Volume 22 Issue 2, February 2020

Understanding the metabolic rewiring of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is an emerging strategy for identifying cancer-associated liabilities and improving treatment. A new study now elucidates the function of the transaminase BCAT2 in the early stages of tumor development, providing insights that could stimulate novel therapeutic strategies.

The ribosome decodes messenger RNAs and constructs proteins based on the genetic blueprint. Ribosomes also associate with non-coding RNAs, such as PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) precursors, during the meiotic pachytene stage. Intriguingly, the ribosome mediates pachytene piRNA biogenesis by guiding endonucleolytic cleavage of piRNA precursors.

RNA-targeting CRISPR. In this Perspective, Smargon, Shi and Yeo discuss the rapid development of the RNA-targeting CRISPR–Cas engineering system and highlight how this can be leveraged to further understand RNA biology.

Gaglia et al. show, using single-cell imaging and analysis in human tumours, that phase transition of heat-shock factor 1 (HSF1) to form intranuclear stress bodies mediates cell-fate decisions underlying cell survival or death.

Lee et al. show that, after nitrogen starvation and genetic interference with the architecture of nuclear pore complexes, nucleoporins are degraded by autophagy, constituting a quality-control step at the nuclear envelope.

Li et al. show that BCAA transaminase 2 enhances uptake and catabolism of branched-chain amino acids, thereby promoting development of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma harbouring KRAS mutations.

Hu, Tan, Chia et al. identify negative elongation factor A as one of the earliest drivers of the mouse embryonic 2-cell-like state through interaction with Top2a, which mediates Dux expression.

Leidal et al. show that the LC3-conjugation pathway, which is part of the autophagy machinery, controls extracellular vesicle cargo loading and secretion of RNA-binding proteins.

Sun et al. uncover a conserved mechanism by which ribosomes function in defining the position of pachytene piRNA formation on long single-stranded RNAs during spermatogenesis.

Solinger et al. show that FERARI is a conserved tethering platform that mediates Rab11-dependent recycling at sorting endosomes.

Lee et al. show that energy stress inhibits ferroptosis through AMPK activation and demonstrate a role for AMPK in ferroptosis-associated renal ischaemia–reperfusion injury in vivo.

Barucci et al. show that the progressive loss of fertility in Caenorhabditis elegans lacking piRNAs is mediated by the epigenetic silencing of all of the replicative histone genes.

The Hippo and mTORC1 pathways regulate growth control for proper organ development. Here, Gan et al. find that the Hippo pathway kinases LATS1 and LATS2 phosphorylate the mTORC1 component Raptor to attenuate mTORC1 activation.