Search

The meningeal compartment communicates with the brain to modulate homeostatic functions. Here, the authors demonstrate that natural killer (NK) cells and innate lymphoid cells (ILC) 1 shape synaptic neuronal transmission and affect mouse behavior.

Droplets and sharp interfaces at supercritical pressures are interpreted as evidence of surface tension due to phase equilibria in mixtures, given the lack of a supercritical liquid-vapor phase equilibrium in pure fluids. Authors show from first principles and simulations that, unlike in gases or liquids, stable droplets, bubbles, and planar interfaces can exist without surface tension.

Electrocatalysts for CO₂ reduction are typically prepared and optimized ex situ before the reaction begins, but during reactions they may undergo changes that lower their performance. Here the authors show that active Cu catalysts can be formed on a recoverable basis and removed in situ during the CO₂ reduction reaction, improving the stability of the system.

Native state proteomics of PV interneurons revealed unique molecular features of high translational and metabolic activity, and enrichment of Alzheimer’s risk genes. Early amyloid pathology exerted unique effects on mitochondria, mTOR signaling and neurotransmission in PV neurons.

Polyamides (PAs) or nylons are types of plastics with wide applications, but due to their accumulation in the environment, strategies for their deconstruction are of interest. Here, the authors screen 40 potential nylon-hydrolyzing enzymes (nylonases) using a mass spectrometry-based approach and identify a thermostabilized N-terminal nucleophile hydrolase as the most promising for further development, as well as crucial targets for progressing PA6 enzymatic depolymerization.

Myocardial ischemia is a pathological condition where cardiomyocytes lack oxygen and energy supply. Here, Cheng et al. develop a photosynthetic system consisting of Chlorella pyrenoidosa (C. pyre) and upconversion nanoparticles encapsulated in a hydrogel, which upon exposure to near-infrared light, enables oxygen production by C. pyre to alleviate the hypoxic myocardial environment.

Near-infrared mechanoluminescence can be used in biostress imaging, but is subject to limitations in terms of the pre-irradiation process and low intensity. Here, the authors have circumvented these limitations by constructing an MgO/MgF₂:Cr³⁺ heterojunction piezo-photonics system.

The pathogenic avian flu H5N1 virus remains stable in raw milk and throughout the cheese-making process, but contaminated cheese fed to ferrets did not lead to infection, whereas raw milk did.

Understanding the complex flow of soft amorphous materials requires going beyond standard rheometers, which fail to capture stress heterogeneities at the mesoscopic scale. By combining shear rheometry with time-resolved X-ray micro-tomography on 3D foams, the study uncovers universal master curves in local stress dynamics and reveals how microstructural rearrangements drive non-local stress redistribution, explaining macroscopic elastoplastic behavior.

In vivo imaging reveals that vertebrate cells use RB pathway-dependent, cell-autonomous size control to trigger G1/S at a fixed size. Extrinsic cues alter growth rates but not the size threshold for S phase entry.

The authors report a new species of theropod dinosaur from the Triassic Period of Argentina. Despite being one of the earliest theropods, Anteavis crurilongus has derived features more in line with Neotheropoda.

Cells struggle to migrate on soft substrates, which don’t provide enough traction. Here, the authors show that rapid, cyclic changes in substrate rigidity allow cells to overcome this limitation and move quickly.

Guard cells define microscopic stomatal pores for CO₂ uptake and water loss. Characterization of the extracellular metabolome revealed sugars as ‘mesophyll messengers’ from the leaf interior that enhance stomatal opening via regulation of the guard-cell H⁺-ATPase and anion channels.

Quantification of shale gas reserves is critical to shape the energy policies of countries. Here, the authors present a new procedure to estimate gas in place and show that important UK gas reserves are actually much lower than previously thought.

An Earth system model estimates that natural halogens, of marine biotic and abiotic origin, remove about 13% of present-day global tropospheric O₃. Projections suggest this ratio is stable through 2100, with high spatial heterogeneity, despite increasing natural halogens.

Exercise promotes recovery after stroke, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here, the authors show that regulatory T cells enable exercise-induced repair by reducing neuronal hyperexcitability via interleukin-10, linking immunity to functional regeneration.

Functional roles of the parvicellular part of the ventral posteromedial nucleus/gustatory thalamus are not fully understood. Here authors found that gustatory thalamus mediates aversive behaviors and responds to noxious stimuli and fear memory. Gustatory thalamus receives input from the parabrachial nucleus and innervates neurons in the insular cortex and rostral lateral amygdala.

Realizing >5 V batteries is hindered by the instability of electrolytes. Here, a fluoride shielding layer, LiCl-4Li₂TiF₆, enables high-voltage, high-capacity all-solid-state batteries because of its combined oxidative stability and Li⁺ conductivity.

The International Brain Laboratory presents a brain-wide electrophysiological map obtained from pooling data from 12 laboratories that performed the same standardized perceptual decision-making task in mice.

