https://www.cas.cn/cm/202603/t20260326_5105179.shtml
For the 21 time since 2005, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) has selected the “Top Ten Scientific Advances in China for 2025” . Over 150 experts and scholars in relevant disciplines selected 30 candidate advances from more than 600 recommended basic research advances. Then, over 3,000 experts and scholars, including more than 480 academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, voted online to finalized the vote.
1. Chang’e 6 Samples Reveal the Evolutionary History and Giant Impact Effects of the Lunar Far Side for the First Time
The Chang’e 6 mission brought back lunar soil from the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin on the far side of the moon for the first time, providing valuable samples for understanding the evolutionary history of the lunar far side.
2. Innovative Method Achieves Large-Scale Preparation of Flexible Ultra-flat Diamond Thin Films
Diamond possesses extremely high hardness, ultra-high carrier mobility, strong dielectric breakdown strength, excellent thermal conductivity, and wide bandgap characteristics, earning it the title of “ultimate semiconductor material” and demonstrating revolutionary potential in numerous fields. However, traditional preparation techniques struggle to achieve large-scale, ultra-flat diamond thin film production, limiting its industrial application.
3. Controlled Nuclear Fusion Large-Scale Scientific Facility Achieves “Billion-Degree” Operation
Controlled nuclear fusion possesses outstanding advantages such as abundant resources, environmental friendliness, and inherent safety, and is currently recognized as one of the most important pathways to ultimately solve humanity’s energy problems. This research achieved operation at temperatures exceeding 100 million degrees Celsius on both the Experimental Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) and the HL-3 fusion reactor. Researchers came from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Southwestern Institute of Physics, China National Nuclear Corporation.
4. Discovery of ceramide receptors and bacterial regulators and their role in cardiovascular and metabolic diseases
A team led by Jiang Changtao and Kong Wei from Peking University, Shandong University, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, and Wenzhou Medical University conducted research from the dimensions of receptor recognition, metabolic regulation, and disease intervention. They discovered the receptors for ceramides, FPR2 and CYSLTR2, and revealed the molecular mechanisms by which they exacerbate various cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. They systematically elucidated that ceramides are key messengers for the host to sense intestinal bacterial enzymes and their metabolites, and found that a novel secondary metabolite produced by intestinal fungi, falcanthone A, regulates ceramide levels and improves cardiovascular and metabolic diseases by inhibiting the intestinal ceramide synthase CerS6.
5. Gene-Edited Pig Liver Implanted into Humans Breaks Through Barriers in Cross-Species Organ Transplantation
Donor shortage is a bottleneck restricting the development of organ transplantation, while xenotransplantation is an important way to solve the organ shortage problem. Researchers from the Air Force Medical University of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army used a six-gene editing strategy on donor pigs: knocking out three porcine antigen genes (GGTA1, B4GALNT2, CMAH) to avoid hyperacute rejection; introducing two human complement regulatory protein genes (hCD46, hCD55) to inhibit complement activation-mediated humoral immune rejection; and introducing a human coagulation regulatory protein gene (hTBM) to improve coagulation disorders. Simultaneously, based on the triple immunosuppression (FK506, MMF, MP) regimen used in allogeneic transplantation, a targeted “seven-pronged immunosuppression” regimen for xenotransplantation was developed: increasing antibodies such as ATG, CD20, C5, and TNF-α to suppress cellular immune rejection, reduce complement killing, and lower systemic inflammatory responses.
6. Elucidation of Inflammatory Aging Mechanisms and Multidimensional Targeted Intervention
Understanding the molecular mechanisms of organ aging and establishing systematic intervention strategies are core challenges in aging biology and translational medicine. Researchers from the CAS Institute of Zoology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (National Center for Biotechnology Information), and West China Hospital of Sichuan University have mapped the aging trajectory and characteristics across a 50-year human lifespan through this study, revealing that amyloid protein accumulation and inflammatory stress are the core driving mechanisms of organ aging. The research team further discovered that betaine, an endogenous metabolite derived from the kidney, can act as a natural inhibitor of the pro-inflammatory kinase TBK1, mimicking the anti-inflammatory effects of exercise at the molecular level, providing a candidate molecule with a clear target for delaying aging.
