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Materials typically break down in response to the repeated mechanical forces that they experience during use. Now, it has been shown that a mechanochemically active polymer can respond to shear forces by forming more bonds than are broken, leading to improved mechanical properties under conditions that would otherwise be destructive.

Genome-wide association meta-analyses identify 26 risk loci for epilepsy, including 19 loci specific to genetic generalized epilepsy. Prioritized candidate genes implicate synaptic processes and overlap with targets of antiseizure medications.

Climatic variables have played a significant role in plant evolution across the Phanerozoic. Here, the authors link climate with a new dynamic vegetation model to identify two windows of opportunity for plant biomass expansion, corresponding with the expansion of land plants and the angiosperm radiation.

In this largest whole-exome sequencing study of epilepsies to date, the Epi25 Collaborative identified extremely rare variants that confer risk for diverse epilepsy subtypes, highlighting roles in synaptic transmission and neuronal excitability.

The bone marrow microenvironment can support the growth and activity of leukaemia stem cells, and two recent papers suggest several ways in which these interactions might be targeted for therapeutic benefit.

Through archaeological excavation, morphological and proteomic taxonomic identification, mitochondrial DNA analysis and direct radiocarbon dating of human remains, a study reports the presence of Homo sapiens in Germany north of the Alps more than 45,000 years ago.

Simultaneous observations of TRAPPIST-1 b from JWST at 12.8 and 15 μm indicate that it is probably a bare rock with a mineral-rich surface. However, an alternative scenario with a CO₂-rich atmosphere and hazes could also explain the observations.

Here, a cross of Plasmodium vivax malaria parasites links a chloroquine resistance (CQR) phenotype to a 76 kb region of chromosome 1 and greater expression of pvcrt, an ortholog of the Plasmodium falciparum CQR transporter gene.

Single-cell transcriptomics and protein expression analyses of salivary glands and gingiva, along with the detection of infectious virus and virus-specific antibodies in saliva from SARS-CoV-2-infected individuals, support a potential role for the oral cavity in COVID-19 pathogenesis.

Detection of circulating tumor DNA using MRD-EDGE, a machine-learning-guided single-nucleotide variant and copy-number variant detection platform for signal enrichment, enables monitoring of minimal residual disease and immunotherapy response in settings of low tumor burden.

A large-scale, five-year study in Indonesia finds that enriching oil palm-dominated landscapes with patches of trees bolsters biodiversity and ecosystem functioning without impairing oil palm yields but should not replace forest protection.

Patients with a mutant thyroid hormone receptor α1 are treated with high-dose thyroxine, but their heart rate remains low. Here, the authors show that the mutant receptor triggers cardiac reprogramming in the embryo, which prevents the response of specific ion channels and heart rate to the hormone.

Two-dimensional, self-assembled heteromolecular networks often lack functionality. Here the authors study the photoresponse of self-assembled heteromolecular networks, while controlling their positions and interfaces at an atomic level, suggesting bottom-up assembly of optoelectronics devices.

Here, the authors perform a meta-analysis in 26,699 people with seizures and 492,324 controls to identify 25 genome-wide significant copy-number variants. The discovered loci point to known disease genes and associations with clinical annotations.

Using zooarchaeology, palaeoproteomics, ancient sediment DNA and stable isotope analyses, the authors characterize the ecology of the Homo sapiens individuals associated with the ‘transitional’ Lincombian–Ranisian–Jerzmanowician technocomplex at Ilsenhöhle in Ranis.

Ancient Salmonella enterica genomes from Neolithic Eurasian humans compared with those from later archaeological contexts illuminate the evolving host specificity of the pathogen from an initial multi-mammalian adaptation towards an increasingly human specialization.

The second plague pandemic, caused by Yersinia pestis, started in the 14th century and recurred in Europe until the 18th century. Here, the authors reconstruct ancient Y. pestis genomes from human remains spanning this period, shedding light into the phylogeography and population structure of the European strains.

The JWST MIRI transmission spectrum of WASP-107b, a transiting planet with Neptune-like mass and Jupiter-like radius, shows observations of sulfur dioxide and silicate clouds but no methane in its atmosphere, providing evidence of disequilibrium chemistry and active photochemistry.

Observations from the JWST MIRI showed the detection of ¹⁴NH₃ and ¹⁵NH₃ isotopologues in the atmosphere of a cool brown dwarf, along with a ¹⁴N/¹⁵N value consistent with star-like formation by gravitational collapse.

