Nature view

Research highlights from the NPG family of journals.

Ectopic pregnancy: smooth journey

In an ectopic pregnancy, the embryo implants outside the uterus — most commonly in the fallopian tube — representing a major health problem. The underlying causes are largely unknown, but it now seems that abnormal cannabinoid signalling is involved. Writing in Nature Medicine, Haibin Wang and colleagues combine genetic and pharmacologic strategies to demonstrate the importance of cannabinoid receptor CB1 signalling in oviductal transport. Their results indicate that the cannabinoid and adrenergic systems coordinate the smooth-muscle contractions and relaxations that transport embryos safely through the fallopian tubes. The study sheds light on a process of huge importance, and also raises questions about the recreational and therapeutic use of cannabinoids during pregnancy.

articles
Aberrant cannabinoid signaling impairs oviductal transport of embryos
H. WANG et al.
Nature Medicine 10; October 2004
Published online 19 September 2004
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Epstein-Barr: deadly alliance

A number of specific viruses promote tumour formation in humans. Most people acquire Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) during childhood without any resulting symptoms. However, Epstein and Barr demonstrated 40 years ago that EBV is also associated with Burkitt's lymphoma, and since then a number of human cancers have been linked with the virus. Lawrence Young and Alan Rickinson review our current understanding of EBV biology and examine areas in which we still need to make progress to fully understand how this DNA tumour virus promotes cancer.

reviews
Epstein-Barr virus: 40 years on
L. S. YOUNG & A. B. RICKINSON
Nature Reviews Cancer 4; 757; October 2004

Cells must fold thousands of different proteins into a great variety of conformations, and the folding process often requires the action of molecular chaperones. In both the prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell cytosol, chaperones form a network of pathways that take substrate polypeptides from the point of initial synthesis on ribosomes through to the final stages of folding. In Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, Ulrich Hartl and colleagues examine the contributions of the various pathways and review the structural classes of the chaperones involved.

reviews
Pathways of chaperone-mediated protein folding in the cytosol
J. C. YOUNG, V. R. AGASHE, K. SIEGERS AND F. U. HARTL
Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology 5, 781; October 2004

DNA damage control

The DNA damage signalling pathway protects cells from agents that induce cell death or transformation. It plays a major role in repairing DNA and in checkpoint control, which leads to survival or apoptosis. DNA damage activates the phosphorylating action of the kinase ATM (ataxia-telangiectasia mutated), and in
Nature Cell Biology, Constantinos Demonacos and his colleagues identify a new pathway mediated by ATM activity. They report that ATM targets the transcriptional cofactor Strap, allowing the cofactor to accumulate in the nucleus and enhance the DNA damage response.

articles
A new effector pathway links ATM kinase with the DNA damage response
C. DEMONACOS et al.
Nature Cell Biology 6; October 2004
Published online 19 September 2004
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Poison that myeloma!

Arsenic compounds have been used as unlikely therapeutics for centuries. They were initially used to treat diseases such as syphilis, but they have been used more recently in leukemia research. Arsenicals are well-suited for the treatment of cancer, as they not only induce apoptosis, but also inhibit growth and angiogenesis, regulate cell signalling pathways and induce differentiation. In this month's issue of Leukemia, Rousselot and colleagues report on the efficacy of a combination of arsenicals on advanced multiple myeloma and suggest strategies by which treatment could be improved. The results of this study and a further analysis of the use of arsenicals are provided in an associated commentary by Ravandi.

commentary
Arsenic trioxide: expanding roles for an ancient drug?
F. RAVANDI
Leukemia 18, 1457-1459; September 2004
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original manuscript
A clinical and pharmacological study of arsenic trioxide in advanced multiple myeloma patients
P. ROUSSELOT, et al.
Leukemia 18, 1518-1521; September 2004
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Sudden and silent: SIDS in Twins

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is defined as infant death occurring within the first year of life that remains unexplained even after a thorough investigation, including a complete autopsy, examination of the death scene, and review of clinical history. Despite a recent decline in SIDS-related mortality, a handful of studies have also reported a higher incidence of the syndrome in twins. In the latest issue of Journal of Perinatology, Getahun and colleagues investigate this purported concordance in depth. Using a logistic regression model to calculate odds ratios for a number of risk factors, the authors find that the epidemiology of SIDS in twins is similar to that seen in singletons. The study concludes that interventions targeting smoking during pregnancy, alcohol use and small-for-gestational age births may have the greatest impact in preventing SIDS.

original article
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome among Twin Births: United States, 1995-1998
D. GETAHUN, K. DEMISSIE, S.-E. LU, G. G. RHOADS
Journal of Perinatology 24, 544-554; September 2004
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