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It is currently unknown how uniform is signalling at the first synapse of vision in vivo. Here, the authors show neighbouring PR1 (red) cones differ in contrast sensitivity and timing due to locally stochastic horizontal-cell feedback, thereby extending total dynamic range.

A fundamental challenge in condensed matter physics is to understand how disordered materials deform under stress. Shiihara et al. develop a frozen atom analysis showing that deformation in CuZr metallic glasses stochastically arises from dynamically formed atomic groups in shear transformation zones.

The hepatitis B virus surface protein recognizes host entry receptor via its intrinsically disordered peptide. The authors reveal the dynamic process of the viral surface protein that involves a stepwise binding maturation for establishing high affinity and specific virus-receptor entry complex.

Global Burden of Disease estimates show that between 1990 and 2023, the prevalence and burden of drug use disorders, inclusive of amphetamine, cannabis, cocaine and opioid use, have been increasing in high-income countries, particularly in the USA.

Developing strategies for reducing carbon emissions in municipal solid waste management is essential to achieve the net-zero target. Here the authors systematically assess strategy options of different countries for achieving net-zero municipal solid waste management.

Kinematic measurements of the Perseus galaxy cluster reveal two drivers of gas motions: a small-scale driver in the inner core associated with black-hole feedback and a large-scale driver in the outer core powered by mergers.

Wolbachia, not the host genome, primarily determines femaleness in Wolbachia-infected Ostrinia strains, potentially arising from prolonged host-symbiont co-evolution. Here authors show loss of the host’s endogenous feminizer in infected Ostrinia moths.

De novo and inherited dominant variants in genes encoding U4 and U6 small nuclear RNAs are identified in individuals with retinitis pigmentosa. The variants cluster at nucleotide positions distinct from those implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders.

Protein motion is essential for biological processes like enzyme function. Here the authors report the time-resolved protein structures captured during catalysis of copper amine oxidase using mix-and-inject serial femtosecond X-ray crystallography.

A single-cell multiomic immune cell atlas from 235 Japanese, including patients with COVID-19 and healthy individuals, linked with host genetics including germline and somatic mutation, plasma proteomics and metagenomics data reveals that immune cells are dynamically regulated in a cell state-dependent manner.

Here, they show that Very-long-chain 1-deoxyceramides impair mitochondrial function and cause toxicity. Inhibiting ELOVL1 prevents these effects, suggesting a therapeutic strategy for disorders linked to elevated 1-deoxysphingolipid levels.

Plant development is characterized by periodic morphogenesis, yet regulatory mechanisms underlying the periodicity remain unknown. Tameshige et al. reveal that bistable cellular status modulates the spatial pattern of periodic leaf morphogenesis.

The TRPV3 ion channel has been reported to contribute to thermosensation. Here, the authors use electrophysiology and a thermal gradient ring method to show a transmembrane protein TMEM79 negatively regulates TRPV3-mediate currents and changed thermal preference.

Genetic mechanisms influencing COVID-19 susceptibility are not well understood. Here, the authors analyzed whole blood RNA-seq data of 465 Japanese individuals with COVID-19, highlighting thousands of fine-mapped variants affecting expression and splicing of genes, as well as the presence of COVID-19 severity-interaction eQTLs.

Frustrated quantum magnets have been studied intensely, owing to their potential of hosting exotic quantum magnetism, however, experimental realisation of model systems, such as the spin-1/2 Heisenberg antiferromagnet on an anisotropic triangular lattice is challenging. Here Gen et al demonstrate that the rhenium oxyhalides, A3ReO5X2, though chemical substitution can span a diverse effective spin Hamiltonians.

A genome-wide association study highlights a variant in DOCK2, which is common in East Asian populations but rare in Europeans, as a host genetic risk factor for severe COVID-19.

Vigilance involves the activation of orexinergic neurons in the lateral hypothalamus (LH-ox). Here the authors report the functional role of a monosynaptically connected circuit with orexinergic neurons connected to noradrenergic neurons in the locus coeruleus which target lateral amygdala neurons and enhance fear expression and generalization.

