Search

This study provides mechanistic insights into how the mycobacterial transcription factor HelD gradually dissociates from RNAP during transcription initiation and protects RNAP from rifampicin until the last possible moment.

This paper conducted a priority-setting exercise to identify ten questions that define the future direction of blue carbon science. It highlights key gaps, emerging challenges and opportunities for advancing climate mitigation, ecosystem management and evidence-based policy.

A joint analysis of sugars and amino acids in the Orgueil meteorite, a proxy for asteroids Bennu and Ryugu, reveals multiple biologically relevant sugars, including ribose, supporting efficient sugar formation in space and a richer prebiotic delivery to early Earth.

DEBIAS-M corrects technical variability in microbiome data in a manner both interpretable and suitable for machine learning. In extensive benchmarks, DEBIAS-M facilitates robust analyses that generalize across datasets.

An initial draft of the human pangenome is presented and made publicly available by the Human Pangenome Reference Consortium; the draft contains 94 de novo haplotype assemblies from 47 ancestrally diverse individuals.

Tuberculosis is a major global health threat. Here, the authors develop a single-cell drug discovery approach and identify a compound that tunes bacterial phenotypic variation. This enhances the activity of anti-tubercular drugs against the pathogen.

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.

The CMS Collaboration reports the measurement of the spin, parity, and charge conjugation properties of all-charm tetraquarks, exotic fleeting particles formed in proton–proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider.

Survey data from Germany show that, collectively, people acknowledge carbon inequality and favor fairer emission distributions yet individually perceive themselves to already be ahead of others—revealing a carbon perception gap.

Analysis of HbA1c and FPG levels across 117 population-based studies demonstrates regional variation in prevalence of previously undiagnosed screen-detected diabetes using one or both measures and suggests that use of elevated FPG alone could underestimate diabetes prevalence in low- and middle-income countries.

DOT1L slows transcription elongation and promotes RNAPII pausing, altering gene expression and creating conditions that enhance AID activity for antibody diversification but also facilitate off-target mutagenesis.

From 1980 to 2018, the levels of total and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol increased in low- and middle-income countries, especially in east and southeast Asia, and decreased in high-income western countries, especially those in northwestern Europe, and in central and eastern Europe.

Constructing genome graphs directly from genome assemblies overcomes single-reference bias.

Alkylsulfonic acids represent an alternative source of sulfur for the origins of life. Here the authors demonstrate, via laboratory simulation experiments, the formation of these compounds in interstellar analog ices with implications for their incorporation into asteroids such as Ryugu.

Inhibiting the cytosolic enzyme histone deacetylase 6 in the periphery is sufficient to improve leptin sensitivity and metabolic outcomes in diet-induced obese mice.

A deep-learning-based algorithm uses routinely acquired histology slides to provide a differential diagnosis for the origin of the primary tumour for complicated cases of metastatic tumours and cancers of unknown primary origin.

Support for moderate climate activists’ benefits from the rise of radicals as moderates are perceived reasonable in comparison — but only when they clearly distance themselves. These ‘radical flank effects’ are attenuated if moderates endorse radicals.

The identification of tools dated to the time of Homo sapiens associated with microfloral evidence of wet tropical forests indicates that West African forests were occupied by humans much earlier in human evolution than previously thought.

Hybrid QM/MM molecular dynamics simulations reveal that the kinetics and thermodynamics of the first splicing step are regulated by a K⁺ ion that facilitates optimal positioning of reactive moieties.

Promoters are able to modulate the performance of catalysts for a given process, but this can be done through various mechanisms. Here the role of Mn as a promoter on Fe-based catalysts for CO₂ hydrogenation to olefins is comprehensively investigated via spectroscopic and kinetic analyses. The promoter induces a restructuring of the catalyst surface, balancing the strength of the adsorption of reactants and intermediates.

What is the state of trust in scientists around the world? To answer this question, the authors surveyed 71,922 respondents in 68 countries and found that trust in scientists is moderately high.

Most comparative animal cognition studies assume that results are stable in individuals and groups, but this is not often tested. Here the authors assess repeatability of cognitive tasks in several species of captive great apes, finding that individual performance over time is stable and predicted by fixed differences among individuals rather than transient experimental conditions.

Contrary to the view that urbanization is a major driver of the global rise in obesity, the global increase in body-mass index is shown to be mostly due to increases in the body-mass indexes of rural populations.

