Reviews & Analysis

A recent study has found that rhinovirus-induced exacerbation of asthma is in part mediated by the release of neutrophil extracellular traps and double-stranded DNA by neutrophils in the airway.

A new study reveals that virus-associated activation of a subset of circulating monocytes results in the release of the proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, which induces increased turnover of synapses in the brain and learning deficits in mice.

A new study that uses an integrated single-cell transcriptomics approach to characterize cancer stem cell populations during treatment with molecularly targeted therapies offers insights into disease evolution and points to new therapeutic targets.

A new study identifies oncostatin M (OSM) as a potential biomarker and therapeutic target for anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-refractory inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and pinpoints mucosal stromal cells as key players in OSM-mediated inflammation.

A recent study using a humanized mouse model shows that HIV-1 can persist in macrophages during antiretroviral therapy (ART), and suggests that macrophages may represent an obstacle to efforts to cure HIV-1 infection.

A new study in mice suggests that a single drug, thymosin α1, may simultaneously rectify the impaired trafficking of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) in cystic fibrosis (CF) and reduce inflammation, offering new hope for CF treatment.

A recent study shows that a self-peptide generated in pancreatic islet beta cells through the translation of a noncanonical alternative reading frame in human insulin mRNA is recognized by both CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cells in type 1 diabetes.

New studies advance the mechanistic understanding of mutant histone H3 in diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) and demonstrate two epigenetic approaches, BET inhibition and EZH2 inhibition, as potential therapeutic strategies for DIPG.

In a recent study, researchers generated a mouse model expressing variant APOL1 that recapitulates human kidney disease. Variant APOL1 leads to caspase-1-dependent pyroptosis, which opens the door for the development of new druggable targets to treat APOL1-mediated kidney disease.

A new study shows that nicotinic receptors activate a particular type of interneuron in the prefrontal cortex. Deficits in this relationship give rise to behavioral abnormalities similar to those associated with schizophrenia, which can be ameliorated by nicotine.

A recent study shows that microbial-community structure and function substantially expand and diversify in all body sites from birth to age 4–6 weeks. It then resembles microbiota from its corresponding maternal body site, independently of the infant's mode of delivery or other prenatal factors.

In a recent study in mice, researchers combined tumor barcoding with unbiased genomic analysis and identified Cd109 as a hub gene involved in metastatic progression. They show that pharmacological inhibition of its downstream effectors JAK1 and STAT3 curtails metastatic growth.

A study in mouse models of allogeneic stem cell transplantation with donor-derived CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells for the treatment of relapsed B cell malignancies indicates that T cell exhaustion might have a role in preventing allogeneic reactivity of CD19 CAR T cells.

In a recent study in mice, it is shown that circadian oscillations in genomic histone deactylase 3 (HDAC3) occupancy influence fuel switching and carbon flux in muscle to regulate glucose homeostasis and exercise performance.

Two new studies show that mechanisms mediating the opioid side effects of tolerance, hyperalgesia and physical dependence are mediated spinally and can be dissociated from analgesia. These side effects can be selectively targeted by clinically available drugs without affecting their pain-relieving effects.

A new study identifies four distinct 'biotypes' of depression on the basis of fMRI resting-state functional connectivity in a diverse sample of more than 1,000 individuals. The biotypes are diagnostic of depression and predict treatment response.

A recent study shows that pasteurization of Akkermansia muciniphila enhances the bacterium's ability to reduce fat mass and metabolic syndrome in mice with diet-induced obesity, and that Amuc_1100*, a thermostable outer-membrane protein of A. muciniphila, can reproduce these beneficial effects.

A new study shows that fasting induces the differentiation and elimination of some types of leukemia in mice, which implicates fasting or its mimetics as a novel strategy for the treatment of this disease.

Soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is a circulating biomarker of inflammation. A recent study identifies immature myeloid cells in the bone marrow as a major cellular source of suPAR that contributes to kidney disease.