Nature Briefing.

"Lithium deficiency and the onset of Alzheimer's disease."

Views expressed in this science, health, and technology update are those of the reporters and correspondents.  Accessed on 07 August 2025, 1350 UTC.

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Russ Roberts (https://hawaiisciencejournal.blogspot.com).

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Lithium deficiency and the onset of Alzheimer’s disease

Lithium shows promise for Alzheimer's

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88by Liviu Aron / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09335-x Lithium has an essential role in the brain and is deficient early in Alzheimer’s disease, which can be recapitulated in mice and treated with a novel lithium salt that restores the physiological level.

George E. Smith obituary: co-inventor of the charge coupled device, which ushered in an era of digital images

by Simon Tulloch / 2h

Nature, Published online: 07 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02515-9 Smith’s invention enabled the precise capture of light in electronic form, and has transformed science, medicine and daily life.

Yesterday

These genes can have the opposite effects depending on which parent they came from

by Rachel Fieldhouse / 10h

Nature, Published online: 07 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02499-6 New approach finds ‘parent-of-origin’ effects in more than a dozen genes — without the need for parental data.

The protein craze: scientists talk supplements — and who should take them

by Mariana Lenharo / 18h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02472-3 Most people can get enough protein in food, but certain groups can benefit from protein powders and related products.

Publisher Correction: NINJ1 regulates plasma membrane fragility under mechanical strain

by Yunfeng Zhu / 20h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09444-7

OpenAI launches reasoning LLM that you can download and tweak

OpenAI releases open models

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by Elizabeth Gibney / 21h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02495-w One version of the gpt-oss large language model can run on a laptop, and performs nearly as well as the company’s most powerful models.

Daily briefing: This marsupial is biofluorescent — the month’s best science images

by Jacob Smith / 21h

Nature, Published online: 05 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02503-z A glowing marsupial and science-inspired Haute Couture are among the month’s sharpest science shots. Plus, ultra-processed foods could make it harder to shed weight and a scientific clash over bold ‘de-extinction’ claims.

Therapeutic genetic restoration through allogeneic brain microglia replacement

by Marius Marc-Daniel Mader / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09461-6

Reply to: Inconclusive proof of ferroelectricity in peptide-VDF ribbons

by Yang Yang / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09315-1

Data anomalies and the economic commitment of climate change

by Tom Bearpark / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09320-4

Inconclusive proof of ferroelectricity in peptide-VDF ribbons

by Maximilian Litterst / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09314-2

Microglia–neuron crosstalk via Hex–GM2–MGL2 maintains brain homeostasis

by Maximilian Frosch / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09477-y

Why did researchers stick a duck to a rock? To show off their super glue

by Nick Petrić Howe / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02485-y Researchers have developed an AI-enhanced hydrogel capable of sticking even in wet, salty conditions.

Underwater glue shows its sticking power in rubber duck test

by Benjamin Thompson / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02500-2 Adhesive shows promise in tricky salt-water conditions — plus, a hidden microbial ecosystem living within trees.

Whole-genome sequencing of 490,640 UK Biobank participants

by Keren Carss / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09272-9 A study reports whole-genome sequences for 490,640 participants from the UK Biobank and combines these data with phenotypic data to provide new insights into the relationship between human variation and sequence variation.

Novel assembly of a head–trunk interface in the sister group of jawed vertebrates

by Tetsuto Miyashita / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09329-9 Imaging of a Devonian jawless fish reveals advanced features previously thought to be exclusive to jawed vertebrates, challenging the idea that jaws were the primary driver for the evolution of derived traits in the vertebrate body plan.

Hominins on Sulawesi during the Early Pleistocene

21by Budianto Hakim / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09348-6 Early Pleistocene artefacts at Calio suggest that Sulawesi was populated by hominins at around the same time as Flores, if not earlier.

