Contents
15 January 2021
Vol 371, Issue 6526
Vol 371, Issue 6526
Contents
This Week in Science
Editorial
Editors' Choice
Products & Materials
- New Products
A weekly roundup of information on newly offered instrumentation, apparatus, and laboratory materials of potential interest to researchers.
In Brief
In Depth
- Science could benefit as Democrats take power
Major shifts on climate and science policy expected, but political obstacles abound.
- Are monarchs in trouble?
U.S. mulls protection for iconic butterfly, but some experts say fears overblown.
- Anemone shows mechanism of rapid evolution
Single genetic switch converts stinging cells into sticky ones that cling to surfaces.
- Pandemic could mark ‘turning point’ for Chinese science
Despite missteps and government control, early findings guided other countries' fight against the coronavirus.
- Q&A: How to market vaccination
A business expert offers tips for "selling" COVID-19 vaccines.
- COVID-19 measures also suppress flu—for now
In downside, trend could weaken immunity and complicate vaccine formulation.
Feature
- Fallen giant
Engineering failures and a harsh climate conspired in the sudden collapse of the Arecibo telescope. Now, researchers are planning a rebirth.
Working Life
Letters
Books et al.
- Fighting the good fight
Fossil fuel advocates may have added strategic inaction to their arsenal, but there is reason for climate optimism
- Deflating the opaque online ad bubble
A lightweight book aims a heavyweight punch at the digital advertising ecosystem
Policy Forum
- Tracking, targeting, and conserving soil biodiversity
A monitoring and indicator system can inform policy
Perspectives
- Herd immunity by infection is not an option
Difficult lessons are learned from a largely uncontrolled COVID-19 epidemic in Manaus, Brazil
- From nuclear clusters to neutron stars
Measurements of a cluster formation in nuclear “skins” can improve neutron star models
- The language of a virus
Viral fitness and its immune escape can be modeled by using concepts of natural language
- Targeting metabolism to influence aging
Inhibition of glutamine metabolism promotes death of senescent cells and improves healthy life span in mice
- Behavioral convergence in humans and animals
Local ecology combines with culture to produce behavioral variation in hunter-gatherers
- Bioactive lipids in antiviral immunity
Lipids may influence viral entry, replication, and clearance and modulate immune responses
Research Articles
- Noncanonical transnitrosylation network contributes to synapse loss in Alzheimer’s disease
A cascade of unrelated enzymes passes nitric oxide to an enzyme implicated in neurodegeneration.
- Transmission heterogeneities, kinetics, and controllability of SARS-CoV-2
Modeling results indicate that SARS-CoV-2 control requires case isolation, contact quarantine, and population-level interventions.
- Aberrant type 1 immunity drives susceptibility to mucosal fungal infections
T cell–dependent, type 1–mediated mucosal inflammation promotes mucosal fungal susceptibility in mice and humans.
- Controlled hydroxylations of diterpenoids allow for plant chemical defense without autotoxicity
In tobacco plants, diterpenoid hydroxylations inhibit sphingolipid biosynthesis, explaining their autotoxicity and role in defense from insect herbivores.
Review
Reports
- Formation of α clusters in dilute neutron-rich matter
Proton bombardment of tin isotopes reveals α particle formation at the nuclear surface that diminishes with rising mass.
- Senolysis by glutaminolysis inhibition ameliorates various age-associated disorders
Senescent cells rely on glutaminolysis, the inhibition of which ameliorates age- and senescence-associated disorders in mice.
- GPER1 is required to protect fetal health from maternal inflammation
G protein–coupled estrogen receptor 1 suppresses interferon signaling during pregnancy, limiting its damage during fetal development.
- Plant roots sense soil compaction through restricted ethylene diffusion
Compacted soil restrains diffusion of the volatile plant hormone ethylene, increasing its signal strength and restricting root growth.
- Driving energetically unfavorable dehydrogenation dynamics with plasmonics
Plasmon excitation can initiate hydrogen dissociation at normally unreactive palladium nanorod crystal faces.
- Learning the language of viral evolution and escape
Language models of influenza hemagglutinin, HIV Env, and SARS-CoV-2 spike viral protein sequences can accurately predict viral escape patterns.
- Three-quarters attack rate of SARS-CoV-2 in the Brazilian Amazon during a largely unmitigated epidemic
The spread of COVID-19 in Manaus, Brazil, shows that a largely unmitigated epidemic can infect a high fraction of the population and cause high mortality.
- Local convergence of behavior across species
Local conditions may select for similar foraging, social, and reproductive behaviors in humans, other mammals, and birds.
- Topological pumping of a 1D dipolar gas into strongly correlated prethermal states
Cycling the contact interaction between dipolar dysprosium atoms creates a series of excited nonthermal quantum states.
- Cryo-EM structure of the B cell co-receptor CD19 bound to the tetraspanin CD81
The structure of the immunological B cell co-receptor complex reveals a substantial conformational reorganization of the tetraspanin CD81.
- Structure of a transcribing RNA polymerase II–U1 snRNP complex
A structure of RNA polymerase II in complex with spliceosomal particle U1 snRNP reveals how transcription and RNA splicing are coupled.
Technical Comments
Erratum
About The Cover
COVER The 305-meter-wide radio dish of Puerto Rico's Arecibo Observatory, as seen from above in the late 1980s. For nearly 60 years, the telescope stood at the vanguard of astronomy, planetary science, and atmospheric science. On 1 December 2020, its heavy instrument platform collapsed after the failure of its suspension cables. Researchers are examining the causes of the disaster even as they advocate for rebuilding. See page 225.
Photo: Bruce Dale/National Geographic Image Sales
