Volume 527 Number 7576

Editorials

ドイツの旧態依然たる医学教育システムは、早急に改革が必要だ。

Ills of the system p.7

Reform is long overdue for Germany’s archaic medical-education system, which puts undue pressure on students and contaminates the scientific literature.

doi: 10.1038/527007a

ジュネーブ条約に反する戦争地域での医療関係者への攻撃を止めるため、研究者も声を上げるべきだ。

Care for the carers p.7

Researchers should add their voices to the effort to stop attacks on health workers in war zones.

doi: 10.1038/527007b

今週は、コンピューターの現在の繁栄を可能にしたブール代数の考案者、ジョージ・ブールの生誕200年である。

Smooth operator p.8

A tribute to the nineteenth-century polymath whose algebra lets you search the Internet.

doi: 10.1038/527008a

News

米国で、電極刺激による記憶力改善治療のヒトでの臨床試験が。

Memory-boosting devices tested in humans p.15

US military research suggests that electrodes can compensate for damaged tissue.

doi: 10.1038/527015a

欧州宇宙機関(ESA)の「ロゼッタ」計画は、探査機本体を彗星に「衝突」させて終了へ。

Historic Rosetta mission to end with crash into comet p.16

There were other options, but super close-up shots on descent will provide science bonanza.

doi: 10.1038/527016a

ボルネオ島の山火事で、絶滅が危惧される野生生物の生息環境が、懸念される状況に。

Indonesia blazes threaten endangered orangutans p.18

Fuelled by El Niño and land-management blunders, fires consume precious habitat.

doi: 10.1038/527018a

シリコンバレーのベンチャー投資家が、合成生物学への投資に前向きな姿勢に。

Synthetic biology lures Silicon Valley investors p.19

Tech funders warm to start-ups that use microbes in manufacturing.

doi: 10.1038/527019a

複雑な分子の三次元結晶構造を、二次元構造から予測できるソフトウェアが。

Software predicts slew of fiendish crystal structures p.20

Chemists succeed at forecasting how complex molecules will assemble in 3D.

doi: 10.1038/527020a

インドの科学者たちが、宗教や信条を理由とする殺人に、批判の声を。

Indian scientists join protests over killings of prominent secularists p.20

National science academies decry religious intolerance and government's perceived embrace of superstition.

doi: 10.1038/nature.2015.18682

News Features

神経科学:赤ちゃんの脳を調べる

The big baby experiment p.22

ロンドン大学のBabylabでは、さまざまな技術を駆使して、新生児の脳とその発達の様子を解明しようとする試みが行われている。

doi: 10.1038/527022a

考古学:そして誰もいなくなった

The greatest vanishing act in prehistoric America p.26

米国南西部のメサ・ヴェルデ遺跡には、かつて3万人近くの人々が住んでいたが、彼らが700年前にその地を捨てた理由は何だろうか。

doi: 10.1038/527026a

News & Views

持続可能性:岐路に立つオーストラリア

Sustainability: Australia at the crossroads p.40

オーストラリアは包括的政策変更によって、経済的成長へつながる原材料多量消費型の進路を維持しながら、環境汚染を制限できる可能性があることが、マルチモデル研究によって示唆された。だが、これ以外の道もまた検討する価値がある。

doi: 10.1038/527040a

材料科学:跳ね回る水滴

Materials science: Droplets leap into action p.41

水滴が物体表面で弾み始めるのは、どういう原因によるのだろうか。蒸発と撥水性の高い表面が組み合わさると、周囲の気圧が下がった際に水滴が弾み始めるらしい。

doi: 10.1038/527041a

代謝:レプチンと脂肪分解のつながりを解明

Metabolism: Light on leptin link to lipolysis p.43

最先端の手法による実験で、ホルモンの1つで、脂肪細胞から分泌されるレプチンは、シグナル伝達分子であるカテコールアミンの脂肪細胞の周りを覆っている神経からの放出を活性化し、それによって脂肪減少を促進することが示された。

