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A single-cell multiomic immune cell atlas from 235 Japanese, including patients with COVID-19 and healthy individuals, linked with host genetics including germline and somatic mutation, plasma proteomics and metagenomics data reveals that immune cells are dynamically regulated in a cell state-dependent manner.

A genome-wide association study highlights a variant in DOCK2, which is common in East Asian populations but rare in Europeans, as a host genetic risk factor for severe COVID-19.

Genetic mechanisms influencing COVID-19 susceptibility are not well understood. Here, the authors analyzed whole blood RNA-seq data of 465 Japanese individuals with COVID-19, highlighting thousands of fine-mapped variants affecting expression and splicing of genes, as well as the presence of COVID-19 severity-interaction eQTLs.

Rice actively accumulates silicon as amorphous silica (phytoliths), which protects the plant from various stresses. Here, the authors show that SlET4, a polarly localizes Si transporter, exports Si from leaf cells to the leaf surface and is required for healthy growth of rice on land.

Shoot-Silicon-Signal (OsFTL12) protein is expressed only in the rice shoot response to Si deficiency. Yet, the protein is also detected in phloem sap and root, stimulating the root Si uptake. This signal integrates shoot Si demand and root Si uptake.

Mineral delivery to plant tissues must be tightly controlled to prevent tissue toxicity. Here, Yamaji et al. describe a manganese transporter in rice that delivers manganese to young leaves and panicles at low metal concentrations, while at high concentrations the metal is transported to older tissues due to rapid degradation of the transporter.

Low cadmium (Cd) accumulation in a rice cultivar is shown to be due to duplication of the manganese/cadmium transporter gene. Introgression of this allele into an elite rice cultivar lowered Cd accumulation in rice grain without penalty of grain yield and eating quality when grown in Cd-contaminated soil.

Analysis of the blood DNA virome in patients with COVID-19 and autoimmune disease associates endogenous HHV-6 (eHHV-6) and high anellovirus load with increased disease risk, most notably for systemic lupus erythematosus. eHHV-6 carriers show a distinct immune response.

Copper (Cu) is an essential mineral nutrient but high concentrations in rice grain can cause toxicity. Here the authors provide evidence that natural variation in rice grain Cu concentration is caused by altered sequestration of Cu into root vacuoles due to a single amino acid substitution in the OsHMA4 transporter.

Ikeda et al. report that HLA-DRB1 can serve as a leukemia-specific target for CAR T or natural killer cell-based therapy in patients with AML after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 73 Japanese patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and 75 healthy controls were analyzed using single-cell transcriptomics. Combining these data with genotyping data highlights the interplay between host genetics and the immune response in modulating disease severity.

Barley is an important food crop that has been adapted to grow on acidic soils that often contain toxic soluble aluminium. In this study, an insertion in the upstream region of a citrate transporter is shown to confer resistance of barley to aluminium toxicity and is found in aluminium-tolerant barley accessions.

Iron-deficient conditions in pregnant mice can cause XY mouse embryos to develop female rather than male genitalia, revealing that iron metabolism has a role in determining male sex in mice.

The phosphorous transporter SPDT is identified in rice; depletion of the transporter gene alters the phosphorus distribution in rice grains and leaves, suggesting that the strategy could be used for agricultural purposes.

Ryugu is more primitive than carbonaceous chondrites, according to elevated noble gas concentrations. Elevated Xe and its isotopic composition further provide constraints on fractionation of the solar composition to form the early planetary components.

The primary source of human exposure to the highly toxic heavy metal cadmium (Cd) is diet. This study identified a gene encoding a P-type heavy metal ATPase 3 (HvHMA3) that is responsible for Cd accumulation in barley grain. A Sukkula-like transposable element was found to play an important role in upregulating the expression of HvHMA3, thereby decreasing Cd accumulation in the grain.

A newly developed PET tracer allows visualization of AMPA receptors in the living human brain, providing a new tool to study their potential involvement in neurological or psychiatric disorders.