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) have been implicated in anti-PIT-1 hypophysitis, an autoimmune disease, but direct evidence is lacking. Here the authors use induced pluripotent stem cells to generate pituitary organoid and find that CTL-mediating killing is only evident in autologous organoid/CTL co-culture, thereby supporting CTL functions in this disease.

Mitophagy, the selective degradation of mitochondria, has been thought to occur via macroautophagy. Here, the authors present data indicating that microautophagy also mediates mitophagy in macrophages, and that it is essential for immune activation during M1 polarization.

Analysis of the blood DNA virome in patients with COVID-19 and autoimmune disease associates endogenous HHV-6 (eHHV-6) and high anellovirus load with increased disease risk, most notably for systemic lupus erythematosus. eHHV-6 carriers show a distinct immune response.

This study reveals how a cancer-associated mutation in CHD1 leads to the loss of its C-terminal intrinsically disordered region, disrupting condensate formation. This impairment causes improper genome distribution and gene expression, driving cancer development.

XRISM observations show the presence of odd-numbered elements chlorine and potassium in Cas A. These findings suggest that stellar activity plays an important role in cosmic chemical evolution, enriching space with elements vital for planets and life.

Chronic care manages long-term, progressive conditions, while acute care handles short-term ones. Here, authors show chronic conditions account for most of the global health burden, with 68% of DALYs and 93% of YLDs attributed to chronic care needs.

Dnmt1-deficient mice show shortened long bones from reduced chondrocyte proliferation and accelerated differentiation. Loss of DNA methylation elevates energy metabolism genes and metabolites, indicating Dnmt1 controls chondrocyte fate and bone length.

In the kagome superconductor CsV₃Sb₅, superconductivity is intertwined with an unconventional charge density wave and the pairing symmetry remains unclear due to the absence of direct superconducting gap measurements. Here, the authors use laser-based ultra-high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to reveal a highly anisotropic superconducting gap on the Fermi surface originating from the 3d-orbital electrons of the vanadium sublattice, providing insights into the physics of intertwined orders in kagome superconductors.

Self-association of low-complexity protein sequences (LC domains) is important for polymer formation, but the mechanisms underlying cell recognition of LC domain polymers remain unclear. Here, authors show that zinc finger domains bind LC domains in a cross-β polymer-dependent manner.

Using more than 100 independent iPSC lines derived from patients with Alzheimer’s disease, the authors discovered loci associated with the neuronal production of amyloid β and confirmed their influence using RNA interference.

Authors present results from a national surveillance in Japan that found MRSA strains causing bloodstream infections are predominantly from three clonal lineages. They also identified the emergence of highest 30-day-mortality MRSA clone ST764-SCCmecII and traced its evolutionary path.

Here the authors report the synthesis of defect-rich boron nitride by flux reconstruction method, which exhibited good reactivity for semihydrogenation of low concentration acetylene in ethylene-abundant gas stream.

Cyanobacteria use both chlorophylls and phycobilins to absorb light energy, and authors here use cultivation experiments, numerical simulations and protein phylogenetics to argue that cyanobacteria evolved in a green-light environment during the Archaean era in which green-specialized phycobilins would have been selectively advantageous.

Mohri et al. show that, in response to genotoxic stress, melanocyte stem cells undergo senescence-associated differentiation, causing their depletion and protecting them against melanomagenesis. This process is suppressed by carcinogens.

Neuronal micronuclei are transferred to microglia during the early postnatal period, which leads to altered microglial morphology and transcriptomic signatures, suggesting that these micronuclei may act as mediators that control microglial characteristics.

TGF-ß and IL-6 are the essential cytokines for mediating the differentiation of IL-17-producing CD4+ T helper cells (T_H17). Here, Yoon et al. provide more insights into this process and describe the opposing roles of TGFß-signalling intermediates Smad2 and Smad3 as STAT3 cofactors in Th17 differentiation.

Determining the feasibility of intergrowths between zeolites is investigated using high-throughput atomistic simulations and experimental verification. Interfacial energy is an effective descriptor for identifying the feasibility of zeolite intergrowths and a zincosilicate zeolite intergrowth with three and nine rings is realized by hydrothermal syntheses.