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Lynda Stuart and colleagues discuss the ability of animals to sense perturbations in host cells caused by pathogen effectors. On the basis of recent mechanistic evidence, they suggest that such effector-triggered immunity might be as widespread in animals as in plants.

A pan-cancer genomic analysis reports the effects of structural variations on chromatin domains (TADs). Most TAD disruptions do not result in appreciable changes in expression of nearby genes.

Deep learning methods have been used to design proteins that can neutralize the effects of three-finger toxins found in snake venom, which could lead to the development of safer and more accessible antivenom treatments.

The Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network reports an integrative analysis of more than 400 samples of clear cell renal cell carcinoma based on genomic, DNA methylation, RNA and proteomic characterisation; frequent mutations were identified in the PI(3)K/AKT pathway, suggesting this pathway might be a potential therapeutic target, among the findings is also a demonstration of metabolic remodelling which correlates with tumour stage and severity.

The molecular mechanisms behind recognition of altered self remain unclear. Moore and co-workers show that oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and β-amyloid trigger inflammatory signaling through a heterodimer of Toll-like receptors 4 and 6.

A vast landscape of ‘undruggable’ cancer targets remains beyond the reach of conventional therapeutic agents. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI), however, are challenging this paradigm. Synthesizing insights from a Cancer Moonshot workshop, we argue that systemically addressing the undruggable target space with AI requires a new conceptual framework. We highlight the failure of current target taxonomies and the need for benchmarking datasets, and re-evaluate clinical validation for novel AI-driven modalities.

The NLRP3 inflammasome is primarily known for producing inflammatory cytokines and inducing pyroptosis. Stuart and colleagues identify an additional role for NLRP3 in driving down the pH of phagosomes.

Comprehensive analyses of 178 lung squamous cell carcinomas by The Cancer Genome Atlas project show that the tumour type is characterized by complex genomic alterations, with statistically recurrent mutations in 11 genes, including TP53 in nearly all samples; a potential therapeutic target is identified in most of the samples studied.

This paper reports integrative molecular analyses of urothelial bladder carcinoma at the DNA, RNA, and protein levels performed as part of The Cancer Genome Atlas project; recurrent mutations were found in 32 genes, including those involved in cell-cycle regulation, chromatin regulation and kinase signalling pathways; chromatin regulatory genes were more frequently mutated in urothelial carcinoma than in any other common cancer studied so far.

An integrative genomic analysis of several hundred endometrial carcinomas shows that a minority of tumour samples carry copy number alterations or TP53 mutations and many contain key cancer-related gene mutations, such as those involved in canonical pathways and chromatin remodelling; a reclassification of endometrial tumours into four distinct types is proposed, which may have an effect on patient treatment regimes.

An integrated transcriptome, genome, methylome and proteome analysis of over 200 lung adenocarcinomas reveals high rates of somatic mutations, 18 statistically significantly mutated genes including RIT1 and MGA, splicing changes, and alterations in MAPK and PI(3)K pathway activity.

Studies inDrosophila melanogasterare proving fruitful for our understanding of phagocytosis in development, tissue homeostasis and host defence. In this Review, parallels are drawn between phagocytosis in flies and mammals, providing insight into its complexity and the evolutionary origins of immunity.

Fernando Rivadeneira and colleagues in the Genetic Factors for Osteoporosis Consortium report a large-scale meta-analysis identifying new loci associated with bone mineral density (BMD) and risk of fracture. Thirty-two new loci are found to be associated with BMD, and 6 loci confer higher risk for low-trauma bone fracture.

Integrins can regulate antigen-specific and innate immune receptor signalling, thereby affecting immune cell function. Here the authors show that avß3 integrin controls Toll-like receptor (TLR) signalling by regulating its trafficking to limit TLR-mediated B-cell proliferation and antibody production.

Mitochondria can contribute to an increase in the amount of phagosomal reactive oxygen species and thereby promote the effective killing of bacteria. Study of mice deficient in Mst1 and Mst2 reveals a role for these kinases in recruiting mitochondria to phagosomes.

Patricia Munroe, Christopher Newton-Cheh, Andrew Morris and colleagues perform association studies in over 340,000 individuals of European ancestry and identify 66 loci, of which 17 are novel, involved in blood pressure regulation. The risk SNPs are enriched for cis-regulatory elements, particularly in vascular endothelial cells.