Selective autophagy helps to degrade aggregated proteins accumulating in neurodegenerative diseases. Here, the authors show that NEMO, a ubiquitin binding protein previously linked to innate immune signaling, is recruited to misfolded proteins and promotes their autophagic clearance by forming condensates with the autophagy receptor p62.

The authors present palaeoclimatic data in the form of stable isotope records from equid teeth spanning 12,500 years of human occupation at the site of Ilsenhöhle in Ranis, Germany, including the earliest occupation of the site by Homo sapiens ~45,000 years ago.

Epilepsies are common brain disorders and are classified based on clinical phenotyping, imaging and genetics. Here, the authors perform genome-wide association studies for 3 broad and 7 subtypes of epilepsy and identify 16 loci - 11 novel - that are further annotated by eQTL and partitioned heritability analyses.

A high proportion of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 cases in Denmark were sequenced during the pandemic and linked to demographic, spatial and temporal data. Here, the authors analyse 290,000 genomes sampled in 2021 to demonstrate the value of this high coverage, detailed data set.

Geospatial estimates of child growth failure in Africa provide a baseline for measuring progress and a precision public health platform to target interventions to those populations with the greatest need.

Systemic autoinflammatory syndromes such as cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS) are rare and often involve genes related to the inflammasome. Here, the authors report a syndrome characterised by systemic inflammation and cold-induced urticarial rash associated with a Factor XII-activating mutation.

Genetic data for 13 Neanderthals from 2 Middle Palaeolithic sites in the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia presented provide insights into the social organization of an isolated Neanderthal community at the easternmost extent of their known range.

Land-based mitigation for meeting the Paris climate target must consider the carbon cycle impacts of land-use change. Here the authors show that when bioenergy crops replace high carbon content ecosystems, forest-based mitigation could be more effective for CO₂ removal than bioenergy crops with carbon capture and storage.

Only about 15% of water cycle diagrams include human interaction with water, although human freshwater appropriation amounts to about half of global river discharge, according to an analysis of 464 water cycle diagrams and a synthesis of the global water cycle.

Johannes Lemke, Holger Lerche and colleagues report the identification of de novo mutations in the potassium channel gene KCNA2 in patients with epileptic encephalopathies. The authors confirm in vitro that two mutations cause dominant loss of channel function, whereas the other two mutations induce gain-of-function effects, leading to permanently open channels.

The regulatory role of calcitonin in bone homeostasis is well studied, yet its molecular activity is poorly understood. The authors show that calcitonin regulates bone cells function by inhibiting the osteoclast secretion of sphingosine 1-phosphate, a lipid mediator of osteoclast–osteoblast crosstalk.

Analysis of DNA from ancient individuals of the Near East documents the extreme substructure among the populations which transitioned to farming, a structure that was maintained throughout the transition from hunter–gatherer to farmer but that broke down over the next five thousand years.

Unbiased selection of CAR-T cells is achieved by massively parallel knock-in engineering.

The signalling pathways underlying the development of multicellular organisms have come under a lot of scrutiny. For a long while, the focus was on the regulation of genes involved in these pathways. But a recent meeting saw a shift towards looking at how proteins are regulated and localized.

Analysis of antibody responses to COVID-19 vaccines encoding variant-specific spike, with or without ancestral spike, suggests no loss of neutralization of the ancestral virus with variant-only vaccines, which may simplify future vaccine updates.

A study reports the distribution, replication and persistence of SARS-CoV-2 throughout the human body including in the brain at autopsy from acute infection to more than seven months following symptom onset.

Aguirre-Ghiso and colleagues report that the intensity of TGF-β2 signalling dictates dormancy or metastatic growth of disseminated tumour cells by regulating the activity of p38α/β in different target organs.

Christel Depienne, Eric LeGuern and colleagues report the identification of 5 de novo missense mutations in HCN1 in individuals with early-onset epileptic encephalopathy. Functional studies confirmed the pathogenic nature of these mutations.

Glacial troughs account for 39% of the stocks and 48% of the accumulation of organic carbon in Norwegian continental margin sediments, according to an analysis using machine learning approaches.

A sequencing study comparing ancient and contemporary genomes reveals that most present-day Europeans derive from at least three highly differentiated populations: west European hunter-gatherers, ancient north Eurasians (related to Upper Palaeolithic Siberians) and early European farmers of mainly Near Eastern origin.

Boosting of maternal antibodies against RSV is a potential approach to protect infants from severe infection, but data from animal models is missing. Here Steff et al. test two different boosts in seropositive cattle pre-exposed to bovine RSV and show that pre-fusion F strongly boosts neutralizing responses.