Search

Genome assembly of durum wheat cultivar Svevo enables genome-wide genetic diversity analyses highlighting modifications imposed by thousands of years of empirical selection and breeding.

RMC-7977, a multi-selective RAS(ON) inhibitor, exhibits potent tumour-selective activity in multiple pre-clinical models of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma through a combination of pharmacology and oncogene dependence.

This study analyzed data on 793 cities to see how the COVID-19 pandemic affected their climate commitment and actions. It found that although climate actions persist, funding has fallen and less than half of the cities implemented green recovery initiatives.

The Somatic Mosaicism across Human Tissues Network aims to create a reference catalogue of somatic mosaicism across different tissues and cells within individuals.

Studies examining human podocytopathies have utilised 2D cultured primary or immortalised podocyte cell lines. Here, the authors demonstrate that 3D human glomeruli sieved from induced pluripotent stem cell-derived kidney organoids retain an improved podocyte identity in vitro facilitating disease modelling and toxicity testing.

Advanced pancreatic cancer is associated with tissue wasting; however, the timing of tissue loss prior to diagnosis and the potential utility of such loss for earlier pancreatic cancer detection are not well understood. Here the authors show that skeletal muscle loss can be detected on CT imaging 1–2 years before a clinical diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.

The future challenges and potential opportunities of robotics and autonomous systems in urban ecosystems, and how they may impact biodiversity, are explored and prioritized via a global horizon scan of 170 experts.

Observations and stellar evolution models of a blue ring nebula and its central star (TYC 2597-735-1) suggest that the remnant star merged with a lower-mass companion several thousand years ago.

A highly selective inhibitor of the DCLK1/2 kinases is used to uncover the consequences of DCLK1 inhibition on viability, phosphosignaling and the transcriptome in patient-derived organoid models of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Alterations of locus coeruleus signal intensity have been associated with functional changes in health and disease. Here, the authors tested a pre-registered hypothesis on a large number of subjects as part of the Cam-CAN consortium.

Mixed phenotype acute leukemia (MPAL) is a rare leukemia that presents both myeloid and lymphoid markers on blasts. Here the authors perform genomic analysis to show MPAL involves genetic and epigenetic heterogeneity and is genetically distinct from AML, B-ALL, and T-ALL.

Analysis of chromatin accessibility and expression quantitative trait loci in stimulated or naïve macrophages identifies loci that constitutively alter chromatin but affect expression only after stimulation, thus indicating an effect on enhancer priming.

This report from the 1000 Genomes Project describes the genomes of 1,092 individuals from 14 human populations, providing a resource for common and low-frequency variant analysis in individuals from diverse populations; hundreds of rare non-coding variants at conserved sites, such as motif-disrupting changes in transcription-factor-binding sites, can be found in each individual.

The Cancer Genome Atlas presents an integrative genome-wide analysis of genetic alterations in 279 head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs), which are classified by human papillomavirus (HPV) status; alterations in EGFR, FGFR, PIK3CA and cyclin-dependent kinases are shown to represent candidate targets for therapeutic intervention in most HNSCCs.

The Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network reports an integrative analysis of more than 400 samples of clear cell renal cell carcinoma based on genomic, DNA methylation, RNA and proteomic characterisation; frequent mutations were identified in the PI(3)K/AKT pathway, suggesting this pathway might be a potential therapeutic target, among the findings is also a demonstration of metabolic remodelling which correlates with tumour stage and severity.

Cognitive abilities change with age, but why some decline and some do not is not clear. Here, the authors use data from the Cam-CAN cohort to show that distributed, multi-component brain responsivity and default-mode deactivation supports and characterizes preserved cognition across the adult lifespan.

Executive functions are affected by ageing but it is unclear how. Kievit et al.use brain imaging and modelling approaches to show how multifactorial explanations outperform single-factor models when relating age-related differences in grey and white matter to differences in fluid intelligence and multitasking.

A change in the style of rifting in the North Atlantic led to carbon fluxes from subcrustal melting that helped trigger the Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum, according to geochemical analyses of volcanic sequences as well as melting and tectonic modelling.

Cdk12 is primarily involved in the regulation of DNA damage response (DDR) gene transcription as well as mRNA processing. Here, the authors demonstrate that CDK12 suppresses intronic polyadenylation, and that inhibition of this kinase primarily affects the expression of long genes with higher numbers of polyA sites, features common to many DDR genes.

