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David Adam finds out why horned weevils have no choice but to pick on something their own size.

Small, portable artworks have been missing from the archaeological record of the earliest Homo sapiens of Southeast Asia–Australasia. New excavations in Sulawesi have uncovered stone engravings of the natural world dating back to 26–14 ka.

Polygenic scores for body mass index and obesity constructed using data from 5 million people with different ancestries were associated with distinct weight gain trajectories from early childhood to adulthood.

Leak-wave metasurface antennas tailor non-local resonances leveraging judiciously broken spatial symmetries in their design to generate arbitrarily shaped near-field and far-field patterns.

Radiation and steroid dosing can affect the immune composition of brain metastasis (BM). The authors have designed a pilot study of pre-operative stereotactic radiosurgery with low or high dose of peri-operative dexamethasone for resectable brain metastases, here reporting clinical outcomes and characterization of intratumor TCF1+ CD8+ stem-like T cell immune niches in the brain.

Urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UCAR) is associated with various clinical outcomes such as kidney disease and cardiovascular disease. Here, the authors report genome-wide meta-analysis in over 500,000 individuals and find 68 UACR loci, followed by statistical fine-mapping, gene prioritization and experimental validation in flies.

This study presents P-selectin-targeting mimic ligand-coated NIR-II-interacting gold nanoparticle-based superclusters as in vivo contrast agents for enhanced imaging of intravascular inflammation in a rodent model using optical coherence tomography.

A large genome-wide association study of more than 5 million individuals reveals that 12,111 single-nucleotide polymorphisms account for nearly all the heritability of height attributable to common genetic variants.

Fine-scale geospatial mapping of overweight and wasting (two components of the double burden of malnutrition) in 105 LMICs shows that overweight has increased from 5.2% in 2000 to 6.0% in children under 5 in 2017. Although overall wasting decreased over the same period, most countries are not on track to meet the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target of <5% in over half of LMICs by 2025.

Development of the T cells requires functions from thymic epithelial cells, whose development and function are epigenetically regulated. Here the authors show that inactivation of the polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) alters the H3K27me3 configuration, reduces TEC functions, reveals a specific TEC subset, and hampers T cell development.

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.

Why joints are highly responsive to systemic inflammation is unknown. Hasegawa et al. sought to address this question, developing a whole-mount imaging system of the entire synovium to profile the vascular, neuronal and immune components.

The electrical properties of nanostructured networks are often dominated by junctions between the particles. Here, Gabett et al. develop transport models and utilise impedance spectroscopy to quantify the factors limiting conduction in these systems.

A genome-wide association study suggests 41 previously unreported loci on top of the 23 known loci that influence the disease risk for lumbar disc herniations. Many of these loci harbour genes implicated in disc structure and inflammation, as well as genes related to the nervous system and nerve function.

Ancient DNA from Soqotra, an island off the coast of Yemen, evidences a population history differing from other areas of the Arabian Peninsula and suggests there has not been complete population replacement throughout the region between the Pleistocene and Holocene.

The authors examine whether spinocerebellar neurons that convey proprioceptive sensory information also integrate information from cortical command systems by analyzing the circuitry and physiology of identified spinocerebellar tract neurons located in the Clarke's column of mouse spinal cord. They find that these neurons indeed nucleate spinal corollary circuits of relevance to motor planning and evaluation.

The physical properties of devices made of printed nanosheets and nanowires are determined by their intrinsic nanostructured network morphology. Here, the authors use FIB-SEM nanotomography to quantitatively analyze printed nanostructured networks via 3D reconstructions.

Trans-ancestry meta-analysis of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) from 1,046,070 individuals identifies 264 associated loci, providing a resource of molecular targets for translational research of chronic kidney disease.

Osteoporosis and bone fractures affect millions of patients worldwide and are often due to increased bone resorption. Here the authors identify the cytoplasmic protein ELMO1 as an important ‘signaling node’ promoting the bone resorption function of osteoclasts.

Plasma pTau181 concentrations are elevated specifically in patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease compared to those diagnosed with frontotemporal lobar degeneration or elderly controls, supporting its further development as a blood-based biomarker for AD.

A reconfigurable nanophotonic silicon probe, implanted in anaesthetized mice, that switches multiple optical beams in less than 20 μs enables the optical stimulation of multineuron spike patterns in the brain at sub-millisecond precision.

A trans-ancestry genome-wide association study of serum urate levels identifies 183 loci influencing this trait. Enrichment analyses, fine-mapping and colocalization with gene expression in 47 tissues implicate the kidney and liver as key target organs and prioritize potential causal genes.

The supply of iridium is likely to become a bottleneck for hydrogen production. Here, authors develop ionomer-free porous transport electrodes with low iridium loading designed to improve manufacturability and recyclability of electrodes for proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers.

The ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider reports a search for charged-lepton-flavour violation in decays of Z bosons into a τ lepton and an electron or muon of opposite charge.

Results for the final phase of the 1000 Genomes Project are presented including whole-genome sequencing, targeted exome sequencing, and genotyping on high-density SNP arrays for 2,504 individuals across 26 populations, providing a global reference data set to support biomedical genetics.

A defect-engineering strategy exploiting dithiolated molecules enables the formation of covalently interconnected networks based on solution-processed transition metal disulfides, leading to devices with enhanced electrical performance and improved characteristics.

Basal progenitors are enriched in gyrencephalic species like humans contributing to neuronal expansion. Here the authors show that LGALS3BP de novo variants are related to reduced cortical complexity and area in humans and that LGALS3BP regulates neural progenitor position in organoids, human fetal tissue and mice.

Gastrointestinal pain is common in some disorders, such as Crohn’s disease and pancreatitis. This Primer discusses the challenges in identifying the causes, particularly in patients in which multiple aetiologies coexist, as well as the treatment options.

This study provides causal evidence demonstrating that consuming a high flavanol diet improves dentate gyrus function and dentate gyrus–dependent cognitive functions in aged humans.

Swarm Learning is a decentralized machine learning approach that outperforms classifiers developed at individual sites for COVID-19 and other diseases while preserving confidentiality and privacy.

A class of conserved regions in the tetrapod genome is derived from a SINE retroposon family that was active as much as 400 million years ago, and has retained recent activity in the coelacanth.

Increased maternal age is known to increase the risk of congenital heart disease in offspring; here, this link is investigated by transplanting ovaries between young and old mice, revealing that the maternal-age-associated risk is independent of the age of the ovaries but depends on the age of the mother, and that this risk can be mitigated by maternal genetic background or exercise.

In a nonhuman primate model of spinal cord injury, human neural progenitor cell grafts exhibit long-term survival, differentiation, and anatomical integration with host spinal circuitry.

Expression of MHC class I molecules on motor neurons protects them from astrocyte-induced toxicity in ALS.

Wang, Philpott et al. perform integrative genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic analyses across fibroid, myometrium, and endometrium tissues to uncover mechanisms underlying uterine fibroid (UF) associated heavy menstrual bleeding. Signalling from MED12-mutated fibroids alters RNA splicing events in the endometrium.

The etiology and pathogenesis of CP/CPPS remain unknown, but it is becoming clear that neuropathic pain plays an important role. Here, Strauss and Dimitrakov discuss emerging treatments that are known to target pain pathways, and explore the implications of these treatments with respect to unraveling the etiology of CP/CPPS.

Host microbiomes are feasible sources for drug discovery. Here, using large-scale isolations, bioactivity assays and omics, the authors uncover the antimicrobial potential of insect-associated Streptomyces and identify a compound, cyphomycin, active against multidrug-resistant fungal pathogens.