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Astronomers have obtained spectacular images of an interstellar jet launched from a newly forming star. Careful comparison with archival data offers a fresh take on the chemistry of the environment that surrounds it.
In organisms with X and Y chromosomes, gene expression must be equalized between the sexes. A protein that causes upregulation of gene expression of the X chromosome in male mosquitoes has been discovered.
An organic light-emitting diode has been integrated with an optically driven organic laser to produce laser light from electricity. The design bypasses many of the challenges posed by direct electrical input in such devices.
Are protected areas slowing down global biodiversity declines? A global analysis provides evidence that they are, although effects vary across groups of species, and what happens outside protected areas matters, too.
An impressive combination of computational modelling and experimental techniques in live zebrafish embryos reveals how the heart initiates its organized and rhythmic beating.
Layers of a thin semiconductor material overlap in a particular pattern, giving rise to particle currents carrying a fraction of the charge of an electron — with potential for encoding quantum information.
To explain the interplay of climate, area and isolation that underlies the marked global differences in biodiversity, a switch in focus from geographic space to climatic space offers a way forwards.
A test performed on antihydrogen atoms has shown that gravity acts on matter and antimatter in a similar way. The experimental feat is the latest in efforts to probe the crossover between theories of relativity and particle physics.
Understanding the timeline of technological developments sheds light on early societies. A remarkable finding in Africa of a structure made from shaped wood provides clues about our hominin relatives.
Analysis of a 458-million-year-old fossil fish reveals anatomical insights about the vertebrate skull and how skull organization evolved from that of ancestral early vertebrates to that of jawed vertebrates.
The discovery that the skull has two groups of stem cell that produce similar types of descendant cell has big implications for the field of stem-cell research — and casts light on a developmental disorder that affects many children.
All newborn mammals cry. The neural circuit that stimulates mothers to look after crying offspring has been identified in mice — along with a mechanism that promotes maternal behaviour only after prolonged calls from pups.
A nickel-based compound has shown evidence of a superconducting state at a temperature of 80 kelvin. The material bridges a gap between other nickelates and a notable class of superconductor containing copper.
Scientists have had limited success in converting lignin, a structural component of plants, into high-value products. The discovery that lignin can be used as a wood glue could be a game-changer for biorefineries.
A wide range of harmful bacteria introduce proteins into plant cells. Some of these proteins move to the cell membrane and serve as channels for water and nutrients, creating favourable conditions for bacterial growth beside plant cells.
Tumour cells tend to migrate to the vertebrae rather than to long bones, but the mechanism underlying this has been unclear. It emerges that the stem cells from which vertebrae are derived make a factor that attracts tumour cells.
