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The reconstitution of complex biological processes in cell-free systems can support the detailed characterisation of biochemical mechanisms which are difficult to probe in vivo. Here authors present an all-cell-free T7 phage cycle, consisting of cell-sized liposomes encapsulating a cell-free gene expression reaction and a phage receptor at the membrane.

Estimates from the Global Burden of Disease study reveal declines in chronic respiratory disease mortality between 1990 and 2023—especially during the COVID-19 pandemic—but the burdens on people affected remain substantial.

The electrochemical transformation of CO₂ into liquid fuels is a major challenge. Now, Jaramillo, Hahn and co-workers present a Au/Cu catalyst highly active to C₂₊ alcohols at low overpotentials as a result of a tandem mechanism where CO₂ is reduced to CO on Au and further reduced to C₂₊ alcohols on nearby Cu.

This study developed three clinical prediction models using UK primary care  data which accurately identified patients eligible for antihypertensive treatment who were at higher risk of hypotension, syncope, or fracture.

Global Burden of Disease estimates show that between 1990 and 2023, the prevalence and burden of drug use disorders, inclusive of amphetamine, cannabis, cocaine and opioid use, have been increasing in high-income countries, particularly in the USA.

Ionescu, Ankol et al. show that, in ALS mouse and iPSC models, TDP-43 aggregation at NMJs stems from aberrant axonal translation, normally repressed by muscle EV-derived miR126. Loss of miR126 in ALS increases TDP-43 buildup, impairs local synthesis and triggers degeneration.

The study shows that exciton diffusivity in semiconducting moiré superlattices can be strongly modulated by correlated electrons, revealing intriguing interactions and ushering in avenues for quantum optoelectronic technologies.

Pareto analysis of data from more than 400,000 people links human values to tradeoffs between three adaptive tasks, providing insight into individual differences in social and psychological constructs.

Effectiveness of one subcutaneous dose of MVA-BN, the smallpox and mpox vaccine, was estimated to be 86% in a cohort of vaccine-eligible males in Israel, supporting its use to curtail the outbreak of mpox virus.

Tau misfolds in Alzheimer’s disease, but how the link between tau filament structure and pathogenicity is unclear. This study shows that both filament core structure and phosphorylation in the fuzzy coat are required for full seeding capacity.

Bovine fibroblast cell line generation without genetic modification is characterized. A technoeconomic analysis demonstrates the potential for price-competitive, scaled-up cultivated beef production.

The cryo-EM structure of the herpes simplex virus helicase–primase (HP) complex informs about the mechanism of action of HP inhibitors pritelivir and amenamevir, which are drugs of clinical relevance.

Plastic deformation induces robust magnetism in SrTiO3, which is completely absent in pristine samples. This magnetism coexists with ferroelectric order, showcasing plastic deformation as a powerful tool for manipulating quantum material properties.

Here, the authors show in human iPSC-derived motor neurons from ALS patients and a TDP-43 mouse model that axonal TDP-43 forms G3BP1 positive RNP condensates, which sequester mRNA of nuclear encoded mitochondrial proteins and decrease local protein synthesis in motor neuron axons and neuromuscular junctions.

Here, the authors present multi-ancestry genome-wide meta-analyses of uterine fibroids, identifying 11 new gene associations, and demonstrating that heritability is higher in African ancestries.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing is the preferred method for cervical cancer screening, but existing tests are inaccessible for resource-limited settings. Here, authors develop a low-cost, simple HPV DNA assay suitable for bedside testing and demonstrate strong performance in Mozambique.

Sequencing analysis of tamoxifen-associated uterine cancers and further in vivo analyses suggest that the drug tamoxifen can activate the PI3K pathway in the absence of oncogenic mutations.

Aggregates of misfolded proteins are sequestered in the aggresome via dynein transport in an aggregate size-dependent manner. Here, authors find episodic transport kinetics mediated by aggresome-dynein adapters are central to this size-filter effect.

Graphene systems exhibit flavor order transitions driven by tuning parameters. Here, the authors demonstrate an optical technique for detecting flavor textures in graphene via the exciton response of a proximal transition metal dichalcogenide layer.

