Damaged bridges flex and twist to prevent collapse
Damaged bridges flex and twist to prevent collapse Summary Steel truss bridges — built from connected elements in a framework — can sometimes survive the sudden failure of a load-bearing…
Cocaine-activated ion channels engineered to break the loop of addiction in rats
Cocaine-activated ion channels engineered to break the loop of addiction in rats Summary Researchers have engineered ion channels that are selectively activated by cocaine and used them to reprogramme neural…
Ancient DNA connects large-scale migration with the spread of Slavs
Ancient DNA connects large-scale migration with the spread of Slavs Summary This Nature paper reports genome-wide ancient DNA from 1,243 samples (including 555 newly generated genomes) across transects in the…
Rewiring of cortical glucose metabolism fuels human brain cancer growth
Rewiring of cortical glucose metabolism fuels human brain cancer growth Summary This Nature study used clinical stable-isotope infusions and mouse models to compare how glucose is metabolised in human cortex…
Dynamic fibroblast–immune interactions shape recovery after brain injury
Dynamic fibroblast–immune interactions shape recovery after brain injury Summary This Nature paper maps how central nervous system (CNS) fibroblasts and immune cells cooperate across time after focal brain injury. Using…
One mother for two species via obligate cross-species cloning in ants
One mother for two species via obligate cross-species cloning in ants Key Points • Messor ibericus queens produce hybrid workers that combine an M. ibericus maternal genome with an M.…
Genetic suppression features ABHD18 as a Barth syndrome therapeutic target
Genetic suppression features ABHD18 as a Barth syndrome therapeutic target Summary This Nature paper uses genome-wide genetic suppression screens, biochemical analysis and in vivo models to identify ABHD18 (an α/β-hydrolase…
Multiple overlapping binding sites determine transcription factor occupancy
Multiple overlapping binding sites determine transcription factor occupancy Summary This Nature paper introduces PADIT-seq, a high-throughput in vitro method that assays transcription factor (TF) binding to all possible 10-base sequences.…
Amygdala–liver signalling orchestrates glycaemic responses to stress
Amygdala–liver signalling orchestrates glycaemic responses to stress Summary This Nature paper identifies a medial amygdala (MeA) → ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) → sympathetic → liver axis that rapidly mobilises glucose in…
PICALM Alzheimer’s risk allele causes aberrant lipid droplets in microglia
PICALM Alzheimer’s risk allele causes aberrant lipid droplets in microglia Summary This Nature paper uses allele-specific open chromatin mapping (ASoC) in human iPSC-derived brain cells to prioritise functional non-coding Alzheimer’s…