Self-intercalated Chromium tellurides consist of CrTe₂ van der Waals layers, with additional Chromium atoms residing in the van der Waals gap. This highly tuneable class of magnetic materials has presented a range of unique magnetic phenomena, and here Bigi, Jego, Polewczyk et al add to this by showing that CrTe₂ (δ = 0.25 − 0.50) hosts orthogonal ferromagnetism.

Injection of AAV–shRNA below the pial surface of the spinal cord prevents onset or ameliorates progression in a mouse model of ALS, and achieves widespread delivery to the spinal cord and brain motor centers in adult pigs and non-human primates.

Here the authors describe the discovery of a class of small molecule splicing modifiers which are orally bioavailable, cross the blood-brain barrier, and lower levels of huntingtin in a mouse model of Huntington’s disease (HD).

It is generally assumed, from previous studies in cerebellar Purkinje neurons, that IP₃ and Ry receptors share the same intracellular Ca²⁺ pool. In this study, the authors demonstrate the existence of two functionally distinct Ca²⁺ stores in mouse CA1 pyramidal neurons by showing that refilling of IP₃-sensitive stores relies on Orai2 channels, whereas Ry-sensitive stores involve VGCCs for spontaneous store refilling

Pompe disease (PD) is a rare disorder that leads to progressive muscle weakness if left untreated. Here, the authors use multispectral optoacoustic tomography (MSOT) to map and quantify the composition of affected muscle tissue to determine disease severity and potentially monitor future therapies.

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.

Correcting public misperceptions about the views of doctors on the COVID-19 vaccines can have lasting impacts on public uptake of the COVID-19 vaccines.

Uptake of vitamin B₁₂ is important for colonisation of the gut by Bacteroides species. Here the authors characterise B₁₂ uptake in Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, mediated by outer membrane protein complexes consisting of surface-exposed BtuG lipoproteins and BtuB TonB-dependent transporters.

Altermagnets combine the rapid dynamics and zero magnetization of collinear antiferromagnets with the spin-splitting of ferromagnets, making them an idea platform for both fundamental research and applications. Here, Yang, Li and coauthors map the large altermagnetic spin-splitting in CrSb located near the Fermi level.

Synaptotagmin 1 is involved in dopamine release. Here the authors investigate the effect of loss of Syt1 in midbrain dopaminergic neurons in mice, and find that unconditioned motor behaviour and motivation for food, are intact.

Haematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) transform from aortic endothelium into migratory cells that move through stroma and enter circulation to colonize haematopoietic tissues. Here the authors show that HSPCs' passage is facilitated by primitive macrophages that secrete extracellular matrix-degrading enzymes.

High-fidelity reads improve variant detection and genome assembly on the PacBio platform.

Protein kinase transition between different conformational states is controlled by autophosphorylation. Here, the authors demonstrate that the c-terminal Tyr530 is a de facto c-Src autophosphorylation site  and identify a critical c-terminal palindromic phospho-motif that controls the interplay between substrate and enzyme-acting kinases during autophosphorylation.

Soil contamination is a pressing environmental concern due to increasing anthropogenic activity. Here, the authors developed a rapid and energy-efficient electrothermal process that simultaneously removes heavy metals and organic pollutants in soil.

In a sample of UK adults with mild-moderate infections, the authors find that anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses to infection—but not vaccination—are persistently higher in people with Post-Covid Condition compared to people with an acute infection only.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent and bioaccumulative pollutants in soil. Here, the authors developed a rapid electrothermal mineralization method that can efficiently mineralize PFAS while maintaining soil properties.

The mechanisms underlying the spreading of α-synuclein in various α-synucleinopathies are unclear. Here, the authors show that targeting the TLR2/MyD88/NF-κB pathway can reduce α-synuclein spreading, reduce neuroinflammation, and protect dopaminergic neurons in vitro and in mouse models

Synthetic cells mimicking the viscoelastic and T-cell-activation properties of antigen-presenting cells provide substantial enhancements in the expansion and potency of engineered human cytotoxic T cells.

Artificial intelligence has become popular as a cancer classification tool, but there is distrust of such systems due to their lack of transparency. Here, the authors develop an explainable AI system which produces text- and region-based explanations alongside its classifications which was assessed using clinicians’ diagnostic accuracy, diagnostic confidence, and their trust in the system.