Search

The role of oxytocin in modulating astrocytes during stress behaviour is not fully understood. Here the authors show that in the amygdala, oxytocin modulates stress related behaviour by transient Gαi-dependent retraction of astrocytic processes, followed by enhanced neuronal sensitivity to extracellular potassium.

Clonal haematopoiesis of indeterminate potential is driven by somatic mutations in hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells and may progress to myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Here authors show that the two conditions share a similar pattern of bone marrow remodeling, characterized by the emergence of inflammatory mesenchymal stromal cells and IFN-responsive T cells, reinforcing their shared etio-pathology.

Sepsis induces a period of immunosuppression which can be problematic in the face of subsequent infectious challenge. Here the authors show the presence of PD-L1 expressing regulatory plasma cells that can inhibit T cells in a murine model and in patients with sepsis.

Analysis of snRNA genes in individuals with rare disorders identifies de novo and recurrent variants in RNU5B-1 and RNU5A-1, in addition to previously unreported cases with pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in RNU4-2.

The practical rules for the early non-invasive diagnosis of cirrhosis in NAFLD are not well defined. Here, the authors develop and validate two diagnostic tools: a stepwise stratification algorithm including a cirrhosis group, and a risk prediction chart providing a personalized assessment of the individual probability of cirrhosis.

LIF/STAT3 signalling characterizes naive pluripotency in mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs), but whether this pathway can sustain a similar state in human cells is not completely understood. Here the authors show that LIF stimulation and enhancement of STAT3 activity allow human ESCs to escape from FGF2 dependency and facilitates their entry into a naive-like state of pluripotency.

Fuks and colleagues report that downregulation of the FTO m⁶A RNA demethylase activates the Wnt pathway, promoting EMT-mediated progression of epithelial tumors and conferring sensitivity to Wnt inhibitors.

Many bacterial proteins exhibit spatially defined localization important for function. Here the authors show that the polar localization of Shigella IpaC type III secretion substrate is mediated by its interaction with the DnaK chaperone and occlusion by the bacterial nucleoid.

Blockade of the C5a–C5aR1 axis using anti-C5aR1 monoclonal antibodies prevented inflammation associated with COVID-19.

The establishment of symbiotic interaction between Aeschynomene evenia and photosynthetic bradyrhizobia doesn’t involve the canonical Nod factors and infection threads. Here, the authors assemble the draft genome of A. evenia and identify a receptor-like kinase in mediating the symbiotic interaction.

Structural and spectroscopic studies show how a B₁₂-dependent radical SAM enzyme catalyses unique and challenging alkylation chemistry, including protein post-translational modification required for methane biosynthesis.

Two papers by Schumacher and colleagues and Bousso and colleagues show that sensing of IFN-γ by a small number of tumor cells leads to propagation of IFN-γ sensing and response across a larger fraction of the tumor.

Peptide epimerization is a common but enigmatic post-translational modification found in antibiotics formed from ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides. Now, crystallographic snapshots, spectroscopy and biochemical investigations have provided insight into the mechanism of peptide epimerization catalyzed by radical S-adenosyl-l-methionine epimerases.

The airways of patients with cystic fibrosis are colonized by S. aureus during childhood and by P. aeruginosa in adulthood. Here, Pernet et al. show that P. aeruginosa induces bronchial cells to produce a bactericidal protein sPLA2-IIA that contributes to the decline of S. aureusin the airways.

Several kinases regulate spine morphology and plasticity. Here, the authors show that the tyrosine kinase Pyk2 regulates hippocampal plasticity and contributes to cognitive and hippocampal plasticity deficits in a mouse model of Huntington’s disease.

Bacterial homologous recombination involves the actions of RadA and RecA to promote single-stranded DNA integration. Here the authors report the structure of RadA fromStreptococcus pneumoniaeand demonstrate that it acts as a hexameric DnaB-type helicase.

Ependymal ciliary beating contributes to the flow of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain ventricles and these cilia resist the flow forces. Here the authors show that the assembly of a dense actin network around the centrioles is induced by cilia beating to protect centrioles against the shear stress generated by ciliary motility.

Eosinophils have been described mainly in allergy settings but are increasingly appreciated as being involved in other aspects of immunity. Albert and colleagues use a clinically approved inhibitor of the dipeptidyl peptidase DPP4 to facilitate the recruitment of eosinophils to mouse tumors, where they are essential in tumor destruction.

Lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria play key roles in the microbial interactions with animals and plants. Here the authors identify a unique LPS with a covalently-attached hopanoid moiety that contributes to membrane stability in a bacterial symbiont of legumes.

Many cancers fuel their rapid growth by replacing glucokinase with its higher affinity isoenzyme, hexokinase 2 (HK2), making HK2 an attractive drug target. In this study, Perrin-Cocon and Vidalain et al. use CRISPR/Cas-9 gene editing to reverse this enzymatic switch in human liver cancer cells, and find this restores innate immune function as well as reversing cancer-associated metabolic reprogramming.

A French and Italian consortium has produced sequence and analysis of Vitis vinifera PN40024, a grapevine originally derived from Pinot Noir. As you might expect, the grapevine has twice as many terpene synthases as other sequenced plants; these enzymes contribute to resins, essential oils and aromas.