Outlook in 2017

Bloodstain pattern analysis is used by forensic scientists to help reconstruct violent crimes. Efforts are underway to root the often subjective practice in science.

Alzheimer's disease and ageing brains could benefit from therapies based on blood's liquid component.

Technological advances are creating an explosion in possibilities for the blood-based diagnosis of brain injuries, infections and cancers.

Clinical trials may soon test whether gene editing can cure a group of debilitating haemoglobin disorders.

When threats emerge to the blood supply, public-health officials must make difficult decisions to reduce the risk of infections being transmitted by transfusions.

Stem cells and artificial substitutes could ease the dependence on blood donations.

Improvements in image capture and viewing experience.

Innovators are finding better ways to produce, store and use energy, on Earth and beyond.

Scientists commercializing technologies that enable sturdier and more-sustainable structures.

Drawing on the latest research, companies are developing more-effective therapies.

Advances in materials and techniques are restoring damaged body parts to full function.

Malnutrition is a global problem. With population and consumption set to rise over the coming decades, achieving food security will require action on many fronts.

Fertile land is at a premium in Egypt. Reclaiming the desert is repeatedly proposed as the solution, but should the country be doing more with what it already has?

Malnutrition is the new normal. Addressing it will require changes across the entire food system, says John Ingram.

Wild and heirloom plants are giving major crop varieties, and the global food system, a genetic makeover.

A technological revolution in farming led by advances in robotics and sensing technologies looks set to disrupt modern practice.

Our insatiable appetite for red meat is bad for our health and for the planet. Sustainable alternatives are in the pipeline, but will they convince us to make the switch?

Plant scientists are redesigning photosynthesis to improve crop yields and feed a growing population.