7. A Flourishing Chemosynthetic Community Discovered at the Deepest Point of the Deep-Sea Trench
A research team from the Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, under the Global Deep-Sea Exploration Program, discovered a stunning seafloor ecosystem in the Chiba-Kamchatka Trench and Aleutian Trench in the Northwest Pacific Ocean using the manned submersible “Striver.” At depths of 5800–9533 meters, a thriving chemosynthetic ecosystem is currently the deepest known community on Earth. This massive seafloor ecosystem stretches over 2500 kilometers. It does not rely on sunlight but instead utilizes chemical reactions in geological fluids to obtain the energy necessary for its metabolism. These communities are primarily composed of tube worms and bivalve mollusks, sustaining themselves on fluids rich in hydrogen sulfide and methane that surge up along fault lines. The research further reveals the existence of a previously unknown, massive methane reservoir and methanogenic biosphere deep within the abyssal sedimentary layers.
8. Full-Functional Two-Dimensional Semiconductor/Silicon-Based Hybrid Architecture Heterogeneous Integrated Flash Memory Chip
Faced with the fundamental challenge of Moore’s Law approaching its physical limits, two-dimensional semiconductors with a thickness of 1-3 atomic layers are internationally recognized as the key to breaking through this bottleneck. The chip industry and academia are working to verify the advantages of two-dimensional electronics through breakthroughs in heterogeneous system integration. Researchers from Fudan University have achieved a breakthrough across the entire chain from underlying scientific mechanism innovation to engineering integration through atomic-scale fabrication technology (ATOM2CHIP). Its technological roadmap includes full-stack on-chip integration processes and cross-platform system design, achieving atomic-scale conformal adhesion integration of two-dimensional semiconductors and CMOS chips, and high-density monolithic interconnection and protocol communication within heterogeneous circuits. This research pioneered the development of a two-dimensional semiconductor/silicon-based hybrid architecture (“Changying”) flash memory chip, a highly complex, instruction-driven, full-function chip supporting 8-bit instruction and 32-bit parallel processing, with an integration yield of up to 94.3%.
9. Realizing Thorium-Uranium Nuclear Fuel Conversion Based on Molten Salt Reactors
Molten salt reactors are fourth-generation advanced nuclear energy systems that use high-temperature molten salt as a coolant. They possess inherent advantages such as safety, waterless cooling, atmospheric pressure operation, and high-temperature output, and are internationally recognized as the most suitable reactor type for thorium resource nuclear energy utilization. A research team from the CAS Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics has established a design theory and methodology system under complex multi-physics coupling conditions, achieving synergistic optimization of structural safety and heat transfer efficiency. They elucidated the service behavior and microstructure evolution mechanisms of key structural materials under extreme service environments, establishing a technical system for material performance regulation and precision preparation. They revealed the intrinsic laws governing the interaction between the fuel medium and structural materials, proposing theoretical and technical solutions for fuel system composition optimization and corrosion inhibition.Ultimately, this research resulted in the construction of a liquid fuel-based molten salt experimental reactor and the completion of an in-core thorium-uranium conversion principle verification experiment. It successfully obtained direct evidence of the evolutionary characteristics of key nuclides, verifying the scientific feasibility of a novel fuel cycle route.
10. New Interface Modulation Methods Create High-Performance Flexible Tandem Solar Cells for Space-Air Applications
Flexible perovskite/crystalline silicon tandem photovoltaic technology boasts advantages such as low cost, high efficiency, lightweight and bendable properties, and a high power-to-weight ratio, making it an important direction for next-generation space-air photovoltaic technology. Challenges are interface delamination and performance degradation under stresses caused by bending and thermal expansion and contraction. A team from Soochow University and LONGi Green Energy Technology Co., Ltd. proposed two novel interface control methods based on the principle of synergistic control of light, electricity, and force. First, they constructed a double-layer buffer layer with a “loose-tight” structure to synergistically achieve stress dissipation and efficient charge transport at the nanoscale. This resulted in an internationally certified photoelectric conversion efficiency exceeding 33.3% (1 cm²) in a small-area flexible tandem solar cell and a certified photoelectric conversion efficiency of 29.8% (261 cm²) in a full-silicon wafer-sized device, exhibiting excellent bending resistance and wide-temperature stability. Second, they developed indium cerium oxide thin films deposited by reactive plasma to improve the coverage of self-assembled monolayers and the interface charge transport efficiency. In-situ annealing was used to prepare a zinc-doped indium oxide front transparent electrode, enhancing photoelectric and mechanical properties. This yielded a flexible solar cell with a certified photoelectric conversion efficiency of 33.6% and an open-circuit voltage of 2.015 V, maintaining stability under repeated bending and humid heat environments, and a lifetime exceeding 2000 hours under continuous illumination.