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Scholl et al. show that PopZ forms filamentous condensates driven by its helical domain and inhibited by its disordered region. Phase-dependent conformations modulate client interactions and disruption of filamentation or condensation impairs cellular function and growth.

cellSTAAR advances noncoding rare variant association analysis by integrating single-cell genomics data.

Symmetry breaking is key to tissue formation. Now it is shown that symmetry breaking of epithelial spheroids is controlled by an interplay of collective migration with curvature and matrix remodelling.

A bioresorbable microneedle sensor array provides continuous, wireless and multimodal monitoring of organ metabolism, oxygenation and electrophysiology for up to 7 days in postoperative kidney ischaemia and gut disorders.

Humanity’s Last Exam, a multi-modal benchmark at the frontier of human knowledge, is designed to be an expert-level closed-ended academic benchmark with broad subject coverage.

The PhenoSphere is a unique plant cultivation facility in which field-like environments can be simulated. Here, the authors find that a single season simulation is superior to an averaged season and to a climatized glasshouse cultivation to elicit field-like phenotypes evaluated in 11 maize lines.

The authors demonstrate the existence of chiral phonons in a non-chiral ferroelectric material, opening the possibility for phonon chirality control through ferroic switching of the electric polarization.

Breaking away from the utopian assumption that the international community will agree on a single emissions allocation scheme, this study assesses approaches to setting country-level mitigation targets in line with the 2 °C goal.

In a phase 2 trial evaluating healthy donor fecal microbial transplantation plus either anti-PD-1 in patients with non-small cell lung cancer or anti-PD-1 and anti-CTLA-4 in patients with melanoma, encouraging efficacy was seen in both cohorts, with responses linked to significantly greater loss of baseline bacterial species.

Climate change can alter when and how animals grow, breed, and migrate, but it is unclear whether this allows populations to persist. This global study shows that shifts in seasonal timing are key to helping vertebrate species maintain population growth under global warming.

Centennial-scale variations in methane carbon isotope ratios are attributed to changes in pyrogenic and biogenic sources that can be correlated with anthropogenic activities, such as varying levels of biomass burning during the period of the Roman empire and the Han dynasty, and changes in natural climate variability.

Methane emission occurs in natural wetlands on a large scale, but the corresponding trace element emissions have not been studied. Here, the authors study selenium and arsenic emission in a pristine peatland and show that this causes large amounts of those trace elements to enter the biogeochemical cycle.

Nylon-11 is a common and durable polymer but possess low piezoelectric properties. Here, the authors use mechanical accelerations and strong electric fields to induce crystallization, hydrogen-bonding and dipole alignment in Nylon-11 films, achieving high piezoelectricity.

A mode-locked laser is achieved by coupling two ring resonators in a parity–time-symmetric configuration. Stable pulses emerge through a balance of gain in one cavity and loss in the other, combined with symmetry-breaking induced by the Kerr effect.

Many biological systems appear to organize their dynamics close to a critical point. Now it is shown that the protein array mediating Escherichia coli chemosensing is near-critical, enabling large signal amplification without compromising response speeds.

A photocatalytic synthetic route to deuterated N-heteroarenes over an atomically dispersed palladium photocatalyst in D₂O is developed. By recycling used D₂O and photocatalyst, up to 1.157 kg of deuterated N-heteroarenes can be obtained using only 4.5 litres of D₂O (19.7 equiv.).

Superconducting-qubit quantum annealers have served as platforms for simulating condensed-matter phenomena. Sathe et al. use a quantum annealer to probe critical phenomena in classical magnets by reliably sampling thermal distributions, revealing universal signatures of phase transitions without classical slowdowns.

This study finds that native tree extinctions and alien naturalizations are pushing forests towards fast-growing, resource-demanding species. This global shift could affect carbon storage and ecosystem stability, highlighting the need to protect slow-growing trees.

Applications of optical laser-based techniques are limited by the long wavelengths of the lasers. Now, observations of phonons and thermal transport at nanometre length scales are reported with an all-hard X-ray transient-grating spectroscopy technique.

Citizen science data are increasingly used in biodiversity monitoring. This study applies a digital twin approach to biodiversity monitoring using a large citizen science dataset on birds from Finland, demonstrating its potential for ecological forecasting.

A strategy compatible with a broad range of materials by precisely manipulating optofluidic interactions within a confined 3D space to control the assembly of colloidal microparticles/nanoparticles is demonstrated, enabling the precise manufacture of complex microstructures/nanostructures.

Elite and viremic controllers of HIV can spontaneously regulate viral replication, but some lose this ability over time. In this longitudinal cohort study, 31% of viremic and 3% of elite HIV controllers lost viral control over 17 years. Specific T-cell– related proteins distinguish controller types and predict loss years in advance.

