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For the celebration of our tenth anniversary, Nature Microbiology asks the former editors to reflect on their time at the journal.

Analysis combining multiple global tree databases reveals that whether a location is invaded by non-native tree species depends on anthropogenic factors, but the severity of the invasion depends on the native species diversity.

Regional, place-based biodiversity information is used to comprehensively map and quantify biodiversity intactness of sub-Saharan Africa to inform national and global sustainability policies and planning.

A nine-year transit-timing campaign has measured the extremely low masses and densities of four large planets orbiting the young star V1298 Tau, which are now predicted to contract and form a typical compact super-Earth and sub-Neptune system.

This study demonstrates the capability of deep learning protein design models in generating functionally validated β-strand pairing interfaces, expanding the structural diversity of de novo binding proteins and accessible target surfaces.

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial comparing autologous mRNA-engineered BCMA-targeting CAR T cell therapy versus placebo in patients with generalized myasthenia gravis, a significantly higher percentage of patients exhibited a reduction in disease activity in the treatment arm than in the placebo arm.

Genomic analyses applied to 14 childhood- and adult-onset psychiatric disorders identifies five underlying genomic factors that explain the majority of the genetic variance of the individual disorders.

This network meta-analysis of 183 trials of well-being interventions from across disciplines found that yoga, mindfulness, compassion, exercise and positive psychology improved adult well-being, with combined exercise and psychological approaches showing the largest effects.

Studying many-body quantum chaos on current quantum hardware is hindered by noise and limited scalability. Now it is shown that a superconducting processor, combined with error mitigation, can accurately simulate dual-unitary circuit dynamics.

MATTERIX, a multiscale graphics processing unit-accelerated framework for high-fidelity digital twins and workflows of chemistry laboratories, is presented, simulating robot and device operation, fluids and powders, and processes such as heat transfer and chemical kinetics.

The anterior cingulate cortex encodes affective pain behaviours modulated by opioids; targeting opioid-sensitive neurons through a new chemogenetic gene therapy replicates the analgesic effects of morphine, providing precise chronic pain relief without affecting sensory detection.

Treatment-seeking for fever is widely used to estimate treatment of childhood infections, but cross-country comparisons are problematic. Here, the authors estimate the probability of seeking treatment for fever at public facilities across 29 countries by quantifying person-level latent variables.

As Nature Aging celebrates its fifth anniversary, the journal asks some of the researchers who contributed to the journal early on to reflect on the past and the future of aging and age-related disease research, the impact of the field on human health now and in the future, and what challenges need to be addressed to ensure sustained progress.

The combination of JWST and ALMA data here unravel the history of the gas content of a quiescent galaxy, which became quenched through an act of self-sabotage. Black-hole accretion feedback heated the galaxy’s surrounding material, preventing its accretion.

Medication non-adherence represents a healthcare challenge, generating over $100 billion in additional costs annually in the USA. Here, the authors developed a resorbable and ingestible system designed for assessing medication adherence.

Figure 1. Schematic illustration of capsule based, biodegradable medication adherence tracking system with envisioned scenario for clinical use. A, Bio-RFID capsule administration. B, Shielding coating dissolution and payload release C, Monitoring of the Tag ID and frequency range, recording of the payload for tracking adherence. D, Dissolution and biosorption of the coating, tag and the capsule.

CLASSIC is a high-throughput genetic profiling platform that combines long- and short-read next-generation-sequencing modalities to quantitatively assess pools of constructs of arbitrary length containing diverse genetic part compositions.

The 4D Nucleome Project demonstrates the use of genomic assays and computational methods to measure genome folding and then predict genomic structure from DNA sequence, facilitating the discovery of potential effects of genetic variants, including variants associated with disease, on genome structure and function.

De novo and inherited dominant variants in genes encoding U4 and U6 small nuclear RNAs are identified in individuals with retinitis pigmentosa. The variants cluster at nucleotide positions distinct from those implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders.

The oncogenic potential of interfollicular stem and progenitor cells in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) remains poorly understood. Here, the authors modelled rapidly growing cSCC driven by the hyperactivation of the MAPK signalling pathway in mice and showed that SOX2 overexpression renders progenitor cells prone to transformation.

This Perspective synthesizes insights from the past use of nature markets to identify design factors that are necessary if such markets are to achieve their environmental aims—although qualitative scoring of existing markets against these rules identifies pervasive gaps.

High-resolution flare footpoint observations in the extreme ultraviolet and X-rays were taken by Solar Orbiter. Combined with simulations, the results reveal that the dominant mechanism carrying flare energy through the Sun’s atmosphere can vary on small spatial scales.

Genetic mapping in mice identified Homer1a as a key modifier of attention. Developmental downregulation in the prefrontal cortex enhances inhibitory tone, neural signal to noise and adult attentional performance, revealing a new control mechanism and target.

