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Forests are essential for both climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation, yet how to balance these goals in managed forests remains unclear. Here, using a Europe-wide dataset, the authors find that biodiversity increases with carbon stocks, but mostly when deadwood is included.

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.

Estimates from the Global Burden of Disease study reveal declines in chronic respiratory disease mortality between 1990 and 2023—especially during the COVID-19 pandemic—but the burdens on people affected remain substantial.

This study shows that historical precipitation variability shapes current and future record-breaking precipitation probabilities, with regions with low current records being more at risk. High-risk regions are abundant around the world, leading to a quarter billion people facing potential precipitation disasters by 2050.

Naderi et al. show that increasing the dispersion of aromatic residues in intrinsically disordered regions of human transcription factors enhances their activity but reduces their specificity.

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.

Insects are declining in many regions. Here the authors show that arthropod biomass losses in Jena Experiment and Biodiversity Exploratories time series are driven more by species loss than by species identity and abundance declines, and are mitigated by high plant diversity and low land-use intensity.

The authors in this work apply room-temperature serial X-ray crystallography to fragment screening. This reveals distinct protein conformations and altered binding modes when compared to conventional cryogenic methods, whilst providing similar resolution.

Experimental evidence of coherent charge transport in the normal state of the kagome metal CsV₃Sb₅ is presented, revealing the nature of correlated order in kagome metals and new directions for exploring quantum coherence in correlated electron systems.

Vast quantities of carbon stored in tropical forests are threatened by deforestation. Here, using high resolution satellite data, Brincket al. examine how edge effects influence carbon emissions and they find an additional 10.3 Gt of carbon are released by deforestation when including fragmentation effects.

Fungal and Oomycota pathogens of plants threaten food security. Here, Turella et al show that Phytophthora plant pathogens can oxidate oligogalacturonides to overcome plant immunity by blocking sensing of pectin degradation.

Experiments reveal a speed limit for the spreading of spatial coherence during the formation of a weakly interacting Bose–Einstein condensate.

Aspartate in the tumour environment activates the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor in cancer cells to induce cellular programmes that increase the aggressiveness of metastasis.

Oct4, along with Sox2 and Klf4 can induce pluripotency, but structurally similar factors like Oct6 cannot. Here, using pluripotency competent and incompetent factors, the authors show that Sox2 plays a dominant role in facilitating chromatin opening at Oct4 bound DNA early during reprogramming to pluripotency.

Here the authors apply machine learning approaches to Alzheimer’s genetics, confirm known associations and suggest novel risk loci. These methods demonstrate predictive power comparable to traditional approaches, while also offering potential new insights beyond standard genetic analyses.

Tumor-associated neutrophils exhibit heterogeneity in breast cancer. Here, the authors identify a distinct precursor population (PreNeu) in estrogen receptor-positive tumors. PreNeu suppress homologous recombination in cancer cells, promoting error-prone DNA repair and enhancing sensitivity to PARP inhibitors.

This study introduces an interesting ionized physical vapor deposition concept. The technique enables tailored ion acceleration on insulating substrates resulting in high-quality thin films at low deposition temperatures.

Traditional methods for tuning the dimensions of organic electronic device structures often rely on cumbersome processes with limited resolution. Here, the authors report ultraviolet irradiation in ambient conditions for tuning structural parameters for organic small molecule hole transport layers.

A meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of type 2 diabetes (T2D) identifies more than 600 T2D-associated loci; integrating physiological trait and single-cell chromatin accessibility data at these loci sheds light on heterogeneity within the T2D phenotype.

The ability to maintain blood stem cells (HSCs) in vitro would allow us to provide better therapies for blood diseases. Here, the authors report that polymer-organised extracellular proteins, coupled to soft environments mimicking bone marrow stiffness, allow stromal cells to maintain HSCs in vitro.

Manioglu et al use high-resolution atomic force microscopy to resolve how polymyxins interact with the bacterial membrane. Polymyxins arrange the bacterial lipids into regular hexagonal structures that stiffen the membrane and lead to rupture.

Wood density is an important plant trait. Data from 1.1 million forest inventory plots and 10,703 tree species show a latitudinal gradient in wood density, with temperature and soil moisture explaining variation at the global scale and disturbance also having a role at the local level.

Allergen specific immunotherapy (AIT) is both, safe and effective in reducing systemic symptoms of venom allergy in individuals. Here the authors examine the underlying immune cell changes after venom specific AIT in early time points after therapy initiation showing indicative changes in specific immune cell populations.

A comparison of alpha diversity (number of plant species) and dark diversity (species that are currently absent from a site despite being ecologically suitable) demonstrates the negative effects of regional-scale anthropogenic activity on plant diversity.

Studies using mouse models of lung adenocarcinoma identify an association between age, iron homeostasis and tumour initiation potential that involves NUPR1 and lipocalin-2.

