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Here the authors find that auditory cues presented quietly during a nap influence motor sequence learning. When one of two sequences was cued following initial learning, performance was disproportionately improved for that sequence, reflecting sleep-based reactivation and consolidation of skill memory.

Noise-induced synchronization is known in classical systems and has recently been proposed in quantum many-body settings. Here, the authors experimentally demonstrate stable and entangled synchronized oscillations at the ends of a superconducting qubit chain by applying Gaussian noise to a single qubit.

Eric J. Topol weighs up a book on a field sprinting to keep up with biotechnology.

This overview of the ENCODE project outlines the data accumulated so far, revealing that 80% of the human genome now has at least one biochemical function assigned to it; the newly identified functional elements should aid the interpretation of results of genome-wide association studies, as many correspond to sites of association with human disease.

Lipid concentration in the serum is one of the most important risk factors for coronary artery disease and can be targeted for therapeutic intervention. A genome-wide association study in >100,000 individuals of European ancestry now finds 95 significantly associated loci that also affect lipid traits in non-European populations. Among associated loci are those involved in cholesterol metabolism, known targets of cholesterol-lowering drugs and those that contribute to normal variation in lipid traits and to extreme lipid phenotypes.

Coffee consumption is associated with the presence and abundance of a specific member of the human gut microbiome, Lawsonibacter asaccharolyticus, and changes to the plasma metabolome.

FlyWire is an online community and a platform for proofreading electron microscopy-based connectome data of the Drosophila brain.

BRCA1 and BRCA2 are well known breast cancer predisposition genes, however, many variants have not yet been classified for their pathogenicity. Here, the authors analyse a large combined cohort to provide evidence of variant pathogenicity.

A dataset of the genomes of 363 species from the Bird 10,000 Genomes Project shows increased power to detect shared and lineage-specific variation, demonstrating the importance of phylogenetically diverse taxon sampling in whole-genome sequencing.

There have been numerous attempts to develop nanomaterials to reach cells of the central nervous system for drug delivery. Here, the authors investigate the cellular fate of polymer-based nanoparticles with varying surface chemistries after administration directly into the brain.

Rapid extracellular antigen profiling of a cohort of 194 individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2 uncovers diverse autoantibody responses that affect COVID-19 disease severity, progression and clinical and immunological characteristics.

Oblique line scan microscopy achieves nanoscale spatial and sub-millisecond temporal resolution across a large field of view, enabling improved and robust single-molecule biophysical measurements and single-molecule tracking in both cells and solution.

A combination of four transcription factors, GATA4, HAND2, MEF2C and TBX5, can reprogram fibroblasts into cardiac-like myocytes in vitro and in vivo; expression of these factors ameliorated cardiac function in mice that had suffered myocardial infarction.

Maan et al., Meier et al. and Song et al. report that microtubule plus-end binding proteins can undergo liquid–liquid phase separation to regulate microtubule dynamics.

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.

A global network of researchers was formed to investigate the role of human genetics in SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity; this paper reports 13 genome-wide significant loci and potentially actionable mechanisms in response to infection.

The MAGIC investigators report results of a large genome-wide association study meta-analysis to identify common variants influencing fasting glucose homeostasis. They further show that several of the newly discovered loci influencing glycemic traits are also associated with risk of type 2 diabetes.

High-affinity IL-2Rα expressed by T_regs mitigates the potential of IL-2 use in cancer therapy. Here, the authors fuse IL-2 with an NKDG2 binding domain, and show that it induces IL-2 signalling selectively in NKG2D⁺cells, delaying tumour growth in mice without the side effects of conventional IL-2 therapy.

IP6 is a critical host cofactor for HIV-1 assembly and infectivity. In this study, the authors uncover the structural basis by which HIV-1 adapts to a deficiency in IP6 packaging through a G225R mutation at the C-terminus of the capsid protein.

Lineage tracing in mice identifies a subpopulation of basal cells that express Tmprss2 and Nkx3 as the origin of ERG-driven prostate cancer. Upon expansion, these cells show an enrichment for STAT3 chromatin binding and elevated expression of KMT2A and DOT1L as dependencies for ERG oncogenicity.

Single-nucleus RNA-seq was used to profile 11 retinas with varying stages of age-related macular degeneration and 6 control retinas. The authors identified shared glial states across neurodegeneration, indicating that the retina provides a human system for investigating therapeutic approaches in neurodegeneration.

Horizontal transfer of genetic material in eukaryotes has rarely been documented over short evolutionary timescales. Here, the authors show that two transposable elements, Shellder and Spoink, invaded the genomes of multiple Drosophila species within the last 50 years.

A state-dependent dopamine filter system in the male Drosophila brain balances threat perception against the drive to mate.

Wildfires are becoming increasingly frequent in several regions around the world due to climate change, posing serious health risks, especially for respiratory diseases. This study examines the respiratory health risk and burden of wildfire-specific PM_2.5 pollution across eight countries and territories.

