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Investigations in wild bats and non-human primates in Brazil and Costa Rica inform about diverse Morbillivirus ecology in neotropical bats and host jumps, and about zoonotic potential of morbilliviruses in Latin America.

Transcriptome-wide m⁶A RNA methylation profile in 162 primary prostate tumors identifies m⁶A association with prognostic clinical features and disease aggression.

The RNA methyltransferase activity of SPOUT1/CENP-32 is crucial for accurate mitotic spindle organization. Here, the authors describe a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by bi-allelic pathogenic SPOUT1 variants with reduced activity and compromised function in spindle organization.

Genome-wide association analyses of intracranial and nine subcortical brain volumes in 74,898 participants of European ancestry identify 254 independent loci and yield polygenic scores accounting for brain variation across ancestries.

A global network of researchers was formed to investigate the role of human genetics in SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity; this paper reports 13 genome-wide significant loci and potentially actionable mechanisms in response to infection.

Hydraulic fracturing remodels cell-cell adhesions in physiology and during development. Here, authors combine vesicle experiments and computational modeling to identify the physical principles behind biological fracking.

Dry-season climate variability is a primary driver of tropical tree growth, according to observations from a pantropical tree-ring network.

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.

Photonic, electronic and lattice resonances in patterned semiconductor microcavities are tailored to demonstrate coherent bidirectional microwave-to-optical conversion via phonon-exciton-photon quasi-particles in the strong-coupling regime.

Genomic analysis of Plasmodium DNA from 36 ancient individuals provides insight into the global distribution and spread of malaria-causing species during around 5,500 years of human history.

Nerve interfaces have the potential to deliver therapythroughout the body by monitoring and modulating function via the peripheral nervous system. Here, the authors present an ultraconformable cuff capable of high-resolution recording and stimulation of nerve activity in freely-moving conditions.

Extent and spatial patterns of settlements and infrastructures strongly affect resource demand of national economies worldwide. Their influence on final energy and CO2 emissions is almost as large as that of gross domestic product (GDP).

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells monitor the bone marrow for apoptotic megakaryocytes (MKs) and deliver IFNα to the MK niche, triggering local on-demand proliferation and maturation of MK progenitors.

In a cross-cultural study of eight diverse societies, House et al. provide evidence that links societal variation in prosociality to the development of a universal psychology for responding to social norms.

The authors defined a roadmap for investigating the genetic covariance between structural or functional brain phenotypes and risk for psychiatric disorders. Their proof-of-concept study using the largest available common variant data sets for schizophrenia and volumes of several (mainly subcortical) brain structures did not find evidence of genetic overlap.

Multiomic factor analysis of blood multiomic data, including single-cell transcriptomics, for individuals with either acute or chronic coronary syndrome identifies immune cell signatures that correlate with treatment outcomes.

Detailed information on SARS-CoV-2 infection rates in Latin America by occupation, socioeconomic group and geographic area are rarely available. Here, the authors provide these estimates for in Bogota, Colombia using data from a sentinel surveillance scheme, and find that over half the population had been infected by March 2021.

Loss of MEN1 affects tumor growth, varing with the components of the tumor microenvironment. These tumors show redistribution of MLL1 on chromatin and the activation of a viral mimicry response.

This paper identifies the top-50 priority questions for meiofaunal research, highlighting their critical roles in biogeochemical cycles and biodiversity. It calls for a balanced research agenda, international cooperation, and advances in technology to overcome current challenges and unlock meiofauna’s full potential.

Combination of epidemiology, preclinical models and ultradeep DNA profiling of clinical cohorts unpicks the inflammatory mechanism by which air pollution promotes lung cancer

The authors report a new genus and species of titanosaurian sauropod, Abditosaurus kuehnei, from the Late Cretaceous (ca. 70.5 Ma) of Spain. A. kuehnei groups phylogenetically with South American and African taxa, suggesting geographical connectivity between Africa and Europe at this time.

Genome-wide analysis identifies variants associated with the volume of seven different subcortical brain regions defined by magnetic resonance imaging. Implicated genes are involved in neurodevelopmental and synaptic signaling pathways.

Genome-wide association analyses identify 30 risk loci for IgA nephropathy. Functional annotations of putative causal genes converge on inflammatory signaling pathways and cytokine ligand–receptor pairs, prioritizing potential new drug targets.

Cross-neutralization assays of early variants and the 501Y.V2 variant of SARS-CoV-2 show that plasma from individuals infected with 501Y.V2 effectively neutralizes all variants, indicating that a vaccine that targets 501Y.V2 may also be effective against other SARS-CoV-2 variants.

An artificial intelligence system prospectively deployed to design radiation therapy plans for patients with prostate cancer illustrates the real-world impact of machine learning in clinical practice and identifies factors influencing human–algorithm interaction

The density of commercially important fish and invertebrate species is influenced by the geomorphic mangrove type, salinity, temperature, and length of mangrove forest edge, according to an analysis of fish and invertebrate density data from published field studies.

Palaeoproteomics offers an opportunity to resolve molecular phylogenies especially in contexts where ancient DNA does not preserve. Here collagen sequences resolve sloth phylogenies differently from morphology-based estimates, illuminating the utility of proteomics in systematics.

In a GWAS study of 32,438 adults, the authors discovered five novel loci for intracranial volume and confirmed two known signals. Variants for intracranial volume were also related to childhood and adult cognitive function and to Parkinson's disease, and enriched near genes involved in growth pathways, including PI3K-AKT signaling.

Peer-to-peer energy trading can foster participation in the energy transition, but little is understood about prosumer preferences and their effect on the grid. Pena-Bello et al. use an online experiment among German homeowners to study decision-making strategies and simulate their impact on the operation of an energy community.

Sjögren’s syndrome, a disease that primarily affects women, is poorly understood. Here, the authors combine data from a large cohort of patients and healthy controls to identify biomarkers that distinguish patient subgroups to improve our understanding of the disease and facilitate drug development.

Plakophilin-2 is a key component of desmosomes required to maintain cardiac tissue cohesion. Here the authors uncover a previously unknown defect in cell cycle and adipocyte senescence due to impaired Plakophilin-2 in subjects with obesity.

Developmental disorders (DDs) are more prevalent in males, thought to be due to X-linked genetic variation. Here, the authors investigate the burden of X-linked coding variants in 11,044 DD patients, showing that this contributes to ~6% of both male and female cases and therefore does not solely explain male bias in DDs.

The hippocampus in mammalian brain varies in size across individuals. Here, Hibar and colleagues perform a genome-wide association meta-analysis to find six genetic loci with significant association to hippocampus volume.

Understanding the physical mechanisms of photon–atom interactions on ultrafast timescales is challenging, but a new theoretical framework enables the interpretation of attoclock experiments measuring tunnelling times in hydrogen.

D-glutamate is an essential component of the bacterial cell wall. Here, the authors use mouse models of infection withAcinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureusto show that bacterial mutants unable to synthesize D-glutamate can potentially be used as live attenuated vaccines.

Cortex morphology varies with age, cognitive function, and in neurological and psychiatric diseases. Here the authors report 160 genome-wide significant associations with thickness, surface area and volume of the total cortex and 34 cortical regions from a GWAS meta-analysis in 22,824 adults.