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, Petherick, Goldszmidt et al. show that, from March to December 2020, adherence to physical distancing fell worldwide, while mask-wearing adherence increased.

There are hopes thatthe dynamic forms of climate governance appearing in different domains will be effective in tackling climate change. This Perspective assesses the future prospects for this so-called polycentric pattern of climate governance.

AMPK regulates cellular energy balance using its γ subunit as an energy sensor of cellular AMP and ADP to ATP ratios. Here, the authors show that γ2 AMPK activation lowers heart rate by reducing the activity of pacemaker cells, whereas loss of γ2 AMPK increases heart rate and prevents the adaptive bradycardia of endurance training in mice.

A chemoproteomic approach adapted for high-throughput screening leads to the identification of a selective PI3Kγ inhibitor. Application of this inhibitor in human and mouse cellular models reveals a role for PI3Kγ in T_H17 cell differentiation.

Global sampling of microbial communities associated with wastewater treatment plants and application of ecological theory revealed a small, core bacterial community associated with performance and provides insights into the community dynamics in this environment.

Connexin proteins are usually considered as tumor suppressors. Here, the authors show that connexin 26 (Cx26) regulates the self-renewal of breast cancer stem cells via a ternary complex with FAK and NANOG.

The genome of the gibbon, a tree-dwelling ape from Asia positioned between Old World monkeys and the great apes, is presented, providing insights into the evolutionary history of gibbon species and their accelerated karyotypes, as well as evidence for selection of genes such as those for forelimb development and connective tissue that may be important for locomotion through trees.

As phase 1 of the Earth Microbiome Project, analysis of 16S ribosomal RNA sequences from more than 27,000 environmental samples delivers a global picture of the basic structure and drivers of microbial distribution.

Decline in sensorimotor skills with age may be due to an overreliance on the prediction of the sensory consequences of one’s actions. Here the authors show that sensorimotor attenuation increases with age, and that this is associated with structural and functional changes in frontostriatal circuits.

A combination of crosslinking, X-ray crystallography, NMR, and mutagenesis provide a detailed visualization of the interactions between an acyl carrier protein and β-ketoacyl-ACP-synthase I in the Escherchia coli fatty acid synthase complex.

For many neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD) risk genes, the significance for mutational burden is unestablished. Here, the authors sequence 125 candidate NDD genes in over 16,000 NDD cases; case-control mutational burden analysis identifies 48 genes with a significant burden of severe ultra-rare mutations.

Climate action from local actors is vital in achieving nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement. Here the authors show that existing commitments from U.S. states, cities and business could reduce emissions 25% below 2005 levels by 2030, with expanded subnational action reducing emissions by 37% and federal action by up to 49%.

Xifeng Wu and colleagues show that a common variant in the prostate stem cell antigen (PSCA) gene on 8q24 is associated with susceptibility to urinary bladder cancer. The risk allele truncates the amino terminus of the PSCA gene product and reduces PSCA promoter activity in bladder cancer cell lines.

This paper reports stratigraphically extensive ice-rafted debris, including macroscopic dropstones, in late Eocene to early Oligocene sediments from Norwegian-Greenland Sea, that were deposited between ∼ 38 and 30 million years ago. The data suggest the existence of at least isolated glaciers on Greenland about 20 million years earlier than previously documented, at a time when temperatures and atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations were substantially higher.

Mutation of a mismatch repair gene accelerated the genomic mutation rate of Salmonella Enteritidis infecting an immunocompromized individual, leading to levels of evolution that parallel those found in successful host-restricted bacterial pathogens.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in mice induces loss of adipose tissue through altered function of the exocrine pancreas, and supplementing pancreatic enzymes attenuates the wasting of peripheral tissues induced by pancreatic cancer.

1000 Genomes imputation can increase the power of genome-wide association studies to detect genetic variants associated with human traits and diseases. Here, the authors develop a method to integrate and analyse low-coverage sequence data and SNP array data, and show that it improves imputation performance.

Observations of declining ultraviolet emission from a type Ia supernova within four days of the explosion are as expected if material ejected by the supernova collided with a companion star, supporting the single degenerate channel model of supernova progenitors.