The Cancer Genome Atlas presents an integrative genome-wide analysis of genetic alterations in 279 head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs), which are classified by human papillomavirus (HPV) status; alterations in EGFR, FGFR, PIK3CA and cyclin-dependent kinases are shown to represent candidate targets for therapeutic intervention in most HNSCCs.

Orienting cancer drug discovery to the patient requires relating the genetic features of tumors to acquired gene and pathway dependencies and identifying small-molecule therapeutics that target them.

Vaccination is effective in protecting from COVID-19. Here the authors report immune responses and breakthrough infections in twice-vaccinated patients receiving anti-TNF treatments for inflammatory bowel disease, and find dampened vaccine responses that implicate the need of adapted vaccination schedules for these patients.

The Cancer Genome Atlas consortium reports on their genome-wide characterization of somatic alterations in colorectal cancer; in addition to revealing a remarkably consistent pattern of genomic alteration, with 24 genes being significantly mutated, the study identifies new targets for therapeutic intervention and suggests an important role for MYC-directed transcriptional activation and repression.

The Cancer Genome Atlas Network describe their multifaceted analyses of primary breast cancers, shedding light on breast cancer heterogeneity; although only three genes (TP53, PIK3CA and GATA3) are mutated at a frequency greater than 10% across all breast cancers, numerous subtype-associated and novel mutations were identified.

The Cancer Genome Atlas reports on molecular evaluation of 295 primary gastric adenocarcinomas and proposes a new classification of gastric cancers into 4 subtypes, which should help with clinical assessment and trials of targeted therapies.

Lipid-engorged macrophages accumulate in atherosclerotic plaques where chronic inflammation ensues. Moore and colleagues show that macrophage migration to chemokines and egress is arrested by netrin-1, which is secreted in the plaque lesions.

Particulate crystals can activate the NLRP3 inflammasome. Moore and colleagues show that the scavenger protein CD36 contributes to sterile inflammation via uptake of soluble cholesterol and amyloid peptides that nucleate into intracellular crystals.

This paper describes molecular subtypes of cervical cancers, including squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma clusters defined by HPV status and molecular features, and distinct molecular pathways that are activated in cervical carcinomas caused by different somatic alterations and HPV types.

Openshaw and colleagues find myeloid inflammation and complement activation signatures in patients with long COVID who were previously hospitalized.

Matthew Meyerson, Ramaswamy Govindan and colleagues examine the exome sequences and copy number profiles of 660 lung adenocarcinoma and 484 lung squamous cell carcinoma tumors. They identify novel significantly mutated genes and amplification peaks and find that around half of the tumors have at least five predicted neoepitopes.

A high-resolution kidney cellular atlas of 51 main cell types, including rare and previously undescribed cell populations, represents a comprehensive benchmark of cellular states, neighbourhoods, outcome-associated signatures and publicly available interactive visualizations.

Human population genomic studies, including whole‐genome sequencing, were undertaken to identify determinants of bone mineral density (BMD), a major predictor of osteoporotic fractures. Non‐coding variants with large effects on BMD and fractures were identified near the EN1 locus and mouse studies confirmed this gene has an important role in skeletal biology.

Current clinical practice is organized according to tissue or organ of origin of tumors. Now, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network has started to identify genomic and other molecular commonalities among a dozen different types of cancer. Emerging similarities and contrasts will form the basis for targeted therapies of the future and for repurposing existing therapies by molecular rather than histological similarities of the diseases.

Richard Houlston and colleagues report a genome-wide association study for colorectal cancer. They report three loci newly associated with colorectal cancer, bringing the total number of common susceptibility loci to 20.

Lutnick et al. develop a cloud-based deep learning tool for whole slide image segmentation. The authors provide several examples of its application in renal pathology, for segmenting glomeruli, interstitial fibrosis and other features of interest.

A recent study published in Nature by Keestra and colleagues addresses how the immune system detects the pathogenic potential of microbes and provides evidence that one strategy involves NOD1, which monitors the activation state of the RhoGTPases that are targeted by virulence effectors produced by pathogenic microbes. Interestingly, their findings reveal striking similarities with previous observations made in flies and plants, establishing the evolutionary conservation of this detection system in the innate immune arsenal in many taxa.

Tissue cytometry is a promising new microscopy technique that can be used to enumerate and characterize each cell in a tissue. Here the authors describe a complete and accessible pipeline, including methods of sample preparation, microscopy, image analysis, and data analysis for large-scale three-dimensional tissue cytometry of human kidney tissues.