Small cell lung cancer cells form functional synapses with glutamatergic neurons, receiving synaptic transmissions and deriving a proliferative advantage from these interactions.

Cortical networks switch from asynchronous firing to sudden synchronized population events. Here, the authors show that differential excitatory short-term synaptic plasticity onto either excitatory or inhibitory targets establishes and shapes the dynamics of these population events.

Tree cover gains in the moist tropics (1982–2015) were 56% naturally regenerated forests and 27% managed tree systems, with forest type influencing carbon recovery. Effective forest restoration requires robust tracking of forest types established by restoration efforts.

Accorsi et al. show that the apple snail Pomacea canaliculata has eyes similar to humans and can fully regenerate them. They then developed genetic tools to establish these snails as a novel model system to study the mechanisms of eye regeneration

Manipulating the physical properties of solid matter using only photons is a major challenge in materials science. Here, the authors present the photochemistry occurring in a single crystal of a Mo(III) cyanide complex which undergoes a reversible breaking and reformation of dative bonds and spin state change upon exposure to visible light.

How musical expertise impacts the brain’s processing of complex musical information remains unclear. Using generative music models, this study reveals that musicians display enhanced disentangled and contextual neural encoding of music.

Brain-wide recordings in mice reveal that prior expectations are distributed through recurrent loops across all levels of cortical and subcortical processing.

Enhanced polyamine depletion in neuroblastoma models decreases translation of mRNA codons with adenosine in the third position, reprogramming the tumour proteome away from cell cycle progression and towards differentiation.

African ancestry is a known risk factor for prostate cancer development, but the genetic determinants of this are incompletely understood. Here, the authors identify 172 potentially pathogenic variants which are enriched in an African population.

Static protein structures can capture the association of lipids, but it is unclear whether the association is due to lipids acting as long-lived ligands or the solvation of preferred lipids around the protein. A computational-experimental framework has now shown that for the protein CLC-ec1, it is the change in lipid solvation energies that drives dimerization, with preferred lipids around the protein modulating this driving force.

Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are a versatile class of clinically approved drug delivery vehicles, particularly for nucleic acid cargoes, but they often suffer from instability issues. Here, the authors report that the room temperature stability of small interfering RNA LNPs formulated with unsaturated ionizable lipids can be improved by inclusion of mildly acidic, antioxidant-containing buffers.

Infection of dairy cows with highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus has raised public health concerns. Here, the authors report the stability of H5N1 in raw milk and show that thermal treatment of milk under FDA-approved pasteurization and various thermization conditions efficiently inactivates HPAI H5N1 virus.

Hachem et al. show that AMPAR signaling drives the acute activation of ependymal-derived neural stem/progenitor cells after spinal cord injury and that this mechanism can be targeted therapeutically to harness the endogenous regenerative potential of the spinal cord.

External Control Arm methods for clinical trials were developed to compare the efficacy of a treatment to a control group that is built with data from external sources. Here, the authors present FedECA, a privacy-enhancing method for analyzing treatment effects across institutions, streamlining multi-centric trial design and thereby accelerating drug development while minimizing patient data exposure.

Beck et al. develop a model where striosomes create a flexible “decision-space” that adapts to environmental context and internal state. It explains how we make choices and why decision-making varies between people, and in neuropsychiatric disorders.

Experiments from over a century ago showed that dividing sea urchin embryos at the 2-cell stage yields two embryos, but the mechanisms of this phenomenon have not been shown. Here, they show that these embryos self-organize in an unusual way to pattern the body axes.

Reduced dependence on wild-caught fish in favour of crop-based ingredients for feeds has supported aquaculture growth. An analysis of ingredient origins versus feed composition shows that origin must be considered to assess the environmental footprint of feed production.

An ‘intracrine’ signaling mechanism is proposed whereby a G-protein-coupled receptor (free fatty acid receptor 4) senses locally released fatty acids on intracellular membranes associated with lipid droplets to efficiently regulate lipolysis in adipocytes.

Net-zero bioplastics are possible when combined with high recycling rates. This study presents a mixed polyester recycling process integrated with monomer separation and purification for both fossil- and bio-based plastics. Techno-economic and life cycle analyses confirm its environmental and commercial advantages, advancing the path toward circular, low-emission polyester plastics.

Li et al. identify dynorphin as an endogenous ligand for orphan receptor GPR139 introducing it as a non-canonical member of the opioid receptor family that triggers excitatory signaling to balance the inhibitory effects of opioids.

Optogenetic actuation regimes are often static, which allows perturbation, but not true control of neuronal activity. Here, the authors describe an all-optical method for bidirectional steering of membrane potential, in closed loop, in C. elegans muscles and neurons, and rat hippocampal slice culture. The ‘optogenetic voltage clamp’ uses two microbial rhodopsin actuators and the rhodopsin voltage indicator QuasAr.

ChReef is an optogenetic actuator for sustained optogenetic control of excitable cells in a variety of preclinical applications.