Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
Abstract representation of the complex folds of the protein and RNA components of the large subunit of the mammalian mitochondrial ribosome, by Basil Greber after Keith Haring. The mitochondria that power eukaryotic cells via aerobic respiration originated from prokaryotes and contain a much-reduced genome that encodes a number of RNA molecules and a very limited subset of mitochondrial proteins. The mitochondrial ribosomes, or mitoribosomes, of mammalian cells are highly specialized for the translation of membrane proteins of the respiratory chain. Nenad Ban and colleagues have solved the three-dimensional structure of the large 39S mitoribosomal subunit by cryoelectron microscopy to 4.9 å resolution. Their images provide detailed insights into the considerable changes that have occurred in this ribosome, presumably to help facilitate translation of the very hydrophobic proteins encoded by the mitochondrial genome. Cover: Basil Greber
Ten years ago, Woo Suk Hwang rose to the top of his field before fraud and dodgy bioethical practices derailed his career. Can a scientific pariah redeem himself?
Edward B. Barbier and colleagues call for governance and funds for deep-sea reserves and the restoration of ecosystems damaged by commercial interests.
Separate ethics courses are not enough, argues Erin A. Cech. Understanding the public-welfare impacts of science and engineering is a core professional skill.
An analysis of data from forests across the planet reveals that the types of beneficial fungus with which tree roots associate determine the amount of carbon stored in soils. See Letter p.543
The asteroid Ceres has been thought to contain abundant water. Observations acquired with the Herschel Space Observatory now show that this Solar System object is spewing water vapour from its surface. See Letter p.525
Haematopoietic stem cells, from which blood cells originate, are shown to respond to oestrogen and divide more frequently in female mice than in males, probably preparing females for the increased demand for blood in pregnancy. See Letter p.555
A thin engineered surface has been developed that can protect sensitive electronic systems from strong signal interference, allowing them to communicate effectively with external antennas.
A combination of observational data and modelling reveals the potential significance of the north and tropical Atlantic Ocean in driving change in Antarctic winds and sea ice on decadal timescales and longer. See Letter p.538
The discovery that most CD4+ T cells killed during HIV infection die through a process known as pyroptosis may provide long-sought explanations for HIV-associated T-cell depletion and inflammation. See Article p.509
Large-scale genomic analysis of somatic point mutations in exomes from tumour–normal pairs across 21 cancer types identifies most known cancer genes in these tumour types as well as 33 genes not known to be significantly mutated, and down-sampling analysis indicates that larger sample sizes will reveal many more genes mutated at clinically important frequencies.
The analysis of multiple SIV vaccine regimens in macaques leads to the identification of a key two-amino-acid signature that confers resistance to neutralizing antibodies; a similar mechanism of immune escape is shown to operate in HIV and may explain the limited efficacy seen in HIV vaccine trials.
Quiescent CD4 T cells in lymphoid tissues are shown to die after HIV-1 infection by caspase-1-mediated pyroptosis, a highly inflammatory form of programmed cell death; caspase 1 inhibitors, which are safe for human use, can rescue the cell death in vitro raising the possibility of new therapeutics targeting the host instead of the virus.
Cryo-electron microscopy combined with chemical crosslinking and mass spectrometry is used to determine the structure of the large subunit of the mammalian mitoribosome; this structure provides detailed structural insight, particularly of the molecular architecture of the polypeptide exit site, which has been structurally remodelled during evolution, presumably to help facilitate the membrane insertion of the highly hydrophobic proteins encoded by the mitochondrial genome.
Precision timing and multiwavelength observations of a millisecond pulsar in a triple system show that the gravitational interactions between the bodies are strong; this allows the mass of each body to be determined accurately and means that the triple system will provide precise tests of the strong equivalence principle of general relativity.
Applying a very large magnetic field to charge-neutral monolayer graphene produces a symmetry-protected quantum spin Hall state with helical edge states whose properties can be modulated by balancing the applied field against an intrinsic antiferromagnetic instability.
Basal-plane dislocations, identified as fundamental defects in bilayer graphene by transmission electron microscopy and atomistic simulations, reveal striking size effects, most notably a pronounced buckling of the graphene membrane, which drastically alters the strain state and is of key importance for the material’s mechanical and electronic properties.
Warming of the north and tropical Atlantic Ocean, which is associated in part with the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (a leading mode of sea surface temperature variability), is shown to affect sea-level pressure in the Amundsen Sea, explaining the accelerated warming of and sea-ice redistribution around the Antarctic Peninsula.
Ecosystem mycorrhizal type is shown to have a stronger effect on soil carbon storage than temperature, precipitation, clay content and primary production; ecosystems dominated by ectomycorrhizal and ericoid mycorrhizal fungi contain 70% more soil carbon per unit nitrogen than do ecosystems dominated by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.
A full genome sequence is presented of sugar beet Beta vulgaris, the first plant belonging to Caryophyllales to have its genome sequenced; spinach was sequenced to enable inter-clade comparisons, and intraspecific variation was analysed by comparative genomics of a progenitor of all beet crops and additional sugar beet accessions.
Whole-exome sequencing reveals that a rare variant of phospholipase D3 (PLD3(V232M)) segregates with Alzheimer’s disease status in two independent families and doubles risk for the disease in case–control series, and that several other PLD3 variants increase risk for Alzheimer’s disease in African Americans and people of European descent.
Haematopoietic stem cells are found to be regulated differently in male and female mice — haematopoietic stem cells in females divide more frequently than in males in response to oestrogen and this difference depends on the ovaries but not the testes; using a genetic approach, it is shown that the effect is dependent on expression of oestrogen receptor-α (ERα) in stem cells.
Consuming diets rich in plant versus animal products changes the microbes found in the human gut within days, with important implications for our health and evolution.
Inhibitors of the bile acid transporter ASBT may be useful therapeutics for treating hypercholesterolaemia and type 2 diabetes; here, two X-ray crystal structures of an ASBT homologue from Yersinia frederiksenii are solved.