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Understanding collective behaviour is an important aspect of managing the pandemic response. Here the authors show in a large global study that participants that reported identifying more strongly with their nation reported greater engagement in public health behaviours and support for public health policies in the context of the pandemic.

A microfluidic setup for nanoliter-volume perfused clonal culture and imaging of thousands of nonadherent cells is applied to study signaling and proliferation in hematopoietic stem cells.

The dorsal peduncular area of the mouse brain functions as a network hub that integrates diverse cortical and thalamic inputs to regulate neuroendocrine and autonomic responses.

Fetal haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) display higher self-renewal potential than their adult counterparts. Eaves and colleagues show that adult HSCs express lower levels of Lin28b and higher levels of let-7 miRNA. They demonstrate that Lin28 overexpression, as well as that of Hmga2 (a target of let-7), induces fetal properties in adult HSCs. Conversely, HMGA2 loss in fetal HSCs results in premature induction of adult HSC self-renewal properties.

A study reports the development of a method to trace intercellular transfer of mitochondria, and demonstrates that cancer cells that receive mitochondria from neurons have enhanced metastatic capabilities.

Developments in ultrafast optical science bring the promise of being able to directly monitor atomic motions during various physical processes. Towards this end, Xu et al.present fixed-angle broadband laser-induced electron scattering as a method to image molecular structures from photoelectron spectra.

C₄ photosynthesis has evolved independently in over 60 plant lineages. This study shows expression of key C₄ enzymes being controlled by light and the chloroplast in C₃ leaves, potentially facilitating repeated evolution of C₄ traits.

In a post-hoc analysis of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) features from patients with metastatic prostate cancer treated with [¹⁷⁷Lu]Lu–PSMA-617 or cabazitaxel in the randomized phase 2 TheraP trial, low ctDNA levels at baseline were predictive of clinical benefit from [¹⁷⁷Lu]Lu–PSMA-617, and PTEN or ATM alterations were identified as potential biomarkers of response.

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are essential for long-term repopulation after secondary transplantation. Here they show that SYNCRIP safeguards HSC self-renewal during regenerative stress by maintaining both proteostasis and CDC42-regulated cell polarity.

Cancer metabolism adapts the metabolic network of its cell of origin. Mahendralingam et al. find that lineage-rooted metabolic identities of normal mammary cells reflect breast cancer subtype metabolism.

Analysis of more than 95% of each diploid human genome of a four-generation, twenty-eight-member family using five complementary short-read and long-read sequencing technologies provides a truth set to understand the most fundamental processes underlying human genetic variation.

Symbiotic fungi control network-level structure and flows to meet trade demands.

Hematopoietic stem cell formation via the endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition is initiated by a complex rewiring of the aortic endothelium. Here the authors identify Meis1 as an early driver of hemogenic specification of this arterial endothelium.

The improper timing of transforming growth factor-β production is a hallmark of severe COVID-19 that may impede natural killer cell function and early control of infection.

Phylogenomic analysis of 7,923 angiosperm species using a standardized set of 353 nuclear genes produced an angiosperm tree of life dated with 200 fossil calibrations, providing key insights into evolutionary relationships and diversification.

Stig Bojesen, Georgia Chenevix-Trench, Alison Dunning and colleagues report common variants at the TERT-CLPTM1L locus associated with mean telomere length measured in whole blood. They also identify associations at this locus to breast or ovarian cancer susceptibility and report functional studies in breast and ovarian cancer tissue and cell lines.

Newly evolved Xanthomonas citri pv. malvacearum isolates triggers recent bacterial blight outbreaks in cotton. Here, the authors show that a recently evolved TALE, Tal7b, activates host susceptibility genes GhSWEET14a and GhSWEET14b rather than GhSWEET10 to confer pathogenicity in these new isolates.

A silk-fibroin hydrogel converts rat quiescent ventricular cardiomyocytes into pacemaker cardiomyocytes by inducing the ectopic expression of the vascular endothelial cell-adhesion glycoprotein cadherin.

Kang and colleagues demonstrate that the ΔNp63 isoform of p63 upregulates the expression of the Fzd7 Wnt receptor to promote normal and cancer stem cell activity in the mammary gland.

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.

Fine-mapping of causal variants and integration of epigenetic and chromatin conformation data identify likely target genes for 150 breast cancer risk regions.

The optimal timing of endoscopy after presentation with upper gastrointestinal bleeding is a matter for debate. Tsoi and colleagues examine the findings of randomized clinical trials and retrospective cohort studies, and conclude that endoscopy within 24 h of admission to hospital aids risk stratification of patients and reduces the need for hospitalization. However, very early endoscopy shows no evidence of benefit in terms of the risk of rebleeding or improved survival.

The identification of mRNA targets for RNA binding proteins (RBP) in stem cells is difficult due to the limited number of available cells. Here, as a proof-of-principle, the authors adapt the HyperTRIBE method to find that an RBP, MSI2, has increased RNA binding in leukemic compared with normal stem cells for selective regulation of oncogenic genes.

Georgia Chenevix-Trench and colleagues report meta-analyses of genome-wide association studies identifying six loci newly associated with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). They also test variants at the 12 known and 6 new EOC susceptibility loci for association in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers.

Most confirmed susceptibility variants for epithelial ovarian cancer lie in non-protein-coding sequences. Here Permuth-Wey and colleagues investigate variants in 3′ untranslated regions (UTRs) and uncover a new susceptibility locus.

Understanding how SARS-CoV-2 gains initial entry into the human body is a key step towards the development of prophylaxes and therapeutics for COVID-19. Here, the authors show that ACE2, the receptor for SARS-CoV-2, is abundantly expressed in the motile cilia of the human nasal and respiratory tract and is not affected by the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers.

Urbanites benefit from greenspace, but the relative benefits for disadvantaged communities are mixed. This Perspective argues that research on the intersection of heath and greenspace needs to critically consider the existing work and provide more evidence of this relationship.

A transcriptome-wide association study identifies associations of genetically predicted gene expression with breast cancer risk. This analysis finds 48 candidate genes implicated in breast cancer susceptibility, including 14 at novel loci.

Breast cancer risk for BRCA1/BRCA2 mutation carriers varies depending on other genetic factors. Here, the authors perform a case-only genome-wide association study and highlight novel loci associated with breast cancer risk for BRCA1/BRCA2 mutation carriers.

An investigation using various methods reports an association between adeno-associated virus 2 and paediatric hepatitis of unknown aetiology.