Search

NiPS₃ is a van der Waals antiferromagnetic semiconductor where the exciton formation is strongly influenced by the magnetic ordering. Previous studies have been limited to magneto-optical approaches, but here, Lebedev, Gish and coauthors succeed in making field effect transistors that operate below the Néel temperature and observe an ultranarrow electroluminescence with a high degree of linear polarization.

Heterostructures of graphene and hexagonal boron nitride have great potential for high-mobility electronics, yet little is known about the electronic interaction between these two atomically thin materials. Here, the authors perform angle-resolved reflected-electron spectroscopy to unveil their interplay.

A graphene-based Josephson junction incorporated in a superconducting circuit forms a voltage-tunable transmon qubit that can be controlled coherently.

2D vertical transport transistors (VTFETs) may promote the downscaling of electronic devices, but their performance is usually restricted by the thermionic limit. Here, the authors report the realization of short-channel steep-slope VTFETs based on MoS₂/MoTe₂ heterojunctions integrated with resistance threshold switching cells.

Experimental observation of intersubband transitions in van der Waals quantum wells is enabled by high spatial resolution imaging through near-field optical microscopy.

High-level methods to describe van der Waals interactions are limited due to their computational cost. This work introduces a new theoretical approach, that extends the dipolar many-body dispersion formalism to higher-order contributions, demonstrated to be applicable to practically-relevant systems and nano-environments.

Understanding collective behaviour is an important aspect of managing the pandemic response. Here the authors show in a large global study that participants that reported identifying more strongly with their nation reported greater engagement in public health behaviours and support for public health policies in the context of the pandemic.

Plant traits drive ecosystem dynamics yet are challenging to map globally due to sparse measurements. Here, the authors combine crowdsourced biodiversity observations with Earth observation data to accurately map 31 plant traits at 1 km² resolution.

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.

In patients with acute heart failure, personalized dosing of a diuretic led to treatment intensification in the majority of patients and improved natriuresis, but had no effects on time to all-cause mortality or heart failure rehospitalization.

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.

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 ability to tune spin-orbit interaction is crucial for spintronic and quantum devices. Alarab and colleagues use soft X-ray ARPES to show that this interaction in MoSe₂ can be strengthened by a proximity induced spin-orbit field transfer from a Pb layer deposited onto the MoSe₂ surface.

Selective oxidation of biomass-derived precursors has been reported but requires elevated temperatures and pressures of O₂ and strongly alkaline conditions. This study develops an antenna–reactor plasmonic photocatalyst (RuPt on TiN) for the selective conversion of HMF to FDCA using near-infrared irradiation in the absence of base.

Much is known about crystal structures of MHC class II–autoreactive TCRs. Sewell and colleagues provide the structure of an MHC class I–autoreactive TCR and provide insight into the molecular basis of its diabetogenicity.

Here the authors show that endogenous or therapeutically delivered GDF-15 activates brainstem neurons that trigger splenic β-adrenergic signaling. This, in turn, suppresses autoreactive T cells and reduces neuroinflammation, identifying a possible target for multiple sclerosis treatment.

Compiling data on floral introductions and European colonial history of regions worldwide, the authors find that compositional similarity of floras is higher than expected among regions once occupied by the same empire and similarity increases with the length of time the region was occupied by that empire.

Polygenic scores for body mass index and obesity constructed using data from 5 million people with different ancestries were associated with distinct weight gain trajectories from early childhood to adulthood.

The flagship paper of the ICGC/TCGA Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes Consortium describes the generation of the integrative analyses of 2,658 cancer whole genomes and their matching normal tissues across 38 tumour types, the structures for international data sharing and standardized analyses, and the main scientific findings from across the consortium studies.

Results from the randomized, noncomparative, phase 2 MATISSE trial show that ultra-short neoadjuvant therapy with ipilimumab and nivolumab can prevent surgery and radiotherapy in patients with resectable cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, with an early decrease in total lesion glycolysis by [¹⁸F]FDG-PET/CT associated with response.

Loss-of-function variants in thyroid hormone transporter MCT8 cause a neurodevelopmental and metabolic disorder. Here the authors identify genotype-phenotype relationships, advance insights in MCT8 (dys)function and create a pathogenicity-severity variant classifier.

Cadherin-based junctions connect cells to support tissue architecture. Here, the authors show that the condensation of core component β-catenin organizes cadherin complexes into clusters to promote formation of new adhesions.