doi: 10.1038/527043a

微生物学:細菌も行う電気的シグナル伝達

Microbiology: Electrical signalling goes bacterial p.44

細菌細胞の間での電気的シグナル伝達に、カリウムイオンチャネルが関わっていることが明らかにされた。このことは、微生物の生理学的性質と相互のコミュニケーションにおけるイオンチャネルの役割を明らかにするのに役立ちそうだ。

doi: 10.1038/nature15641

量子物理学:音量子の波はもつれ合う

Quantum physics: Quantum sound waves stick together p.45

低温のイオンを使った高感度の実験によって、振動の基本的量子単位であるフォノンのレベルでの音の性質が調べられ、フォノンの混合から、光子などのボソンに分類できる粒子であることが分かった。

doi: 10.1038/527045a

遺伝子調節:遺伝子発現は2種類のパルスを感知する

Gene regulation: Expression feels two pulses p.46

転写因子の細胞内の局在場所の組み合わせの変化が、それらの因子の標的である遺伝子の環境刺激に応じた発現を調整している可能性が、単一細胞解析によって明らかになった。

doi: 10.1038/nature15634

Articles

環境経済学:オーストラリアには経済の成長と環境への圧力の緩和を「選ぶ自由」がある

Australia is ‘free to choose’ economic growth and falling environmental pressures p.49

A multi-model framework that accounts for climate, water, energy, food, biodiversity and economic activity in Australia reveals that a sustainable society that enjoys economic improvement without ecological deterioration is possible, but that specific political and economic choices need to be made to achieve this.

doi: 10.1038/nature16065

システム生物学:パルスの相対的なタイミングの調節による組み合わせ型遺伝子調節

Combinatorial gene regulation by modulation of relative pulse timing p.54

Many gene-regulatory proteins have been shown to activate in pulses, but whether cells exploit the dynamic interaction between pulses of different regulatory proteins has remained unexplored; here single-cell videos show that yeast cells modulate the relative timing between the pulsatile transcription factors Msn2 and Mig1—a gene activator and a repressor, respectively—to control the expression of target genes in response to diverse environmental conditions.

doi: 10.1038/nature15710

微生物学:イオンチャネルは細菌群集内の電気的コミュニケーションを可能にしている

Ion channels enable electrical communication in bacterial communities p.59

Ion channels in bacterial biofilms are shown to conduct long-range electrical signals within the biofilm community through the propagation of potassium ions; as predicted by a simple mathematical model, potassium channel gating is shown to coordinate metabolic states between distant cells via electrical communication.

doi: 10.1038/nature15709

構造生物学:哺乳類機械受容ピエゾ1チャネルの構造

Architecture of the mammalian mechanosensitive Piezo1 channel p.64

Piezo1, a mechanosensitive cation channel, senses shear stress of blood flow for proper blood vessel development, regulates red blood cell function and controls cell migration and differentiation; here a trimeric architecture of this novel class of ion channel is reported, suggesting that Piezo1 may use its peripheral propeller-like ‘blades’ as force sensors to gate the central ion-conducting pore.

doi: 10.1038/nature15247

Letters

宇宙物理学:非常に若い原始星星団であるへび座南領域の間欠的な分子アウトフロー

Episodic molecular outflow in the very young protostellar cluster Serpens South p.70

A study of 12CO outflow emission from the protostellar source CARMA-7 in the cluster Serpens South suggests that episodic ejections of mass by the protostar begin in the earliest phase of protostellar evolution, probably providing a mechanism for driving the turbulence that is necessary for star formation in clusters.

doi: 10.1038/nature15702

量子物理学:捕獲イオンにおける2個のフォノンのホン–オウ–マンデル干渉

Hong–Ou–Mandel interference of two phonons in trapped ions p.74

The Hong–Ou–Mandel effect is a quantum phenomenon that involves the interference of bosonic particles and demonstrates their indistinguishability; this effect has been demonstrated previously for photons and neutral atoms, and is now demonstrated for phonons, using a system of trapped ions that are promising building blocks for quantum computers.

doi: 10.1038/nature15735

高分子化学:安全で安価な非腐食性材料を用いたポリマー系水性レドックス・フロー電池

An aqueous, polymer-based redox-flow battery using non-corrosive, safe, and low-cost materials p.78