A global network of researchers was formed to investigate the role of human genetics in SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity; this paper reports 13 genome-wide significant loci and potentially actionable mechanisms in response to infection.

Poor access to suitable light-sheet microscopes remains a big obstacle for many end-users in biomedical research. Here, the authors present descSPIM, a low-cost, low-expertise light-sheet microscope for routine 3D imaging of cleared samples.

The authors describe detailed procedures for an epigenomic profiling method suitable for low-input samples that is based on in situ labeling with an oligonucleotide-conjugated antibody.

Photosynthesis in plants responds to light fluctuations and displays circadian rhythms in various aspects. Here a new regulator of photosynthetic rhythms is identified in rice and shown to control diurnal magnesium fluctuations in the chloroplast. Further engineering attempts yield enhanced rice growth and photosynthesis.

The accessory lentiviral protein X (Vpx) of the SIV_smm/mac and HIV-2 lineage targets the host-restriction factor SAMHD1 for proteasomal degradation. Here, the authors show that host PIM kinase-mediated phosphorylation of Vpx stabilizes its interaction with SAMHD1, suggesting PIM as potential antiviral targets.

Heusler compound spin injector with a high spin polarization dramatically improves the generation efficiency of the pure spin current compared with a conventional ferromagnetic metal.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is initiated by integrins-mediated leukocyte adhesion to the activated colonic microvascular endothelium. Here, the authors show that inhibition of the calreticulin binding to integrin α subunits ameliorates the severity of IBD in animal models.

Serial femtosecond crystallography reveals the structural dynamics of photosystem II during the S-state transitions that produce dioxygen, providing insight into electron transfer, water insertion, proton release and O–O bond formation on sub-microsecond timescales.

Using more than 100 independent iPSC lines derived from patients with Alzheimer’s disease, the authors discovered loci associated with the neuronal production of amyloid β and confirmed their influence using RNA interference.

Oxygen isotopic measurements from the Ryugu returned sample suggest that primitive hydrated carbonaceous chondrites are an important source of early water and other volatiles to Earth, despite being underrepresented in our meteorite collection due to their preferential destruction during atmospheric entry.

The aqueous activity responsible for carbonate formation on Ryugu happened much earlier—less than 1.8 million years after CAI formation—than estimates (4–6 Myr) from carbonaceous chondrite meteorites. Ryugu’s parent body either was smaller than ∼20 km in diameter or was disrupted before reaching the high temperatures required.

The returned samples from Hayabusa2 show that C-type asteroid Ryugu experienced various steps of mineralogical alteration within only 1–2 million years after accretion.

Dust storms on Mars drive water escape to space. Here, the authors show the impact Martian dust storms have on the abundance of atmospheric hydrogen and oxygen, and how this helps to overall oxidize the Martian atmosphere.

Signatures of impact-induced shocks are found on Ryugu returned particles. Observations show that they happened at moderate temperatures (~500 °C) and pressures (~2 GPa) and did not dehydrate the particles substantially, suggesting that bigger meteoroids, rather than micrometeoroids, provide Earth with hydrated minerals.

The skeletal components of the skull develop at different times in mammals. Here, Koyabu et al.show that the mode of bone ossification constrains the timing of bone formation and find an association between the developmental timing of the supraoccipital bone and brain size.

The kinase PINK1 is mutated in Parkinson's disease and accumulates in defective mitochondria, where it recruits Parkin. Here, PINK1 is shown to be autophosphorylated and this is required for the localization of PINK1 to mitochondria with a reduced membrane potential, and for the recruitment of Parkin.

The tumour suppressor APC is a multifunctional protein implicated in intracellular localization of mRNAs and WNT signalling. Here, Miyakawaet al. show that, via interaction with the HIV Gag precursor protein, APC promotes membrane targeting of viral components and cell-to-cell spread of HIV.