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In the final analysis of a phase 1/phase 2 trial of autologous GD2-targeting CAR T cells in pediatric patients with high-risk metastatic, relapsed or refractory neuroblastoma, treatment was overall well tolerated, with an objective response rate of 66%. These findings were further supported by a case series involving the same therapy in a similar patient population.

Electrochemical energy can be produced by using solar energy to oxidize water, providing an abundant source of electrons, which are needed in fuel synthesis. The operation of an efficient and stable semiconductor nanocomposite anode, made of a protective TiO₂ layer that protects a silicon substrate during photoelectrochemical water oxidation in both dark and light conditions, is now reported.

Here the authors show that chromosomal instability signatures can predict resistance to anthracycline-, taxane- and platinum-based chemotherapeutics in breast, ovarian and prostate cancer and sarcoma. Validation is performed through emulation of phase 2 and 3 clinical trials using real-world data.

Stapled α-helical peptides are promising for targeting challenging targets such as transcription factors, but achieving sufficient cell permeability while avoiding off-target cleavage is difficult. Here, the authors present workflows for identifying stapled peptides against Mdm2(X) with in vivo activity and no off-target effects based on comprehensive investigations of their properties.

Marika Charalambous and colleagues show that, in mice, the fetus is the source of maternal circulating DLK1, which regulates the mother's metabolism during pregnancy. They also find that maternal circulating DLK1 levels predict embryonic weight in mice and associate with fetal growth restriction in a human cohort.

Keller et al. use high-concentration silver alloying and steep gallium grading close to the back contact to minimize bandgap fluctuations and thus voltage losses, achieving 23.6% certified efficiency in Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells.

Defects alter the properties of silicon carbide structures, but the introduction of these defects in a controlled manner remains a challenge. Here, the authors show that swift heavy ions can create graphitic grooves if the irradiation is at grazing angles of incidence.

Both decisions and the confidence accompanying them are influenced not only by incoming information, but also prior expectations. Here, the authors show that confidence in decisions is affected by prior information more than the decisions themselves.

NanoLuc luciferase is a popular bioluminescent enzyme, but the molecular details of its mechanism of action on luciferins such as coelenterazine remained elusive. Here the authors use, protein crystal structures and biochemical analyses to provide an atomistic description of its catalytic mechanism and allosteric behaviour.

Graphene has so far demonstrated remarkable properties, making it increasingly interesting for ultrafast electronic applications. Here, the authors show that, when probed by a highly charged ion, freestanding graphene is able to provide dozens of electrons for ion neutralization within a few femtoseconds.

In three mouse models of breast cancer, we show reduced responses to neoadjuvant chemotherapy when treatment is initiated during the dioestrus stage, when compared with initiation during the oestrus stage.

Multi-ancestry meta-analyses of genome-wide association studies for self-reported physical activity during leisure time, leisure screen time, sedentary commuting and sedentary behavior at work identify 99 loci associated with at least one of these traits.

SERS is a powerful analytical technique, but achieving reproducibility for continuous analysis a challenge. Here, the authors report a SERS substrate recycling method that enables direct analysis of complex samples without substrate contamination.

The H-latch is a well-defined structural change occurring in PrP^C bound to the neurotoxic antibody POM1, and its presence shows a positive correlation with neurotoxicity. Inhibition of the H-latch prolongs the lifespan of prion-diseased mice.

The atmosphere has dried across most regions of Europe in recent decades, a trend that can be attributed primarily to human impacts, according to tree ring records spanning 400 years and Earth system model simulations.

By integrating DNA genotype and RNA sequencing data from human samples, d’Escamard et al. identify a gene regulatory co-expression supernetwork that plays an important role in fibromuscular dysplasia, a poorly understood disease affecting 3–5% of adult females.

Results from 316 Bombus terrestris colonies at 106 agricultural sites across eight European countries find pesticides in bumble bee pollen to be associated with reduced colony performance, especially in areas of intensive agriculture.

Response to treatment in high grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) is highly variable. Here, the authors leverage a radiogenomic model to predict neoadjuvant chemotherapy response in HGSOC, including clinical data, medical imaging, and blood-based biomarkers such as CA-125 and ctDNA features.

