Freshwater insects used ‘microplastic’ as a building material long before scientists coined the term.

Carbonate mineral is long-sought evidence of conditions that supported liquid water.

The National Science Foundation is the latest US agency to be disrupted by Elon Musk’s DOGE.

Researchers who spoke to Nature say they don’t have the money or staff to do fieldwork or process samples.

Study finds dozens of journals that have hiked their fees and started churning out papers after being acquired by small, recently formed companies.

Bold claims of ‘biosignature’ molecules trigger an outpouring of scepticism.

Scientists have captured a colossal squid in the deep sea for the first time. Plus, crows have surprising geometry skills and the world now has a plan in place for pandemics.

Andrew Robinson reviews five of the best science picks.

Henry Sila Nzioki has developed a weed-killing fungus to improve food security.

Conventional tests that look only at a small subset of genetic code often miss variations hiding outside the protein-coding genome.

Models estimate the ginormous potential impact of foreign-aid cuts.

Understanding the playbook that those in power use to twist numbers, and how they make others complicit, is only becoming more important in the post-truth world.

Somatic DNMT3A R882 codon mutations drive the most common form of clonal haematopoiesis (CH) and are associated with increased acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) risk1,2. Preventing expansion of DNMT3A-R882-mutant haematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) may therefore avert progression to AML. To identify DNMT3A-R882-mutant-specific vulnerabilities, we conducted a genome-wide CRISPR screen on primary

replying to: J. J. S. Santos et al. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-08821-6 (2025). replying to: P. Chopra et al. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-08822-5 (2025).

Hear the biggest stories from the world of science | 16 April 2025

Plastic ice VII is an exotic phase with characteristics of both ice and water.

Metformin could reduce people’s risk of certain age-associated blood cancers, but more work is needed to identify who is likely to benefit.

Potential treatments need to be subject to the highest standards of safety and efficacy.

Artificial circulatory system enables feat by delivering nutrients to growing tissue.

Correction to: Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08544-0 Published online 26 February 2025

Transplanting dopamine-releasing neurons into the brain is a promising regenerative therapy for Parkinson’s disease. Two clinical trials show that it is safe, but more evidence is needed to prove its effectiveness.

Induced pluripotent stem cells are being tested to treat blindness, paralysis, Parkinson’s disease and more. Approvals might be around the corner.

A pangenome of wild and domesticated rice reveals genes that could be used to improve cultivated plants.

A method for examining RNAs in blood samples offers a clinical tool to detect and monitor cancer and to assess immune responses to vaccination.

High-resolution observations of ocean topography from the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission reveal that small surface structures have a larger-than-expected impact on the ocean’s total energy budget.

Studies show the therapy is safe, but bigger trials are needed to prove its efficacy.

Prolonged operation accumulates damage that is similar to fatigue in an electrode.

A physicist issues an urgent call to deflate the world-shaping power of tech billionaires.

Exposed minerals hint at the evolution of geochemical conditions on early Mars.