News & Views in 2020

An ancient resistance mechanism poses a problem when using streptogramin antibiotics. A modular approach to drug synthesis exploits this same mechanism to generate an antibiotic that avoids the emergence of resistance.

Resident bacteria in the maternal gut are important for normal fetal brain development in mice. It emerges that this effect is driven by bacterially produced metabolite molecules that signal to the fetal brain.

The rhythmic activity of a single layer of neurons has now been shown to cause dissociation — an experience involving a feeling of disconnection from the surrounding world.

Evidence has been found of a planet circling the smouldering remains of a dead star in a tight orbit. The discovery raises the question of how the planet survived the star’s death throes — and whether other planets also orbit the remains.

Influenza vaccination induces a protective memory immune response. The finding that human naive and memory B cells enter vaccine-induced germinal-centre structures suggests that both cell types aid this memory response.

Miniaturized electronic devices generate a lot of heat, which must be dissipated to maintain performance. A microfluidic system designed to be an integral part of a microchip demonstrates exceptional cooling performance.

How can the decline in global biodiversity be reversed, given the need to supply food? Computer modelling provides a way to assess the effectiveness of combining various conservation and food-system interventions to tackle this issue.

Disease-causing microorganisms can invade plants through leaf pores called stomata, which close rapidly in a calcium-dependent manner on detecting such danger. The calcium channels involved have now finally been identified.

Contradictory values for the masses of atomic nuclei have cast doubt on the reliability of these widely used quantities. A new mass measurement of the deuteron, the second-simplest atomic nucleus, clarifies the situation.

A light-sensitive receptor protein expressed in neurons deep in the mouse brain has been shown to be stimulated by violet light, and to activate a pathway that reduces heat production in brown fat.

Volumes of fluid have previously been made to float above air by vibrating the air–fluid system vertically. It now emerges that an ‘antigravity’ effect enables objects to float upside down on the air–fluid interface.

Yeast has been engineered to convert simple sugars and amino acids into drugs that inhibit a neurotransmitter molecule. The work marks a step towards making the production of these drugs more reliable and sustainable.

Skin cancers resulting from distinct mutations have characteristic tissue forms and different disease outcomes. Analysing the architecture of benign and aggressive tumours reveals how mechanical forces drive these patterns.

An ingenious combination of satellite imaging, machine learning and stress analysis has revealed the Antarctic ice shelves that are most at risk of disintegrating as a result of atmospheric warming.

Temperature determines the geographical distribution of plants and their rate of growth and development, but how they sense high temperatures to mount a response was unclear. Now a process underlying this responsiveness is known.

Tiny devices have been developed that can act as the legs of laser-controlled microrobots. The compatibility of these devices with microelectronics systems suggests a path to the mass manufacture of autonomous microrobots.

In a few people living with HIV, the virus remains under control without antiretroviral therapy. It emerges that, in these people, the viral DNA that is integrated into the host genome is in a deeply transcriptionally repressed state.

Filaments of keratin — stable protein polymers best known for their function in hair and nails — provide a memory of cell polarity at a crucial stage in early mouse development.

A mutation in the C9orf72 gene is the most common genetic cause of two neurodegenerative diseases. A newly identified immunological function for the C9orf72 protein points to a potential therapeutic strategy for these diseases.

Diodes are devices that conduct electric current mainly in one direction. An electrically polar film that acts as a diode for superconducting current could lead to electronic devices that have ultralow power consumption.