Reviews & Analysis

A Review describes the three key phases that define the origins of modern human ancestry, and highlights the importance of analysing both palaeoanthropological and genomic records to further improve our understanding of our evolutionary history.

The functional and regulatory aspects of the ‘mitochondrial divisome’ are separated into core and accessory machinery, thus providing a mechanistic understanding of the process of mitochondrial fission.

The factors affecting how and why supernovae occur are discussed, and the current status of core-collapse supernova explosion theory is reviewed.

This review discusses how single-cell profiling and other technological advances are increasing our understanding of the mechanisms of fibrosis, thereby accelerating the discovery, development and testing of new treatments.

This Review summarizes developments in the field of mechanically activated ion channels, which have been driven by the increasing breadth of structural studies.

The mechanisms and origins of fast radio bursts are reviewed in connection with data and insights from the neighbouring fields of gamma-ray bursts and radio pulsars.

The long-term success of area-based conservation—including both protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures—after 2020 will depend on governments securing adequate funding and prioritizing biodiversity in land, water and sea management.

The current state of programmable photonic integrated circuits is discussed, including recent developments in their building blocks, circuit architectures, electronic control and programming strategies, as well as different application spaces.

The findings of a World Health Organization expert working group that is developing animal models to test vaccines and therapeutic agents for the treatment of COVID-19, and their relevance for preclinical testing, are reviewed.

The development of vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 is reviewed, including an overview of the development process, the different types of vaccine candidate, and data from animal studies as well as phase I and II clinical trials in humans.

This Review describes the interplay between host genetics, host immunity and the gut microbiome in the modulation of colorectal cancer, and discusses the role of specific bacterial species and metabolites alongside technological advances that will facilitate more in-depth investigation of the microbiome in disease.

NumPy is the primary array programming library for Python; here its fundamental concepts are reviewed and its evolution into a flexible interoperability layer between increasingly specialized computational libraries is discussed.

Breakthroughs in artificial intelligence and low-cost, contactless sensors have given rise to an ambient intelligence that can potentially improve the physical execution of healthcare delivery, if used in a thoughtful manner.

This Review explores the role of viscoelasticity of tissues and extracellular matrices in cell–matrix interactions and mechanotransduction and the potential utility of viscoelastic biomaterials in regenerative medicine.

The development and future prospects of prospectively designed multispecific drugs, which have the potential to transform the biopharmaceutical industry by enabling the targeting of currently inaccessible components of the proteome, are reviewed.

Analyses of the recovery of marine populations, habitats and ecosystems following past conservation interventions indicate that substantial recovery of the abundance, structure and function of marine life could be achieved by 2050 if major pressures, including climate change, are mitigated.

Single-particle spectroscopic techniques that provide insights into the fundamental photophysical properties of functional nanomaterials are reviewed.

This Review examines inflammatory bowel disease in the context of human genetics studies that help to identify pathways that regulate homeostasis of the mucosal immune system and discusses future prospects for disease-subtype classification and therapeutic intervention.

The scientific, technical and ethical aspects of using CRISPR technology for therapeutic applications in humans are discussed, highlighting both opportunities and challenges of this technology to treat, cure and prevent genetic disease.