Neural mechanism underlying behavioural flexibility is not fully understood. Here authors study decision-making of macaques in a reversal task. They identify two complementary cognitive processes. Distinct neural patterns link these processes to the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, thalamus, and hippocampus.

Demand-side food policies show small average effects, with effectiveness varying across intervention types. Targeted strategies and a better understanding of how context and population influence outcomes can advance food system sustainability.

The microbiomes associated with reef corals are complex and diverse. Here, the authors investigate fire coral clones naturally occurring in distinct habitats as a model system to disentangle the contribution of host genotype and environment on their microbiome, and predict genomic functions based on taxonomic profiles.

Soil water uptake is a major determinant of plant performance and stress tolerance. Here the authors show that, by affecting xylem formation in the root, natural variation at the Arabidopsis XND1 locus has contrasting effects on root hydraulics and drought tolerance versus pathogen resistance.

Micromitophagy is found to occur in plant male germline cells, mediated by ATG5–HSP90.2 signalling, and is evolutionarily conserved in angiosperms. This mechanism underpins paternal mitochondrial elimination and supports the zygote-to-embryo transition.

JWST’s COSMOS-Web survey is used to create an ultra-high-detail dark matter map, revealing hidden filaments, clusters and distant structures. By tracing features out to z = 2, this map shows how dark and luminous matter build the cosmic web across cosmic time.

Centrosome dynamics play a central role in immune regulation. Here, the authors demonstrate that centrosome integrity as well as centriole numbers and spatial organisation emerge as critical determinants of effective T cell responses.

Zygnematophycean algae are the closest algal relatives of land plants. This study compares the osmatic stress response of two of these species, finding a core set of molecular protective components and providing insights into the toolkit needed for plant terrestrialization.

A national classification system of wetland hydrologic connectivity to streams, which could be applied globally, demonstrates and advances current understanding of how wetland connectivity affects surface water quality.

The distinct architecture of the Escherichia coli membrane transporter LetA mediates lipid trafficking across the bacterial envelope in partnership with the tunnel-like complex LetB.

The impact of variants of uncertain significance (VUS) on protein function and cancer risk remain unclear. Here, the authors focus on the functional impact of VUS of the PALB2 gene and identify defects in DNA damage repair by homologous recombination associated with increased risk of breast cancer.

Several recent publications have attempted to detect novel unannotated microproteins using mass spectrometry proteomics. Here, the authors reassess these claimed microprotein detections, finding that many are poorly supported, while a subset represents likely genuine discoveries of novel proteins.

Symmetry breaking is key to numerous notable effects, for instance, the emergence of a Rashba interaction at interfaces between two materials. Here, Zhang, Ding, and coauthors succeed in breaking in-plane mirror symmetries via crystallographic engineering, and observe a giant non-linear Hall effect and current induced magnetization at room temperature.

Analyzing data of the Mexican Biobank project, a new study finds regional differences in clinically relevant genetic frequencies and presents MexVar, a publicly accessible resource designed to support ancestry-informed genetic testing.

The Neurospora circadian clock keeps time through a negative feedback loop involving a protein complex of FRQ bound to FRH. Here, the authors show that slow, stochastic phosphorylation of these proteins dissociates and activates them via two precisely timed switches.

This study reveals high-spin state formation and quintet-mediated emission in diphenylhexatriene oligomers. Quintet states dominate delayed fluorescence up to room temperature, establishing a spin-selective platform for quantum technologies.

Owing to electron localization, two-dimensional materials are not expected to be metallic at low temperatures, but a field-induced quantum metal phase emerges in NbSe₂, whose behaviour is consistent with the Bose-metal model.

While the photoreceptor outer segments in the bird outer retina have access to oxygen, the inner retina operates under chronic anoxia, supported by anaerobic glycolysis in the retinal neurons.

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.

A large sulfur-bearing carbon ring molecule has been detected in space, 2,5-cyclohexadien-1-thione, using laboratory spectroscopy and a radio telescope. Found near the Galactic Centre, it opens the door to a new family of interstellar molecules.

Using infant fMRI, the authors show that, by 2 months of age, representations in high-level visual cortex encode visual categories that align with deep neural networks, and lateral object-selective regions are later to develop.

Long COVID is associated with challenges in energy management, with limited interventions available. In this study, a just-in-time app-based energy management intervention for long COVID did not reduce postexertional malaise compared to usual care, though both groups improved over time, showing the approach was safe but not effective.

The hepatitis B virus surface protein recognizes host entry receptor via its intrinsically disordered peptide. The authors reveal the dynamic process of the viral surface protein that involves a stepwise binding maturation for establishing high affinity and specific virus-receptor entry complex.

An algorithm that combines deep learning, Bayesian optimization and computer vision techniques can be used to autonomously tune a semiconductor spin qubit from a grounded device to Rabi oscillations.