Reviews & Analysis

An extracellular ejection of zinc, known as a zinc spark, is triggered by the fertilization of a mammalian egg; however, the origin of this zinc was not clear. Now, a combination of four complementary techniques has revealed the source and provided an unprecedented quantification of the distribution of zinc in a maturing mammalian oocyte.

The synchronous movement of protons and electrons orchestrated by enzymes gives rise to highly efficient catalytic processes in nature, such as photosynthesis. Now, researchers have choreographed similar reactivity for a metal hydride complex, setting the stage for efficient solar fuel production in artificial systems.

Attempts to create a porous molecular crystal by removing solvent molecules from a solvate usually lead the host to reorganize into a non-porous close-packed structure. The 'virtual porosity' of such an organic cage crystal has now been trapped by introducing a judiciously chosen co-crystal former that prevents rearrangement of the host lattice.

Mutated enzymes are useful tools for the investigation of the biosynthetic routes to natural products. Now, they are used in a new approach to carry functionalized substrates through the synthesis and produce simplified or modified unnatural compounds with useful properties.

Bringing porphyrins in contact with well-defined interfaces generates a rich playground of chemical behaviour and properties for exploration and exploitation. This Review examines our current understanding of surface-confined tetrapyrroles and their embedding in nanoarchitectures - discussing both the structural and functional attributes, and methods by which to manipulate their intramolecular and organizational features.