Life sciences: genetics, neuroscience, ecology and molecular biology.
Researchers found that information flow between major brain networks differed between autistic participants and non-autistic controls. An artificial-intelligence system classified the two groups with a mean accuracy of 91% across cross-validation, but the study does not establish a clinical biomarker.
Researchers describe a streamlined workflow for producing and testing designed proteins at much greater scale than standard laboratory methods. By using pooled DNA and partial automation, the approach could characterize more than 1,000 designs at about $5 per construct.
Researchers confirmed two bat species on Flores Island in the Azores, including Nyctalus azoreum, which had not previously been recorded there. Acoustic monitoring found that Pipistrellus maderensis was widespread, while N. azoreum was detected at only a few sites and showed very low activity.
A study tracking eight male crickets across their adult lives found that calling changed with age and declined as sleep-like behavior increased. Movement also varied across life stages and times of day, rather than showing a simple overall decline.
A review examines drugs that target CD38, a molecule found in large amounts on the cells that make antibodies. Early clinical evidence suggests these treatments may help some people with severe autoimmune disease, especially lupus nephritis and immune thrombocytopenia, but the studies so far are small and varied.
In laboratory experiments, yoghurt, tomatoes and several other Mediterranean foods reduced DNA damage caused by extracts of very fine air-pollution particles. The findings come from bacteria and human cell lines, so they do not yet show that eating these foods protects people from air pollution.
Researchers found that the feed toxin deoxynivalenol, or DON, selectively disrupted gut fungi in piglets while leaving bacterial diversity intact. The changes were linked to altered microbial activity, lower butyrate and reduced total short-chain fatty acids in the colon.
A systematic review and meta-analysis compared imaging findings of the thoracolumbar fascia—a sheet of connective tissue in the lower back—in people with low back pain and people without symptoms. Across 14 human studies, the fascia was generally thicker, stiffer and more echogenic in the low-back-pain group, while findings about its ability to slide were unclear. These results show associations, not proof that fascia changes cause pain.
Giving mice a more stimulating environment during adolescence prevented behavioral and cognitive problems caused by early-life stress. The researchers linked the effect to restored CREB-BDNF-TrkB signaling and found reduced TrkB levels in neuron-derived exosomes from people with schizophrenia.
Researchers expected an enzyme involved in building tomato fruit cuticles to strengthen the fruit surface. Instead, engineered tomatoes had less cutin and wax, softer cuticles and greater susceptibility to a common fungus.
AI tools for predicting T-cell recognition often struggle when the peptide has not appeared in their training data. A study of structure-based classifiers found that extra training objectives can improve predictions for unfamiliar peptides, but the broader generalization problem remains.
In an onion-plant study, the insecticide clothianidin reduced germination, root growth, weight gain and photosynthetic pigments. It also increased oxidative stress, DNA and chromosome damage, and structural changes in plant tissues as exposure levels rose.
Long-term trials in Bihar, India, found that manure and crop residues improved soil properties and raised rice and wheat yields. Reduced tillage mainly benefited physical soil conditions, but zero-tillage results varied by site and could lower yields when residues were not added.
In laboratory experiments, blocking PHGDH, an enzyme involved in serine metabolism, weakened anaplastic thyroid cancer cells that had become resistant to dabrafenib. The treatment reduced colony formation and growth-related signaling, alone and in combination with dabrafenib.
Brain stimulation separated motion-discrimination accuracy from confidence in perceptual decisions. Strengthening one visual pathway affected both measures, while disrupting a parietal brain region changed confidence-related performance without altering motion discrimination.