Female sex workers in East, Central and South Africa are a high-risk group for HIV infection. Here, the authors model the potential impact and cost effectiveness of a community-based support intervention for female sex workers in Zimbabwe.

Elevated levels of IL-33 induce the production of autoantibodies through an unknown mechanism. Here, the authors show that IL-33 disrupts splenic architecture and germinal center organization, causing an expansion of antibody-secreting plasmablasts and plasma cells. In multiple mouse models of inflammation, administration of IL-33 exacerbates the pathology, increasing the production of autoantibodies, whereas IL-33 blockade reverses autoantibody production in a model of lung inflammation.

Ghatbale et al. adapted a co-evolutionary technique to develop Klebsiella pneumoniae phages to be highly active longitudinally against K. pneumoniae clinical isolates, including drug resistant isolates.

An analysis of 24,202 critical cases of COVID-19 identifies potentially druggable targets in inflammatory signalling (JAK1), monocyte–macrophage activation and endothelial permeability (PDE4A), immunometabolism (SLC2A5 and AK5), and host factors required for viral entry and replication (TMPRSS2 and RAB2A).

Walmsley and colleagues report that systemic hypoxia induces persistent loss of histone H3K4me3 marks and epigenetic reprogramming in neutrophil progenitors, resulting in long-term impairment of subsequent neutrophil effector functions.

Influenza A virus infection causes a dramatic upregulation of ADP-ribosylation that as part of the cellular antiviral response, a process that is counteracted by the viral NS1 protein.

Npm1 promotes tumor formation via attenuating the integrated stress response and p53 activation in mouse WNT-driven intestinal and liver tumorigenesis.

The J2 antibody is widely used for detecting double-stranded RNAs. Here, Bou-Nader et al. define its nucleic acid specificity and recognition mechanism by solving its co-crystal structure bound to dsRNA, establishing a framework for its reliable use in RNA detection.

In response to COVID-19, many states have implemented social distancing orders, but the effect of these orders on population mobility has not been fully quantified. Here, the authors use data from the US to show that state-level social distancing orders substantially reduced mobility and limited the spread of disease.

In colorectal cancer, therapeutic resistance is driven by MAPK-dependent epithelial cell plasticity.

Cities are engines of innovation and economic growth, but they also struggle with segregation, which works against both. This study finds rings of isolation around US cities and pockets of segregation within them, a pattern persistent over time and intensified since the pandemic.

Semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, may offer neuroprotective benefits after stroke, but its effects in large vessel occlusion (LVO) are unknown. Here the authors show, in a phase 2 randomized trial, that semaglutide is safe after endovascular therapy and may improve recovery in patients not receiving intravenous thrombolysis.

Radical Fe^II/α-ketoglutarate-dependent halogenases are powerful biocatalysts for C–H functionalization. Here, the authors reveal the mechanistic basis for chemoselectivity in a lysine halogenase.

The advantage of living in cities compared with rural areas with respect to height and BMI in children and adolescents has generally become smaller globally from 1990 to 2020, except in sub-Saharan Africa.

u-Segment3D is a universal framework that translates and enhances 2D instance segmentations to a 3D consensus instance segmentation without training data. It performs well across diverse datasets, including cells with complex morphologies.

Here the authors implement a comprehensive timestamping across millions of pieces of biomedical evidence supporting target–disease associations in the Open Targets Platform and analyse trends in evidence supporting novel drug target discovery over the last two decades.

Little millet is an orphan crop offering a promising yet underutilized option in the pursuit of food and nutritional security. Here, the authors report its genome assembly, and elucidate its recent tetraploid structure, sub-genome dominance, and the genetic basis for micronutrient content.

Koh, Ma et al. show that during climbing, mouse motor cortex instructs limb muscle activity patterns primarily by selectively activating certain muscles at certain activity states, via neural activity patterns distinct from those previously described.

HIV epidemic trends among female sex workers in sub-Saharan Africa are rarely known. The authors analyse HIV prevalence trends among female sex workers based in Zimbabwe and report a significant decline between 2016-2017 and 2021-2023, which may be due to increased treatment coverage among the male population.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa survives extreme acidity by importing lysine through the LysP transporter to regulate acid-resistance genes. Here, authors reveal the cryo-EM structure of LysP and show how specific hydrogen bonds enable lysine recognition.

Jonaitis et al demonstrate that serotonin differentially modulates feedforward inhibitory neurons in the olfactory system of Drosophila which likely reflects odor categorization in higher order brain regions.

Variable New Antigens Receptors (VNARs) from shark antibodies possess a unique molecular dexterity that allows them to access epitopes inaccessible to conventional antibodies. Here, the authors use crystallography to investigate how two VNARs selectively engage soluble TNF-alpha.

In a phase 3 trial for Huntington’s disease, pridopidine did not meet its primary endpoints but was safe and favored in some prespecified subgroup analyses.

The authors present an integrated acousto-optic modulator fabricated in a wafer-scale process that realizes efficient, high-speed modulation of visible light with high optical power handling.