Nature Communications最新文献

Understanding the evolving role of different age groups in virus transmission is essential for effective pandemic management. We investigated SARS-CoV-2 transmission in Belgium from November 2020 to February 2022, focusing on age-specific patterns. Using a next generation matrix approach integrating social contact data and simulating population susceptibility evolution, we performed a longitudinal perturbation analysis of the effective reproduction number to unravel age-specific transmission dynamics. From November to December 2020, adults in the [18, 60) age group were the main transmission drivers, while children contributed marginally. This pattern shifted between January and March 2021, when in-person education resumed, and the Alpha variant emerged: children aged under 12 years old were crucial in transmission. Stringent social distancing measures in March 2021 helped diminish the noticeable contribution of the [18, 30) age group. By June 2021, as the Delta variant became the predominant strain, adults aged [18, 40) years emerged as main contributors to transmission, with a resurgence in children’s contribution during September-October 2021. This study highlights the effectiveness of our methodology in identifying age-specific transmission patterns.

The order or disorder of electrons is fundamental to materials properties and also provides simple analogues to the different states of matter. A charge ordered (CO) insulating state, analogous to a crystalline solid, is observed in many mixed valence materials. On heating, this melts to a charge liquid (metallic) phase, often with interesting associated physics and functions such as the Verwey transition of Fe₃O₄, colossal magnetoresistances in manganites (e.g., La_0.5Ca_0.5MnO₃), and superconductivity in K-doped BaBiO₃. Here we report the observation of pressure induced charge amorphisation in a crystalline material. BiNiO₃ has charge distribution Bi³⁺_0.5Bi⁵⁺_0.5Ni²⁺O₃ with long range order of the Bi³⁺ and Bi⁵⁺ states at ambient pressure, but adopts another, structurally crystalline, but charge glassy, insulating phase at pressures of 4–5 GPa and temperatures below 200 K, before metallization above 6 GPa. This is analogous to the much-studied pressure induced amorphisations of many crystalline materials and melting is even observed at accessible pressure/temperature. BiNiO₃ provides fundamental insights to the study of amorphisation using charge states rather than atoms or molecules.

Integration of multi-omics data can provide information on biomolecules from different layers to illustrate the complex biology systematically. Here, we build a multi-omics atlas containing 132,570 transcripts, 44,473 proteins, 19,970 phosphoproteins, and 12,427 acetylproteins across wheat vegetative and reproductive phases. Using this atlas, we elucidate transcriptional regulation network, contributions of post-translational modification (PTM) and transcript level to protein abundance, and biased homoeolog expression and PTM in wheat. The genes/proteins related to wheat development and disease resistance are systematically analyzed, thus identifying phosphorylation and/or acetylation modifications for the seed proteins controlling wheat grain quality and the disease resistance-related genes. Lastly, a unique protein module TaHDA9-TaP5CS1, specifying de-acetylation of TaP5CS1 by TaHDA9, is discovered, which regulates wheat resistance to Fusarium crown rot via increasing proline content. Our atlas holds great promise for fast-tracking molecular biology and breeding studies in wheat and related crops.

Correction to: Nature Communications https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55870-6, published online 20 January 2025

The obligate necrotrophic parasite, Candidatus Mycosynbacter amalyticus, a member of the Patescibacteria has been isolated from wastewater. Subsequent efforts have been directed toward unravelling its biological lifecycle and attachment mechanism facilitating infection and subsequent lysis of its Actinobacterial host, Gordonia amarae. Here, using electron cryo-tomography (CryoET), we reveal the molecular anatomy of parasitic Mycosynbacter amalyticus cells, uncovering an unusual infection process. Through laboratory-based evolution experiments, we generated eleven slow-growing independent spontaneous Gordonia amarae resistant mutants. Mycolic acids (MA) are key components of the outer cellular envelope of G. amarae and other Actinobacteria, with MA being the physical attribute implicated in G. amarae associated wastewater foaming. CryoET and genome sequencing exposed absence of intact MA and an associated suite of mutations predominantly occurring within the pks13 and pptT genes of the MA biosynthetic pathway. Our findings suggest that MA structural integrity is critical for attachment of Ca. Mycosynbacter amalyticus to its host.

Correction to: Nature Communications https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55928-5, published online 16 January 2025

The composition of viral communities (i.e. viromes) can be dynamic and complex. Co-evolution may lead to virome host-specificity. However, eco-evolutionary factors may influence virome dynamics in wild host communities, potentially leading to disease emergence. Social bees are relevant models to address the drivers of virome composition: these important pollinators form multi-species assemblages, with high niche overlap and strong seasonality in their biotic interactions. We applied a microbial community approach to disentangle the role of host phylogeny and host ecology in shaping bee viromes, combining plant-pollinator networks with meta-transcriptomics, and small interfering RNAs as proxies for viral replication in pollinators and pollen. We identified over a hundred insect and plant viral sequences from ca. 4500 insect pollinator samples across three time points in one year. While host genetic distance drives the distribution of bee viruses, we find that plant-pollinator interactions and phenology drive plant virus communities collected by bees. This reveals the opportunities for virus spread in the bee assemblage. However, we show that transmission to multiple hosts is only realized for a fraction of insect viruses, with even fewer found to be actively replicating in multiple species, including the particularly virulent multi-host acute bee paralysis virus.

Correction to: Nature Communications https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55869-z, published online 20 January 2025

The β-H elimination is a crucial elementary step in transition-metal catalysis, but controlling the stereochemistry of this process has been underdeveloped. The limited works reported so far have only focused on creating axial chirality in allenes, and no report has been able to build central chirality using asymmetric β-H elimination. In this study, we report a Trost ligand-enabled enantioselective desymmetric β-H elimination reaction from π-allyl-Pd. This transformation provides rapid access to cyclohexenes bearing a C4-remoted stereocenter, and total synthesis of (-)-oleuropeic acid and (-)-7-hydroxyterpineol is demonstrated. Computational studies have shown that the β-H elimination is the rate-determining step, and the non-covalent interactions between the amide moiety of the Trost ligand and the benzene and cyclohexane moieties of the substrate play a key role in stereocontrol during the β-H elimination.

Putting pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD) screening into perspective for high-risk individuals could significantly reduce cancer morbidity and mortality. Previous studies have profiled somatic mutations in PAAD. In contrast, the prevalence of mutations in PAAD predisposition genes has not been defined, especially in the Asian population. Using a multi-tier cohort design and whole genome/exome sequencing, we create a comprehensive germline mutation map of PAAD in 1,123 Chinese cancer patients in comparison with 11 pan-ethnic studies. For well-known pathogenic/likely pathogenic germline variants, Chinese patients exhibit overlapping but distinct germline mutation patterns comparing with Western cohorts, highlighted by lower mutation rates in known PAAD genes including BRCA1, BRCA2, ATM, CDKN2A, and CHEK2, and distinct mutations in CFTR, RAD51D, FANCA, ERCC2, and GNAS exclusive to Chinese patients. CFTR emerges as a top candidate gene following loss of heterozygosity analysis. Using an integrative multi-omics and functional validation paradigm, we discover that deleterious variants of uncertain significance may compromise CFTR’s tumor suppressor function, and demonstrate the clinical relevance by using patient derived organoids for drug screen. Our multifaceted approach not only deepens the knowledge of population differences in PAAD germline mutations but also unveils potential avenues for targeted therapeutic interventions.