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Studies on protein–protein interactions using proteins containing d- or l-amino acids show that stereoselectivity of binding varies with the degree of disorder within the complex.

The molecular mechanisms of how small changes in the degree of inclusion of a neuron-specific microexon in CPEB4 lead to dominant-negative effects in the expression of genes associated with autism spectrum disorder are identified.

cfDNA fragmentomics is a potential clinically applicable method for identifying cancer. Here, the authors assess fragmentomics analysis methods and their application to commercial targeted sequencing panels.

Deforestation causes elevation-dependent warming over tropical mountain regions, according to high-resolution climate simulations.

Cooperative water wires formed by clustering of artificial water channels enhance membrane permselectivity.

Schwannomas are regularly treated with radiotherapy, but the molecular effects on these tumours and their microenvironment remain unclear. Here, the authors show that radiotherapy can induce epigenetic reprogramming and immune infiltration in schwannomas, and develop the snARC-seq approach to analyse the epigenomic evolution at the single-cell level.

Protein channels are highly selective, but application in membranes is limited due to low protein content. Here, protein channels are embedded into block copolymers to form nanosheets using rapid solvent casting, with better water permeability and similar molecular exclusions relative to other membrane systems.

The increase in drug-resistant bacteria is a world-wide health issue that demands the development of alternatives to standard antibiotic treatments. In this study, the authors synthesise a hedgehog artificial macrophage with heme-mimetic catalytic centres, and peroxidase- and haloperoxidase-mimicking activities, for the treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Yeh et al. find that PSPC1 is upregulated in cancer and interacts with Smad2/3 to induce TGF-β1. This leads to increased autocrine TGF-β1 signalling and a switch to pro-metastatic TGF-β1-dependent gene expression.

Anatomically resolved maps of small molecules along the gut of colonized and germ-free mice reveal distinct spatial patterns throughout the gut. These patterns can, in part, be associated with specific microorganisms producing bioactive compounds.

Synthetic polymeric membranes used for separations suffer from permeability-selectivity trade-offs. Here the authors demonstrate how a bioinspired pillar[5]arene artificial water channel embedded in a copolymer membrane can improve selectivity while still achieving high permeability.

Tissue-expansion method compatible with mass-spectrometry imaging (TEMI) enables the profiling of lipids, metabolites, peptides, proteins, and N-glycans in complex tissues with high spatial resolution, advancing spatially resolved multi-omics mapping.

Transcription factor DREB2A interacts with Med25 to regulate stress responses. Here, the authors show that DREB2A uses splicing and proline-isomerization for this regulation and that proline cis-trans switching introduces structural frustration facilitating regulator exchange.

High-throughput methods based on droplet microfluidics and size-exclusion selection allow for the identification of genetic and cellular drivers of syncytium formation induced by the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 and of inhibitors of such cell–cell fusion.

High-quality AlN heteroepitaxial films are obtained by controllable discretization and coalescence of columns on nano-patterned AlN/sapphire templates with hexagonal holes, where the density of dislocation etch pits is greatly reduced to ~10 × 10⁴ cm⁻².

Gene variants can affect folding and stability of the encoded protein. Here, the authors apply deep mutational scanning to provide genotype-phenotype information for 99% of the possible PRKN variants and reveal mechanistic details on how some variants cause loss-of-function and Parkinsons disease.

The tumor microenvironment (TME) has an important role in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSCC) progression. Here, using single-cell RNA sequencing and multiplexed imaging, the authors report the cellular complexity of the TME in patients with HNSCC, exploring inflammatory status, stromal heterogeneity and immune checkpoint receptor-ligand interactions.

Blood vessels respond to injury by thickening the supportive smooth muscle layer in a process known as neointima formation. Here the authors describe a novel regulatory pathway of neointima formation that involves a transcription factor, Interferon Regulating Factor 9, and its downstream target, the deacetylase SIRT1.

Membrane proteins are central to many biological processes, but it is difficult to measure their interactions with other objects. Sensors based on arrays of resonating microcantilevers have now performed label-free and time-resolved measurements of the interactions between a protein receptor and a bacterial virus under physiological conditions.

How hematopoietic stem cells respond, if at all, to acute anemia has remained unclear. Here, the authors show that acute anemia triggers hematopoietic stem cell proliferation and guides differentiation towards erythroid cells in a process mediated by apolipoprotein E.

A method combining genetic-code expansion, bioorthogonal Staudinger reduction and sortase-mediated transpeptidation enables site-specific and orthogonal modification of proteins with ubiquitin and SUMO in vitro and in living cells.

The study assembled a chromosome-level genome of Cycas panzhihuaensis, the last major lineage of seed plants for which a high-quality genome assembly was lacking. The study closes an important gap in our understanding of genome structure and evolution in seed plants.

Albumin conjugates can enhance drug delivery. Here, the authors repurpose albumin-binding Evans blue to develop nanovaccines that co-deliver adjuvants and tumor neoantigens to antigen-presenting cells in lymph nodes, resulting in potent and durable antitumour immunity in combination immunotherapy.

Heart failure is a complex syndrome that is associated with many different underlying risk factors. Here, to increase power, the authors jointly analyse cases of heart failure of different aetiologies in a genome-wide association study and identify 11 loci of which ten had not been previously reported.

Potassium oxide is used as a promotor in industrial ammonia synthesis, although metallic potassium is better in theory. Here, the authors demonstrate metallic potassium, an unstable metal that easily volatilizes at high temperature, can be used as a promotor for ammonia synthesis.

The authors developed a patient-specific microphysiological system using the LumeNEXT microfluidic platform to more accurately recreate the prostate cancer metastatic bone tumor microenvironment.

AsnGly motif within peptides or proteins can rearrange to β-Asp and α-Asp by asparagine deamidation and isomerisation via a succinimide intermediate, however, the mechanism underlying this transition remains underexplored. Here, the authors present a quantitative kinetic model for the overall isomerisation reaction, show that for peptides containing both charged and neutral (n + 2) amino acid residues, geometry plays a more important role in their isomerisation reaction rates, and they also identify key reaction sub-steps within succinimide formation.

The dynamic qualities of fact-cycling mineral-associated organic matter depend on chemistry between minerals and organic matter, their interactions, and the destabilizing forces causing decomposition, according to a review of recent studies on mineral-associated organic matter across ecosystems