Transcriptional changes occur in the dorsal root ganglion in response to nerve injury and may contribute to neuropathic pain. Here the authors show that the DNA methyltransferase DNMT3a is upregulated in rodents following nerve injury, and may contribute to pain-like behaviour by decreasing expression of the voltage-gated potassium channel Kv1.2.

Results for the final phase of the 1000 Genomes Project are presented including whole-genome sequencing, targeted exome sequencing, and genotyping on high-density SNP arrays for 2,504 individuals across 26 populations, providing a global reference data set to support biomedical genetics.

Eric Schadt and colleagues present a predictive causal model of the immune component of inflammatory bowel disease through integration of genetic, regulatory and transcriptional data. They prioritize and validate 12 of the top key drivers experimentally in mouse colitis models and human macrophages.

Global trade of solar photovoltaic (PV) products has an important role to play in sustainable mitigation to climate change. Highlighting global PV product trade, this study explores the impeding effect of tariff and non-tariff barriers on global PV product trade and carbon emissions reductions.

A high-throughput chemical–genetic screening approach for the discovery of targets and chemicals to treat Mycobacterium tuberculosis yields tenfold more hit compounds than conventional whole-cell screening methods.

Standard approaches for identifying pleiotropic genetic variants may lead to spurious results. Here the authors present a new statistical method and show that it uncovers five genes linked to metabolites in METSIM participants, which were previously undetected by existing methods.

The goal of the 1000 Genomes Project is to provide in-depth information on variation in human genome sequences. In the pilot phase reported here, different strategies for genome-wide sequencing, using high-throughput sequencing platforms, were developed and compared. The resulting data set includes more than 95% of the currently accessible variants found in any individual, and can be used to inform association and functional studies.

An integrated transcriptome, genome, methylome and proteome analysis of over 200 lung adenocarcinomas reveals high rates of somatic mutations, 18 statistically significantly mutated genes including RIT1 and MGA, splicing changes, and alterations in MAPK and PI(3)K pathway activity.

X-ray crystal structures are presented of the N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor, a calcium-permeable ion channel that opens upon binding of glutamate and glycine; glutamate is a key excitatory neurotransmitter and enhanced structural insight of this receptor may aid development of therapeutic small molecules.

A study provides evidence for a shared lymphatic circuit that connects the posterior eye and the brain, allowing the generation of immune responses to protect the CNS against pathogens and tumours following intravitreal immunization.

Panos Deloukas, Nilesh Samani and colleagues report a large-scale association analysis using the Metabochip array in 63,746 coronary artery disease cases and 130,681 controls. They identify 15 susceptibility loci, refine previous associations and use network analysis to highlight biological pathways.

A genome-wide association meta-analysis study here shows novel genetic loci to be associated to body fat percentage, and describes cross-phenotype association that further demonstrate a close relationship between adiposity and cardiovascular disease risk.

We evaluated the use of chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells targeting GD2 (GD2-CART) for H3K27M⁺ diffuse midline glioma (DMG), finding that intravenous administration of GD2-CART, followed by intracranial infusions, induced tumour regressions and neurological improvements in patients with H3K27M-mutant pontine or spinal DMG.

Meta-analysis of 36,760 cases and 375,188 controls identifies 54 loci associated with susceptibility to cutaneous melanoma. Further analysis combining nevus count and hair color GWAS results provide insights into the genetic architecture of melanoma.

Machine-learned potentials are accurate but often lack broad applicability. Here, authors develop a general-purpose neuroevolution potential for 16 metals and their alloys, achieving efficient and accurate predictions of various physical properties.

Van der Waals (vdW) magnets have allowed researchers to explore the two dimensional limit of magnetisation; however experimental challenges have hindered analysis of magnetic domains. Here, using an NV centre based probe, the authors analyse the nature of magnetic domains in the vdW magnet, CrBr₃.

A physiologically relevant 3D model of the outer-blood-retina-barrier recapitulates healthy and disease phenotypes.

Tumor–normal paired DNA samples from a breast cancer cell line and a matched lymphoblastoid cell line enable calibration of clinical sequencing pipelines and benchmarking ‘tumor-only’ or ‘matched tumor–normal’ analyses.

The inclusion of polygenic risk scores does not improve the performance of standard-of-care predictive models of disease outcomes in patients with psychosis.

The affected cellular populations during Alzheimer’s disease progression remain understudied. Here the authors use a cohort of 84 donors, quantitative neuropathology and multimodal datasets from the BRAIN Initiative. Their pseudoprogression analysis revealed two disease phases.

Ruth Loos and colleagues report a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in 181,171 individuals identifying 14 new loci associated with heart rate and test these for association with cardiac conduction, rhythm disorders and cardiovascular disease. Their experimental studies in Drosophila melanogaster and zebrafish models provide support for a role for 20 candidate genes at 11 of these loci in regulation of heart rate.

A mouse model of chronic COVID-19 facilitates the study of disease mechanisms and therapies.