A therapeutic strategy that alters gene expression in a rare and severe neurodevelopmental condition has been tested in stem-cell-based models of the disease, and has been shown to correct genetic and cellular defects.

Cells grown on a 3D scaffold have generated a ‘mini-colon’ that mimics key features of the organ. Controlled expression of cancer-associated genes in the system offers a way to examine tumour formation over space and time.

Genetic pedigrees spanning nine generations uncover the social organization of a nomadic empire that dominated much of central and eastern Europe from the sixth to the early ninth century.

A broadly applicable method allows selective, rapid and efficient chemical modification of the side chain of tryptophan amino acids in proteins. This platform enables systematic, proteome-wide identification of tryptophan residues, which can form a bond (called cation–π interaction) with positively charged molecules. Such interactions are key in many biochemical processes, including protein-mediated phase separation.