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

Fibro-calcific aortic valve disease is closely interlinked with dyslipidemia. Here, the authors used quantitative lipidomics to profile the metabolic trajectories in human aortic valves, and found that male and female patients manifest markedly different lipid signatures of disease progression.

As wood growth in deciduous tree stems halts during winter, it has been assumed that wood growth in coarse roots follows the same pattern. This study on the growth of stem and coarse roots of four European tree species challenges the assumption of winter halt in below-ground wood growth of temperate deciduous trees.

Through RNA profiling of right ventricular tissue from patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, Jafari et al. uncover mechanisms underlying disease severity-associated remodeling, identify key signaling molecules involved in fibrotic and proliferative pathways, and reveal processes driving right ventricular recovery after pulmonary endarterectomy.

Microplastics research is often based on commercial model particles. Here, the authors show that nominally identical particles may differ significantly in their properties and thus in their interactions with cells.

Synthesis of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) by Pol I sustains cell growth but is highly energy demanding. Here the authors show that curbing of Pol I activity lowers systemic energy utilization and delays metabolic aging by reducing triglyceride lipolysis and mitochondrial oxygen consumption.

Detailed characterization of cardiac damage following ischemia/reperfusion injury and detection of occurring inflammatory responses is important for the development of new therapeutic concepts. Here the authors present a method for the three-dimensional investigation of acute and chronic cardiac injury responses using light sheet fluorescence microscopy.

Antimicrobial peptide LL37 can bind nucleic acids and potentiate their sensing by endosomal TLRs. Here the authors show that LL37 binds to RNA from neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), which amplifies inflammation and production of more LL37 and NETs via TLR8/13, suggesting that LL37 contribution to psoriasis may be fueled by NET-associated RNA.

Here the authors show that the patterning signals WNT, BMP, and FGF control chromosome segregation fidelity during early lineage specification and neurogenesis, which could provide a rationale for the spatio-temporal distribution of genomic mosaicism during human development.

In a rat model of multiple sclerosis, β-synuclein-specific T cells induce inflammation and pathological changes in the grey matter of the central nervous system; these cells were also found in higher numbers in patients with multiple sclerosis, particularly those with a chronic progressive course.

Urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UCAR) is associated with various clinical outcomes such as kidney disease and cardiovascular disease. Here, the authors report genome-wide meta-analysis in over 500,000 individuals and find 68 UACR loci, followed by statistical fine-mapping, gene prioritization and experimental validation in flies.

Fat culturing remains a challenging task in the process of producing optimal cultivated meat. Here, using antibiotic-free culture conditions, the authors establish bovine adipose-derived stem cell spheroids as building blocks for the fabrication of cultured fat.

The wealth of complex polyketides is an essential source for drug discovery. Here, the authors report an evolution-guided rational morphing of modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) for aurothin and neoaurothin biosynthesis, and reveal engineering site suitable for diversifying PKS systems.

Long-read single-cell RNA sequencing is capable of detecting isoform-level gene expression and genomic alterations such as mutations and gene fusions, thereby providing cell-specific genotype-phenotype information. Here, the authors use long-read scRNA-seq on metastatic ovarian cancer samples and detect cell-type specific isoforms and gene fusions that may otherwise be misclassified in short-read data.

This chromosome-engineering protocol generates heritable chromosomal rearrangements in A. thaliana; by combining SaCas9 with an egg-cell-specific promoter to facilitate heritable mutations, chromosomal rearrangements can be made and homozygous lines can be established.

Federated learning, a method for training artificial intelligence algorithms that protects data privacy, was used to predict future oxygen requirements of symptomatic patients with COVID-19 using data from 20 different institutes across the globe.

After myocardial infarction, dedifferentiated cardiomyocytes secrete the protein Reg3β, thereby recruiting macrophages required for neutrophil clearance and myocardial healing.

Nitrospira inopinata and probably most other comammox microorganisms can grow on the non-conventional substrate guanidine as the sole source of energy, reductant and nitrogen.

The human immune system changes with age which impacts pathogen clearance. Here, Vogel et al. probe how CD4 + T-cells from different age groups respond to bacteria and show that activation with staphylococcal antigen induces T cells to become Th1-like cells, whilst stimulation with Bifidobacterium infantis induces a regulatory phenotype.