RNA N-glycosylation enables immune evasion and homeostatic efferocytosis

by Vincent R. Graziano / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09310-6 N-glycans on glycoRNAs prevent innate immune sensing of endogenous small RNAs, and the natural mechanism they use demonstrates how glycoRNAs exist on the cell surface and in the endosomal network without inducing autoinflammatory responses.

In situ light-field imaging of octopus locomotion reveals simplified control

Advanced imaging reveals deep-sea octopus

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by Kakani Katija / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09379-z Using an advanced imaging system called EyeRIS, locomotion in deep-sea octopuses could be studied, revealing simplified crawling patterns that could inspire the design of robots.

Microglia regulate GABAergic neurogenesis in prenatal human brain through IGF1

by Diankun Yu / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09362-8 Microglia-derived IGF1 promotes the proliferation of GABAergic progenitors and neuroblasts in the human medial ganglionic eminence, contributing to the extended production of GABAergic neurons and an expanded cognitive capacity in the human brain.

NSD2 inhibitors rewire chromatin to treat lung and pancreatic cancers

by Jinho Jeong / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09299-y A highly potent and selective small-molecule catalytic inhibitor of the protein lysine methyltransferase NSD2 shows therapeutic efficacy in preclinical models of KRAS-driven pancreatic cancer and lung cancer.

High-accuracy laser spectroscopy of $${{\bf{H}}}_{{\bf{2}}}^{{\boldsymbol{+}}}$$ H 2 + and the proton–electron mass ratio

by S. Alighanbari / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09306-2 Doppler-free laser spectroscopy is used to measure with high precision a rovibrational transition frequency of trapped and cooled $${{\rm{H}}}_{2}^{+}$$ H 2 + ions.

Structural basis of fast N-type inactivation in Kv channels

by Xiao-Feng Tan / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09339-7 This paper explores how voltage-gated potassium channels can plug the pore to prevent the conductance of ions during inactivation.

Excised DNA circles from V(D)J recombination promote relapsed leukaemia

by Zeqian Gao / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09372-6 Excised signal circles are circular DNA by-products of V(D)J recombination that form a complex with the V(D)J recombinase, and when increased in abundance, result in increased mutagenesis, causing adverse outcomes in cancer.

A diverse and distinct microbiome inside living trees

by Wyatt Arnold / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09316-0 Microbiome analyses of living trees show that a single tree can host approximately one trillion bacteria, with microbial communities distinctly partitioned between heartwood and sapwood and with minimal similarity to other tissues or ecosystem components.

Data-driven de novo design of super-adhesive hydrogels

by Hongguang Liao / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09269-4 A data-driven approach integrates data mining, experimentation and machine learning to design high-performance adhesive hydrogels from scratch, tailored for demanding underwater environments.

Stronger El Niños reduce tropical forest arthropod diversity and function

El Niño reduces tropical arthropods

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by Adam C. Sharp / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09351-x Time-series data from tropical forests tracking weather and declines in arthropod diversity and function show that fluctuations in species were largely dependent on their El Niño sensitivity and ecological specialization.

Optical control of resonances in temporally symmetry-broken metasurfaces

by Andreas Aigner / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09363-7 The ultrafast optical control of resonances in temporally symmetry-broken metasurfaces allows resonances to be created, annihilated or programmably manipulated, which is useful for applications that require active real-time tunability.

A global humidity index with lateral hydrologic flows

by Gonzalo Miguez-Macho / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09359-3 Estimating lateral subsidies by river and groundwater using a global hydrology model and incorporating them into the conventional global humidity index reduces aridity in the receiving lowlands and better explains ecosystem patterns.

EBV induces CNS homing of B cells attracting inflammatory T cells

by Fabienne Läderach / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09378-0 Epstein–Barr virus infection generates a neuroinvasive B cell subset, which recruits activated T cells to the central nervous system, promoting multiple sclerosis.

