalyzing one-pot conversion of levulinic acid to 1,4-pentanediol.

Nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube confined CuCo nanoalloy catalysts are fabricated by using ZIF-67 as a sacrificial template for the one-pot selective hydrogenation of levulinic acid (LA) to 1,4-pentanediol (1,4-PDO). The optimal catalyst achieves a high 1,4-PDO yield of 87.8% at full LA conversion.

CHK2-FOXK axis promotes transcriptional control of autophagy programs.

Autophagy is an evolutionarily conserved catabolic process, which plays a vital role in removing misfolded proteins and clearing damaged organelles to maintain internal environment homeostasis. Here, we uncovered the checkpoint kinase 2 (CHK2)-FOXK (FOXK1 and FOXK2) axis playing an important role in DNA damage-mediated autophagy at the transcriptional regulation layer. Mechanistically, following DNA damage, CHK2 phosphorylates FOXK and creates a 14-3-3γ binding site, which, in turn, traps FOXK proteins in the cytoplasm.

Graphene-supported Au-Pd bimetallic nanoparticles with excellent catalytic performance in selective oxidation of methanol to methyl formate.

Graphene supported Au-Pd bimetallic nanoparticles exhibit high catalytic activity in methanol selective oxidation, with a methanol conversion of 90.2% and selectivity of 100%, to methyl formate at 70 °C, owing to the synergism of Au and Pd particles as well as the strong interaction between graphene and Au-Pd nanoparticles.