Some biological reactions can require thermodynamically unfavourable electron transfer processes, the occurrence of which are not yet fully understood. Here, the authors provide the structural basis of energy transduction during the reductive activation of B12-dependent methyltransferases.

Cobalamin-containing reductive dehalogenases from organohalide-respiring bacteria play a key role in the degradation of halogenated organic compounds. Here the authors proposed a catalytic mechanism for dehalogenation that relies on a long-range electron transfer from the cobalt in the centre of the enzyme’s cofactor to the substrate.

Krach et al. dissect the molecular mechanism of the alternative splicing modulator Branaplam in Huntington’s disease. They show that the drug lowers mutant HTT protein levels and ameliorates alternative splicing pathology in an iPSC disease model.

In patients with Crohn’s disease, CD4⁺ T cells with cytotoxic T_H1 cell-like effector functions reactive against dietary and commensal yeasts are increased in blood and inflamed tissue compared with patients with ulcerative colitis and healthy controls.

Plasmonic composites have potential for photocatalytic conversions using solar light; however, complex interactions between light and the components are poorly understood. Here, a highly ordered two-dimensional plasmonic bimetallic AuPt supercrystal demonstrates a high rate of H₂ generation from formic acid while providing insight into the interaction between plasmonic antenna and catalyst.

Dormancy of disseminated cancer cells has been described in patients with breast cancer and associated with late metastatic relapses. Here the authors show that CD39⁺PD-1⁺CD8⁺ T cells correlate with increased disease free survival post-resection in breast cancer patients, and promote dormancy in a preclinical model.

Uhlmann et al. show that the preclinical phase of Alzheimer’s disease may in fact be a relatively late manifestation of a much earlier pathogenic and targetable process of seed formation and propagation.

Multicompartment micelles can be assembled from block copolymers but it is difficult to manipulate their hierarchical superstructures using straightforward concepts. Here, methods are developed that involve the pre-assembly of subunits for the structurally controlled production of micelles.

The sliding of a water drop on a surface is traditionally described by taking flow within the drop and contact-line friction into account. Now, evidence shows that electric forces can also substantially affect water-on-surface sliding dynamics.

An oncometabolite produced by tumor cells acts as a paracrine immunosuppressant dampening antitumor T cell responses in glioma.

Photons and plasmons hybridize into polaritons in three-dimensional crystals of plasmonic nanoparticles, leading to deep strong light–matter coupling and the breakdown of the Purcell effect.

Glycolytic regulator PFKFB3 is a key player in vessel sprouting. Here the authors develop a computational model predicting that PFKFB3 drives endothelial cell rearrangement during vessel sprouting by promoting filopodia formation and reducing intercellular adhesion, and empirically validate this prediction.

Tumor cells can fuel their metabolism with lactate. Here the authors show that inhibition of mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) blocks extracellular lactate uptake by promoting intracellular pyruvate accumulation and inhibits oxidative metabolism, ultimately resulting in cytotoxicity and radiosensitization.

The NRF2 transcription factor regulates the response to stress in mammalian cells. Here, the authors show that activating mutations in NRF2, commonly found in cancer cells, are found in four patients with a multisystem disorder characterized by immunodeficiency and neurological symptoms.

Chest CT is emerging as a valuable diagnostic tool for clinical management of COVID-19 associated lung disease. Here, the authors present a multinational study on the application of deep learning algorithms for COVID-19 diagnosis against multiple lung conditions as controls.

Immunoglobulin A (IgA) has two subclasses, IgA1 and IgA2, but differential effects on inflammation are unclear. Here the authors show that IgA2, when compared with IgA1, has stronger pro-inflammatory functions associated with changed glycosylation and higher disease scores in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Applications of atom interferometry require sufficiently long coherence times. Now, confining atoms in an optical lattice shows that the decoherence rate slows down markedly at hold times that exceed tens of seconds.

It has been increasingly recognised that tumours are not made up of a homogeneous population of cells. Here, the authors show heterogeneous expression of five protein markers in renal cell cancer and demonstrate that the progression of the tumour does not influence the degree of heterogeneity in the tumour.

Different polymers can be used in combination to produce coexisting nanoparticles of different symmetry and tailored to co-assemble into well-ordered binary and ternary hierarchical structures.

Beucher et al. show that the promoter of lncRNA HASTER is a cis-regulatory feedback element that stabilizes HNF1A concentrations.