A way to determine how partial charges of atoms in a molecule are distributed Summary Atomic partial charges — small shifts in electron density around atoms — are crucial for…
Ancient DNA clarifies the early history of the Slavs Summary In this News & Views, Steffen Patzold discusses a new Nature paper (Gretzinger et al.) that uses ancient DNA to…
This is the world’s largest ‘mosquito factory’: its goal is to stop dengue Summary The Wolbito do Brasil facility in Curitiba is now the world’s largest production site for Wolbachia-carrying…
Flies evolved a shock-absorber tissue used during embryonic development Summary The cephalic furrow — a prominent fold separating the head from the trunk in Drosophila embryos — has long been…
Compression causes cancer cells to start spreading Summary A brief research briefing summarising a Nature paper that used a zebrafish model of melanoma to show that mechanical compression from surrounding…
How academics and ‘big tech’ can learn from one another Summary Steven C. Currall argues that industry–academic partnerships can deliver powerful benefits but only if cultural clashes and conflicts of…
Ant queens produce sons of two distinct species Summary The News & Views piece discusses findings by Juvé et al. (published in Nature) showing that the Iberian harvester ant, Messor…
Depriving brain tumours of an amino acid could enhance chemotherapy Summary News & Views commentary on a new Nature paper that maps glucose-derived carbon flow in human glioblastoma and surrounding…
Cocaine-activated ion channels engineered to break the loop of addiction in rats Summary Ion channels have been engineered to be selectively activated by cocaine. These designer channels can either stimulate…
Damaged bridges flex and twist to prevent collapse Summary Steel truss bridges — built from connected members in a framework — can sometimes survive the sudden loss of a load-bearing…