Liston and colleagues design a gene-delivery system to specifically target astrocytes in the central nervous system to express IL-2 and thereby expand/maintain T_reg cells to suppress neuroinflammation.

DNA damage leads to transient repression of ribosomal gene transcription by RNA polymerase I in a pathway mediated by ATM kinase activity and the DNA repair factors Nbs1 and MDC1

Contrary to the view that urbanization is a major driver of the global rise in obesity, the global increase in body-mass index is shown to be mostly due to increases in the body-mass indexes of rural populations.

Polar bear numbers are expected to decline as the sea ice they rely on to catch their prey declines with global warming. Projections show when fasts caused by declining sea ice are likely to lead to rapid recruitment and survival declines across the polar bear circumpolar range.

We estimated the configurational heat capacity above a glass transition temperature (T_g) of 21 types of polymers for which molecular vibration analysis was already completed. The polymers for which the configurational heat capacity was determined are six types of linear polymers with a carbon backbone, eight types of polyesters, and seven types of poly(oxide)s. As temperature increases, the configurational heat capacity of all polymers decreases. Based on Landau’s theory, the obtained heat capacity can be well reproduced by the power and logarithmic functions.

A meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of phenotypic variation for height and body mass index in human populations using 170,000 samples shows that one single nucleotide polymorphism at the FTO locus, which is associated with obesity, is also associated with phenotypic variation.

We estimated the configurational heat capacity (C_config) of polyisobutylene (PIB), isobutane and 2,2,4-isomethylpentane above the glass transition temperature by reproducing the heat capacity in the solid state using molecular vibration analysis. This is the first time to estimate the C_config of polymer. The C_config decreased with increasing temperature for the three substances in this study. This is a similar pattern as the C_config of molecular glass from a simple molecular structure. Considering that the configuration entropy becomes a constant value at the high temperature limit because the molecules constituting the substance can take any configuration and orientation, it is considered reasonable that the C_config approaches zero at the high temperature limit.

Field experiments across aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems show that biodiversity positively affects carbon and nitrogen cycling in leaf litter decomposition, indicating that reduced decomposition caused by biodiversity loss would modify the global carbon cycle and limit the nitrogen supply to the organisms at the base of the food chain.

With continued anthropogenic warming, an ice-free Arctic (sea ice area <1 million km²) is inevitable. This Review outlines the various characteristics of an ice-free Arctic, highlighting that future emission trajectories will determine where, how frequently and how long the Arctic will be ice free each year.

This study predicted the absolute values of the heat capacities from the molecular formula per monomer for a main-chain-type polymer below the T_g. The calculations combined the Tarasov equation, the Einstein equation, and the (C_p − C_V) correction term, accounting for the degrees of freedom of the monomer unit. The difference of predicted and experimental heat capacities of poly(4-methyl-1-pentene) was within 8.0% from 90 to 180 K and within ±2.0% agreement from 180 to 300 K. For poly(vinyl benzoate), the values were within ±2.0% from 190 to 350 K, and for poly(1,4-butylene adipate), they were within ±2.0% from 80 to 200 K. The predicted heat capacity was accurate, especially in the high-temperature region above 180 K.

We investigated the functions that reproduce the configurational heat capacity (C_config) that occurs above the glass transition temperature for polystyrene (PS), polyisobutylene (PIB), and their oligomers. The results show that C_config could be well reproduced using the power and logarithmic functions based on the Landau theory. The power and logarithmic functions had four and three fitting parameters, respectively. The error ranges were approximately ±2% for PS and ±5% for PIB. At this stage, the two functions are not functions with the clear physical meanings but the practical functions that were evaluated using regression analysis and simply reproduce the configurational heat capacity.

The results of this investigation indicate that, compared with the high-molecular-weight amorphous polystyrene, the two low-molecular-weight amorphous polystyrenes studied herein have excess heat capacity below the glass-transition temperature. These results were obtained by analyzing the molecular vibrations of the high-molecular-weight polystyrene. The excitation energy obtained by regression analysis of the excess heat capacity determined by using the Schottky model is consistent with the excitation energy obtained by inelastic neutron scattering. This evidence strongly suggests that the excess heat capacity is due to vibrations of methyl end groups.