Optimized SORT LNPs enable precise and long-lasting base editing in dual organs in a disease mouse model.

A soft mesh microelectrode array can seamlessly integrate in developing brains, enabling long-term, stable mapping of how single-neuron activity and population dynamics emerge and evolve during brain development.

Here, Isaacs, Nieto and Zhang et al. discover a potent nanobody and engineer a dual-action antibody that targets two viral proteins, offering strong protection against Nipah and Hendra viruses while preventing viral escape, potentially contributing to future treatments.

Analysis of physiological and activity data from consumer smartwatches enables real-time detection, often before symptom onset, of COVID-19, as well as other respiratory illnesses and stress inducers.

In a randomized, placebo-controlled trial, an inhaled phage cocktail was well tolerated in adults with cystic fibrosis and chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection, with evidence of lung delivery and signs of bacterial reduction.

Exosome biogenesis is poorly understood. The small GTPases Rab27a and Rab27b and their effectors, Slp4 and Slac2b, control exosome secretion at different steps by regulating the peripheral localization, retention and docking of exosomal precursors, the multivesicular endosomes.

Single-cell profiling has led to the identification of diverse cell types. Here, the authors generate a harmonized cell atlas of the mouse post-natal spinal cord. They also provide spatial analysis of the distribution of the identified cell types and an open-source cell type classifier.

Light energy transfer from abundant hydroxylated carotenoids to the retinal moiety of widespread light-driven proton pumps is detected.

A consensus cell type atlas for the fly brain provides both an intellectual framework and open-source toolchains for brain-scale comparative connectomics.

Whole-cell screening for Mycobacterium tuberculosis inhibitors is complicated by the pathogen’s slow growth and biocontainment requirements. Here the authors develop engineered E. coli as a synthetic biology tool to express and screen metabolic targets from Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

A computational method for the systematic grafting of animal complementarity-determining regions onto thousands of human frameworks allows for the design of humanized versions of antibodies with improved stability.

Coastal upwelling sustains some of the most productive ocean regions. Here, the authors find that spatial patterns and temporal changes in nutrient supply explain marine microbial community structure and diversity in the Southern California Current region.

Genetic, biochemical and structural studies provide insights into the function of Escherichia coli CapRel^SJ46 as a fused anti-phage toxin–antitoxin system that binds SECΦ27 Gp57 capsid protein.

Differential expression analysis of single-cell transcriptomics allows scientists to dissect cell-type-specific responses to biological perturbations. Here, the authors show that many commonly used methods are biased and can produce false discoveries.

The replication of the two chromosomes in the bacterium Vibrio cholerae is coordinated through the binding of initiator protein RctB to a checkpoint sequence, crtS. Here, Niault et al. study RctB binding dynamics across the V. cholerae cell cycle to shed light into the underlying mechanisms.

Toxic small alarmone synthetase (toxSAS) enzymes are toxic effectors of certain toxin–antitoxin modules, involved in phage defense and secretion systems. Here the authors establish the mechanism underlying toxSAS inhibition by structured antitoxins and reveal the connection between neutralization strategy and substrate specificity.

Rag-GTPases play roles in sensing nutrient availability, and it is not fully known how they contribute to energy-consuming immunological processes such as the B cell response. Here authors show that genomic deletion fo RagA/RagB distrupts both T-dependent and T-independent humoral immune responses, independent of mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 but involving the transcription factors TFEB and TFE3.

Small-molecule senolytic compounds targeting BCL-xL were beneficial in a mouse model of diabetic edema and well tolerated when tested in a phase 1 trial involving eight patients with diabetic macular edema.

Functional and structural characterization of rhodopsin-bestrophin fusion proteins from marine algae unveils the existence of giant light-sensitive anion channels with unusual biophysical properties.

This study demonstrates that the processing of miRNAs in plants can occur coupled to transcription, post-transcriptionally or as a mixture of both in a process promoted by DNA–RNA hybrids upstream from the transcription start site of miRNA loci.

Plastic deformation is shown to tune the quantum degrees of freedom in SrTiO₃.