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Spectral screening can be used to monitor plant health. Here via airborne hyperspectral imaging of tree species, the authors show that spectral pathways associated with vascular pathogens can be distinguished from those linked to abiotic stress providing the potential for early detection of threatening diseases.

Studies suggest almost the same amount of biomass is present in subterranean settings as on Earth’s surface. Here, the authors propose that a large intraterrestrial microbial system was responsible for mineralization in southern Spain, and that microbes may play a major role in sub-surface ore-forming processes.

Androgen receptor can promote tumour progression in desmoplastic small round cell tumour (DSRCT), an aggressive paediatric malignancy that predominantly affects young males. Here, the authors show that DSRCT is an AR-driven malignancy and sensitive to androgen deprivation therapy

The PACAP-PAC1R neuropeptide system regulates neuroendocrine stress responses. Here the authors demonstrate a role for PACAP-PAC1R in ventromedial hypothalamus in modulating fear extinction.

In a short-term study in which hearts from gene-edited pigs were transplanted into two recently deceased human recipients, the hearts were able to function for the duration of the study without signs of rejection and without evidence of pig virus transmission, encouraging further clinical study of cardiac xenotransplantation.

Very-high-energy γ-rays observed ten hours after the prompt emission of the γ-ray burst 180720B can be attributed to either an inverse Compton or an extreme synchrotron process.

Relativistic Dirac fermions can be locally confined in nanoscale graphene quantum dots using electrostatic gating, and directly imaged using scanning tunnelling microscopy before escaping via Klein tunnelling.

In cells, DNA is arranged into topologically-constrained (supercoiled) structures, but how this supercoiling affects the detailed double-helical structure of DNA remains unclear. Here authors use atomic force microscopy and atomistic molecular dynamics simulations, to resolve structures of negatively-supercoiled DNA minicircles at base-pair resolution.

The electronic properties of graphene depends on how many layers are involved. Monolayer graphene is a zero-gapped semi-metal. Bilayer graphene is a small-gapped semiconductor. Magnetotransport measurements indicate trilayer graphene can be both, depending on its stacking.

The H.E.S.S. gamma-ray observatory has observed gamma rays with energies of at least 20 TeV from a pulsar, an energy regime that is hard to reconcile with the existing theories of gamma-ray production for such objects.

The formation mechanism of abundant calcium oxalate biomaterials is unresolved. Here the authors show the early stages of calcium oxalate formation in pure and citrate-bearing solutions by using a titration set-up in conjunction with solution quenching, transmission electron microscopy and analytical ultracentrifugation.

Fenofibrate has been shown to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 replication in vitro. Results from a randomized clinical trial show that treating patients with COVID-19 with fenofibrate has no significant effect on clinically relevant outcomes.

High entropy oxides provide a new strategy toward materials design by stabilizing single-phase crystal structures composed of multiple cations. Here, the authors apply this concept to the development of conversion-type electrode materials for lithium-ion storage and show the underlying mechanism.

mTOR signalling both inhibits autophagy and promotes cell proliferation. Cecconi and colleagues report that AMBRA1 links these two processes by facilitating dephosphorylation and degradation of the proto-oncogene c-Myc.

The use of deep brain stimulation as a treatment for various refractory neurological disorders is increasing—perhaps faster than our understanding of this surgical technique. Electrical neuromodulation has been explored in people with epilepsy since the 1950s, and stimulation sites, parameters and results have varied. In this article, Fisher and Velasco review the use of neurostimulation as a treatment for epilepsy, from early experiments in animal models and humans to recent randomized controlled trials.

Torrano et al. use bioinformatics analyses to identify PGC1α as a transcriptional regulator of a metabolic program downstream of ERRα that opposes metastatic dissemination in prostate cancer.

A massively parallel computational and experimental approach for de novo designing and screening small hyperstable proteins targeting influenza haemagglutinin and botulinum neurotoxin B identifies new therapeutic candidates more robust than traditional antibody therapies.

Visible light can induce writing and erasing of charge doping in graphene/boron nitride heterostructures while maintaining high carrier mobility.

The protective efficacy of a single dose of adenovirus serotype 26 (Ad26) vector-based vaccine expressing the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in non-human primates is demonstrated.

Tight junctions are formed by claudin proteins that can be classified as pore- or barrier-forming. Here, Shashikanth et al. report a third function, termed interclaudin interference, in which one claudin inhibits pore function of another claudin by disrupting its polymeric complexes.

Adoptive transfer of purified IgG from convalescent macaques protects naive macaques against SARS-CoV-2 infection, and cellular immune responses contribute to protection against rechallenge with SARS-CoV-2.

The combination of adaptive optics with an improved isoSTED nanoscope allows imaging of cells and tissues with sub-50-nm isotropic resolution.

The onset of mammalian puberty is sensitive to metabolic changes and nutritional status, but the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are poorly understood. Here the authors show that the epigenetic regulator of transcription, SIRT1, mediates the effects of under and overnutrition on pubertal timing by controlling the expression of Kiss1 in hypothalamic neurons.

The extraskeletal benefits and harms of supplementation with calcium and vitamin D are unknown. The RECORD trial compared overall, vascular and cancer mortality and cancer incidence by supplement use and found no evidence of any harm or benefit. However, compliance was poor and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were low.

The integrated CO₂ capture and conversion (iCCC) technology has been booming for carbon neutrality. Here the authors optimized the Ni–CaO composite catalyst to promote iCCC involving consecutive high-temperature Calcium-looping and dry reforming of methane and illustrated their synergistic promotions at the suitable catalyst interface.

Controlling microbial communities could help restore ecosystems and maintain healthy microbiota. Here, the authors introduce the notion of structural accessibility and develop a framework to identify minimal sets of driver species, manipulation of which could allow control of a microbial community.

Early stellarator designs suffered from high particle losses, an issue that can be addressed by optimization of the coils. Here the authors measure the magnetic field lines in the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator, confirming that the complicated design of the superconducting coils has been realized successfully.

Previously documented record values of the fusion triple product in the stellarator Wendelstein 7-X are shown to be evidence for reduced neoclassical energy transport in this optimized device.

Investigation of a 150-year-old burial site is helping to unlock the mysteries of one of humanity’s darkest chapters.

Observations of the radio galaxy Centaurus A at teraelectronvolt energies resolve its large-scale jet and favour electron synchrotron processes as the source of its X-ray emission.

In rodent models of type 2 diabetes, sustained remission of hyperglycemia can be induced by FGF1 action in the mediobasal hypothalamus. Here, the authors show that FGF1-injection is followed by marked changes in glial cell populations and that the sustained glycemic response is dependent on intact melanocortin signaling.

Biomarker analysis of the phase 3 JAVELIN Bladder 100 trial leads to the development of a multi-parameter model comprising tumor and immune features that might identify patients with advanced urothelial cancer who will benefit from avelumab maintenance therapy.

Xyloglucans are polysaccharides found in plant cell walls. Here, the authors describe the xyloglucan depolymerization machinery of phytopathogenic Xanthomonas bacteria, and show that sugars released by this system induce the expression of key virulence factors driving pathogenesis.

Results from the first experimental campaign of the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator demonstrate that its magnetic-field design grants good control of parasitic plasma currents, leading to long energy confinement times.