Robertson, J. A. Human embryonic stem cell research: ethical and legal issues. Nature Reviews Genetics January (2001) www.nature.com/nrg.

Avner, P. & Heard, E. X-chromosome inactivation: counting, choice and initiation. Nature Reviews Genetics January (2001) www.nature.com/nrg.

Oredge, B. K. & Polydorides, A. D. & Darnell, R. B.  The splice of life: alternative splicing and neurological disease. Nature Reviews Neuroscience January (2001) www.nature.com/nrn.

Nilsen, T. W. The case for an RNA enzyme. News and Views article about the possibility that RNA splicing might be catalysed by the RNA components of the spliceosome. Nature 14 December (2000) www.nature.com/nature.

Lockhart, D. J. & Barlow, C. Expressing what's on your mind: DNA arrays and the brain. This Perspective discusses the use of DNA arrays in neurobiology. Nature Reviews Neuroscience January (2001) www.nature.com/nrn.

FOCUS ON CELL DIVISION

Nature Cell Biology January (2001) www.nature.com/ncb/. This special issue contains News and Views, Commentary and Review articles, as well as a historical Perspective. An overview of articles on this topic published in Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology and Nature Cell Biology can be found at www.nature.com/ncb/celldivision

These include the articles below:

Pines, J. & Rieder, C. Re-staging mitosis: a contemporary view of mitotic progression.

Mitchison, T. & Salmon, E. D. A dividing subject: mitosis through history.

Winey, M. & O'Toole, E. The spindle cycle in budding yeast.

Amon, A. Together until separin does us part. News and Views article about sister chromatid separation.

Wittmann, T., Hyman, A. & Desai, A. The mitotic spindle: a dynamic assembly of microtubules and motors.

Doe, C. Q. Cell polarity: the PARty expands. News and Views article about the function of PAR proteins during asymmetric cell division in Drosophila.

Vidwans, S. & Su, T. T. Cycling through development in Drosophila and other metazoa.