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.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome following SARS-CoV-2 infection results from increased serum levels of TGFβ, which impairs the reactivation of virus-specific T cells.

Polymers are known to spontaneously produce micro- and nanoplastics but the mechanisms by which environmentally-triggered Å-level random bond breaking events lead to the formation of these relatively large fragments are unclear. Here, the authors show that chain scission accumulates in the amorphous phase of a semicrystalline morphology which leads to mechanical failure and the concurrent release of nanoplastics even under quiescent conditions.

Known genetic loci account for only a fraction of the genetic contribution to Alzheimer’s disease. Here, the authors have performed a large genome-wide meta-analysis comprising 409,435 individuals to discover 6 new loci and demonstrate the efficacy of an Alzheimer’s disease polygenic risk score.

Genome-wide association and fine-mapping analyses in ancestrally diverse populations implicate candidate causal genes and mechanisms underlying type 2 diabetes. Trans-ancestry genetic risk scores enhance transferability across populations.

The cGAS-STING pathway senses cytosolic DNA to activate interferon responses, but has also been implicated in autophagy induction. Here the authors show that, during herpes simplex virus infection, cGAS-induced autophagy is mediated by TBK1-induced TRIM23 phosphorylation and downstream signaling events to assist in antiviral immunity.

Literature produced inconsistent findings regarding the links between extreme weather events and climate policy support across regions, populations and events. This global study offers a holistic assessment of these relationships and highlights the role of subjective attribution.

In a rat model of multiple sclerosis, β-synuclein-specific T cells induce inflammation and pathological changes in the grey matter of the central nervous system; these cells were also found in higher numbers in patients with multiple sclerosis, particularly those with a chronic progressive course.

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.

Here the authors combine a multimodal imaging-snRNAseq transcriptomics strategy to provide insight into the distribution of a neurotropic tick-borne flavivirus in the brain, and show that absence of interferon signaling increases infection of resident microglia.

Analysis of ground-sourced and satellite-derived models reveals a global forest carbon potential of 226 Gt outside agricultural and urban lands, with a difference of only 12% across these modelling approaches.

Exhaustion is the functional deterioration of T cells following chronic stimulation. Here, Wu et al. show that mitochondrial dysfunction drives T cell exhaustion by inhibiting HIF-1α degradation and transcriptional metabolic reprogramming.

The extreme light confinement of plasmonic nanocavities is constrained by material limitations. Here, authors show how to lay down precision atomic layers within plasmonic nanocavities that fully reveal the catalytic properties of transition metals while maintaining strong plasmonic properties.

Using RFdiffusion, a general method for targeting intrinsically disordered proteins and regions for protein design has been developed.

Catalytic cracking is an emerging technology allowing to convert plastic waste into hydrocarbon feedstocks. Here, the authors show that the activity of ultrastable zeolite Y depends on the concentration of acid sites located outside of micropores.

Staufer et al. provide a protocol for preparation of synthetic minimal virions (MiniV) of SARS-CoV-2, mimicking viral structure and allowing for precise investigation of receptor binding mechanism. They find that the highly conserved free fatty acid binding pocket (FABP) can function as an allosteric regulator, enabling adaptation of immunogenicity via binding of proinflammatory free fatty acids and mediating the spike open to-closed equilibrium.

The Apelin receptor (APLNR) plays a key role during cardiovascular development. Here, authors develop genetically encoded APLNR conformation biosensors, which enable the measurement of temporally and spatially resolved APLNR activity in model cell lines and living organisms.

Curved cell shapes are common among bacteria, but the underlying morphogenetic mechanisms are incompletely understood. Here, the authors identify an outer-membrane protein complex that promotes cell curvature in Rhodospirillum rubrum by forming helical ribbon structures that modulate the dynamics of cell wall biosynthesis, biasing cell growth towards the cell’s outer curve.

Understanding CD8 + T cell response to immune checkpoint blockade at the molecular level is important for the design of more efficient cancer immune therapies. Authors show here that the histone lysine methyltransferase Suv39h1 controls the transcriptional programs that determine the functionality of CD8 + T cells and Suv39h1 inhibition may potentiate anti-PD-1 therapy of melanomas.

Examining drivers of the latitudinal biodiversity gradient in a global database of local tree species richness, the authors show that co-limitation by multiple environmental and anthropogenic factors causes steeper increases in richness with latitude in tropical versus temperate and boreal zones.

White matter (WM) astrocytes differ significantly from gray matter astrocytes, with WM astrocytes in the forebrain exhibiting unique proliferation capacity, which is absent in cerebellar WM, suggesting region-specific astrocyte generation.

Near-infrared (NIR) fluorophores have attracted interest for bioimaging; yet availability, biocompatibility and application can be an issue. Here, the authors report on the development of Egyptian Blue nanosheets with high NIR fluorescence and photostability demonstrating bioimaging applications in vivo.