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Hello Nature<\/i> readers, would you like to get this Briefing in your inbox free every day? Sign up here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Psychedelic drugs boost some of the crosstalk between brain regions.<\/span>Credit: K H Fung\/SPL<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/picture><\/figure>\n Five psychedelic drugs have a strikingly similar effect on brain networks. Researchers saw this \u2018signature\u2019 pattern of brain activity in the brain scans of people who had taken mind-altering substances<\/a> such as psilocybin, LSD and ayahuasca, despite these drugs having a different chemical make-up. A better understanding of how psychedelics affect the brain could inform their potential use in treating conditions such as depression, anxiety and addiction. Such a large study, which combines data from 11 brain-imaging studies, is the first step towards that understanding, experts say.<\/p>\n Nature | 4 min read<\/a><\/p>\n Reference: Nature Medicine<\/i><\/a> paper<\/a><\/p>\n Researchers have identified hundreds of thousands of proteins that bacteria might use to fend off viral invaders<\/a>. Two research teams developed machine-learning algorithms that screen bacterial genomes to catalogue the microorganisms\u2019 defensive arsenals. Their analyses estimated that, on average, 1.5% of a bacterium\u2019s genes correspond to antiviral proteins \u2014 three times more than previous estimates. The teams hope that their findings could lead to the next generation of molecular tools, with applications such as genetic engineering. \u201cThis is a treasure trove for any biochemist,\u201d says microbiologist Jos\u00e9 Antonio Escudero.<\/p>\n Nature | 5 min read<\/a><\/p>\n Reference: Science<\/i> paper 1<\/a> & paper 2<\/a><\/p>\n Fresh approaches to drug design are bringing researchers closer to effective cancer treatments that target KRAS<\/a> \u2014 a protein that, when mutated, fuels some of the most lethal tumours. Mutant KRAS was once considered to be \u2018undruggable\u2019, but a new type of drug that tags the protein for destruction by the body\u2019s \u2018waste disposal\u2019 has shown signs of success in a clinical trial. Another four trials are also exploring a separate drug that inhibits several different mutant forms of KRAS. In combinations, such treatments could create a regimen that KRAS-mutant cancers cannot escape, says gastroenterologist Dieter Saur.<\/p>\n Nature | 5 min read<\/a><\/p>\n For the second year in a row, US President Donald Trump has proposed significant cuts to the budgets of major US science agencies<\/a>. The 2027 budget would increase funding for the military by more than 40%, to US$1.5 trillion, compared to current levels. Meanwhile, the budgets of the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Science Foundation would fall more than 50%. Congress rejected a similar plan last time; negotiations for this one could last for months.<\/p>\n Nature | 8 min read<\/a><\/p>\n Neurons (green) migrate inside a laboratory-grown brain model called an assembloid, made by fusing organoids.<\/span>Credit: Sergiu Pasca’s Lab, Stanford University<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/picture><\/figure>\n Brain research using organoids is snowballing: these tiny, functional models of parts of the brain are being used to probe development, model neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism and schizophrenia, and test new treatments for brain diseases<\/a>. And, as scientists make organoids that are longer-lived and more complex \u2014 and even connect them together into assembloids \u2014 the approach promises to teach us even more about our most important organ.<\/p>\n As organoids advance, so does the urgency of the ethical challenges that they create<\/a>, argues a Nature<\/i> editorial. \u201cPerhaps most crucial for this field is the concern that emergent properties, such as consciousness, might arise,\u201d says the editorial.<\/p>\n Nature | 16 min read <\/a>& Nature editorial | 7 min read<\/a><\/p>\n To test how easy it is to poison the information spewed out by AI-powered search results and chatbots, medical researcher Almira Osmanovic Thunstr\u00f6m and her team uploaded two fake studies to a preprint server in early 2024. They included plenty of red flags: the results even say \u201cthis entire paper is made up\u201d. But soon after, systems such as Copilot and ChatGPT were telling users all about \u2018bixonimania\u2019 as if it were real<\/a>, although they sometimes expressed skepticism.<\/p>\n Nature | 15 min read<\/a><\/p>\n Reference: Fake preprint 1<\/a> & fake preprint 2<\/a>, plus a peer-reviewed paper (now retracted) that cited them<\/a><\/p>\n The Stern Review, published 20 years ago, is arguably the most influential work on the economic cost of climate change. Led by economist Nicholas Stern and commissioned by the UK government, its findings now feel chillingly familiar: \u201cThe costs of stabilising the climate are significant but manageable; delay would be dangerous and much more costly,\u201d it said. Backed by a concerted communications campaign, it spurred concrete action<\/a> \u2014 not least the 2015 Paris agreement. \u201cThe Stern Review shows how strong research that integrates the natural and social sciences can make a tangible difference to policy when allied with political will,\u201d argues a Nature<\/i> editorial. \u201cThis is a mindset that the world must rediscover, and fast.\u201d<\/p>\n Nature | 9 min read<\/a><\/p>\n Reference: Stern Review Report on the Economics of Climate Change<\/a> (from 2006)<\/p>\n In his new book, drawn from lectures at the London School of Economics in 2024, Nicholas Stern renews his blueprint for a clean economy and healthy society<\/a>. \u201cWhat sets the book apart is its breadth, accessibility and the practical prescriptions for reform,\u201d writes environmental law and policy researcher Andrew Macintosh in his review. \u201cRather than hiding behind abstraction, The Growth Story<\/i> provides a well-defined vision of what sustainable development might look like and how it might be achieved.\u201d<\/p>\nFeatures & opinion<\/b><\/h2>\n
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The Stern Review: then and now<\/h3>\n
Editorial<\/b><\/h2>\n
Book review<\/b><\/h2>\n
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