Weak topological insulators (WTI) remain difficult to be observed in experiments. Here, the authors discover a WTI state in RhBi₂, where the topological surface states with saddle points result in a van Hove singularity along the (100) direction near Fermi energy.

Excitons dominate the optoelectronic response of many materials and exciton transport often limits the efficiency of optoelectronic devices such as solar cells or photodetectors. Using quantum geometry, the authors find that topological excitons undergo enhanced diffusion across a wide range of transport regimes.

In this work, a library of several hundred million compounds was computationally docked to a cryoEM structure of the orphan G protein-coupled receptor GPR139, leading to the discovery of a potent agonist with in vivo effects and insights into GPR139 signalling.

There is still a need for effective HIV vaccines. In this phase I clinical trial, the authors show that an HIV-1 vaccine candidate, ConM SOSIP.v7, is well-tolerated in HIV-negative adults and that it elicits a strain-specific neutralising antibody response that differed between female and male participants.

Genomic analyses applied to 14 childhood- and adult-onset psychiatric disorders identifies five underlying genomic factors that explain the majority of the genetic variance of the individual disorders.

Nuclear pore complexes control selective transport between the nucleus and cytoplasm. Here, the authors show how FG-Nups and transport receptors form a dynamic interface that enables selective and efficient transport.

Streptococcal S protein activates a peptidoglycan cell wall repair and modification complex to promote resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae to lysozyme and LL-37, and increase virulence during infection.

A large genome-wide association study of more than 5 million individuals reveals that 12,111 single-nucleotide polymorphisms account for nearly all the heritability of height attributable to common genetic variants.

The P2X4 receptor, an ATP-activated ion channel, plays a role in chronic pain, inflammation, and cancer. Authors in this work discover an extracellular allosteric binding site that interacts with anthraquinone derivatives, and is narrowed by ionic lock formation.

Protein motion in crowded environments governs cellular transport and reaction rates. Here, the authors use megahertz X-ray Photon Correlation Spectroscopy to reveal anomalous diffusion of ferritin, linking hydrodynamic and direct interactions to cage-trapping at microsecond time scales.

Although vaccination drops COVID-19 mortality in older adults, post-vaccine fatal COVID-19 in nursing home outbreaks was linked to Delta, Gamma and Mu variants, persistently detected in aerosols. Mortality was predicted by IFNB1 or age, ORF7a and ACE2 mRNAs.

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.

How changes in species’ native occupancy over time relate to global naturalization success remains unclear. Here, the authors show that species with both high occupancy decades ago and increasing native occupancy ever since are more likely to become naturalized elsewhere.

Wastewater-based surveillance tends to focus on specific pathogens. Here, the authors mapped the wastewater virome from 62 cities worldwide to identify over 2,500 viruses, revealing city-specific virome fingerprints and showing that wastewater metagenomics enables early detection of emerging viruses.

A hybrid exciton is observed at the interface between an organic semiconductor and a transition metal dichalcogenide. This suggests engineering the exciton wavefunction can lead to efficient charge and energy transfer processes in such structures.

A genome-wide association meta-analysis study of blood lipid levels in roughly 1.6 million individuals demonstrates the gain of power attained when diverse ancestries are included to improve fine-mapping and polygenic score generation, with gains in locus discovery related to sample size.

Current ultrasound transducers are bulky and rigid. Here, the authors describe a new way to realize large-area and mechanically flexible ultrasound arrays on polymer foils suited for wearable ultrasound applications

In this study the authors consider the structural variants (SVs) present within cancer cases of the ICGC/TCGA Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) Consortium. They report hundreds of genes, including known cancer-associated genes for which the nearby presence of a SV breakpoint is associated with altered expression.

Multi-omics datasets pose major challenges to data interpretation and hypothesis generation owing to their high-dimensional molecular profiles. Here, the authors develop ActivePathways method, which uses data fusion techniques for integrative pathway analysis of multi-omics data and candidate gene discovery.

Species’ traits and environmental conditions determine the abundance of tree species across the globe. Here, the authors find that dominant tree species are taller and have softer wood compared to rare species and that these trait differences are more strongly associated with temperature than water availability.

An all-optical method involving third-harmonic Faraday rotation is used to probe the breaking of time-reversal symmetry in mono- and bilayer transition metal dichalcogenide WS₂.

Analysis of cancer genome sequencing data has enabled the discovery of driver mutations. Here, as part of the ICGC/TCGA Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) Consortium the authors present DriverPower, a software package that identifies coding and non-coding driver mutations within cancer whole genomes via consideration of mutational burden and functional impact evidence.