An affordable, safe, and scalable battery system is presented, which uses organic polymers as the charge-storage material in combination with inexpensive dialysis membranes and an aqueous sodium chloride solution as the electrolyte.

doi: 10.1038/nature15746

材料科学:剛性の超疎水性表面上を自発的にトランポリンのように跳ね返る水滴

Spontaneous droplet trampolining on rigid superhydrophobic surfaces p.82

Spontaneous levitation and trampoline-like bouncing behaviour of water droplets on rigid superhydrophobic surfaces in a low-pressure environment are observed, and are due to a build-up of overpressure in the surface texture beneath the droplets.

doi: 10.1038/nature15738

有機化学:過渡的な配向基を介する、ロジウム触媒を用いたアルケンのsyn-カルボアミノ化

Rhodium-catalysed syn-carboamination of alkenes via a transient directing group p.86

Chemical methods for adding carbon-based or nitrogen-based functional groups to alkenes are well established, but strategies for adding both to the same double bond have limitations; here, a method for the carboamination of alkenes at the same double bond is described.

doi: 10.1038/nature15691

動物学:四肢類の成体の性比は遺伝的性決定機構から予測される

The genetic sex-determination system predicts adult sex ratios in tetrapods p.91

An analysis of 344 species of tetrapods (birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians) shows that taxa in which the female is heterogametic tend to have a more male-biased sex ratio; the mechanisms driving the association are unclear, but sex-determination systems are likely to have important consequences for the social behaviour and demography of tetrapods.

doi: 10.1038/nature15380

神経科学:双極性障害患者由来の過興奮性ニューロンではリチウムに対する応答が異なる

Differential responses to lithium in hyperexcitable neurons from patients with bipolar disorder p.95

A neuronal model of bipolar disorder based on induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology finds hyperactive action-potential firing and differential responsiveness to lithium in iPSC-derived neurons from patients with bipolar disorder.

doi: 10.1038/nature15526

がん:エキソソームのマイクロRNAによるPTENの微小環境誘導性の減少が脳の転移性増殖の下地となる

Microenvironment-induced PTEN loss by exosomal microRNA primes brain metastasis outgrowth p.100

Expression of the tumour suppressor PTEN in disseminated primary tumour cells is lost after tumour cells metastasize to the brain, with downregulation instigated by microRNAs from astrocytes, which are transferred from cell to cell by exosomes; these findings reveal the dynamic nature of metastatic cancer cells when adapting to a new tissue environment.

doi: 10.1038/nature15376

細胞生物学:オートファジーは核ラミナの分解を仲介する

Autophagy mediates degradation of nuclear lamina p.105

In response to cancer-associated stress, autophagy machinery mediates degradation of nuclear lamina components in mammals, suggesting that cells might degrade nuclear components to prevent tumorigenesis.

doi: 10.1038/nature15548

遺伝子工学:CRISPR-Cas9によるDNA標的切断のコンホメーション変化による制御

Conformational control of DNA target cleavage by CRISPR–Cas9 p.110

A fluorescence-based approach defines new features of Cas9 that control the specificity of RNA-guided DNA cleavage in CRISPR genome editing technology.

doi: 10.1038/nature15544

ウイルス学:C型インフルエンザウイルスに由来するRNA依存性RNAポリメラーゼの結晶構造

Crystal structure of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase from influenza C virus p.114

The X-ray crystal structure of influenza C virus polymerase, captured in a closed, pre-activation confirmation, is solved at 3.9 Å resolution; comparison with previous RNA-bound structures reveals large conformational changes associated with RNA binding and activation, and illustrates the notable flexibility of the influenza virus RNA polymerase.

doi: 10.1038/nature15525

構造生物学:TETが仲介する酸化反応の基質選好性についての構造的考察

Structural insight into substrate preference for TET-mediated oxidation p.118

In DNA demethylation, human TET proteins are evolutionarily tuned to be less reactive towards 5hmC and facilitate its generation as a potentially stable mark for regulatory functions.

doi: 10.1038/nature15713

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