The science fiction science method

by Iyad Rahwan / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09194-6 The ‘science fiction science’ method simulates future technologies and collects quantitative data on the attitudes and behaviours of participants in various future scenarios, with the aim of predicting impacts of future technologies before they arrive.

One-third of Sun-like stars are born with misaligned planet-forming disks

by Lauren I. Biddle / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09324-0 Assessment of the stellar obliquities of a sample of resolved protoplanetary disk systems indicates that one-third of Sun-like stars are born with misaligned planet-forming disks, suggesting that the origin of star–planet configurations, including many misaligned planetary orbits, may be primordial.

Parent-of-origin effects on complex traits in up to 236,781 individuals

by Robin J. Hofmeister / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09357-5 A novel multistep strategy reveals how parent-of-origin effects shape complex traits in large-scale biobanks.

Kinetic turbulence drives MHD equilibrium change via 3D reconnection

by Jong Yoon Park / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09345-9 Observations from laboratory experiments involving two flux ropes show that electron beams induce magnetic turbulence and abruptly merge into a single structure, altering the magnetic topology in the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) regime — a process supported by three-dimensional (3D) particle-in-cell simulations.

Merging of magnetic plasma ‘flux ropes’ is driven by turbulence

by Jeffersson Agudelo Rueda / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02253-y Experiments reveal that high-energy plasma events in the Solar System and beyond might be driven by magnetic fluctuations and turbulence that happen on very small scales.

Sexual harassment is rife at US Antarctic research bases, fresh survey finds

by Alexandra Witze / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02484-z More than two-thirds of people polled had witnessed sexual harassment or assault on the ice.

Stone tools suggest that hominins arrived on Indonesian island much earlier than thought

Ancient humans reached Sulawesi

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22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02386-0 The discovery of stone tools dating to at least 1.04 million years ago at the Early Pleistocene site of Calio on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi indicates that early hominins made a major deep-sea crossing to reach the island much earlier than previously established.

High levels of circular DNA made as immune cells develop increases the risk of leukaemia relapse

by Karla K. Rodgers / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02421-0 DNA segments that are naturally excised during immune-cell development can replicate, drive damage at various genomic sites and lead to cancer recurrence.

Highly efficient deep-blue LED devices made using hybrid copper–iodide compound

22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02393-1 A non-toxic, robust and solution-processable copper–iodide-based hybrid semiconductor that emits deep-blue light with nearly 100% emission efficiency has been designed and used as the sole light-generating layer to make light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Sandwiching this layer between two hydrogen-bonded capping layers greatly en

Ancient marine reptile was a silent swimmer

22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02464-3 A fossilized flipper of a large ichthyosaur called Temnodontosaurus reveals flow-control features likely to minimize self-generated noise during swimming in low-light underwater habitats. Thus, this Jurassic megapredator probably relied on stealth while hunting under the cover of darkness using powerful night vision, like ow

New hope for Alzheimer’s: lithium supplement reverses memory loss in mice

Lithium shows promise for Alzheimer's

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68by Lynne Peeples / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02471-4 Studies in rodents and humans suggest that low levels of the metal contribute to cognitive decline.

Parent-of-origin effects found for gene variants that affect human growth and metabolism

22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02391-3 A genome-wide analysis has identified genetic variants that have different effects on human growth and metabolic traits depending on their parental origin. Often, the same variant will push traits in opposite directions depending on its parental origin, in line with a hypothesized conflict between the ‘interests’ of the two

AI learns from nature to design super-adhesive gels that work underwater

by Laura Russo / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02252-z The protein glues used by organisms to cling to wet surfaces have informed an AI-supported strategy to discover highly adhesive hydrogels.

Does lithium deficiency contribute to Alzheimer’s disease?

Lithium shows promise for Alzheimer's

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by Ashley I. Bush / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02255-w Lithium in the brain has been found to protect against cognitive decline. Restoring lost lithium could be a new angle from which to tackle Alzheimer’s disease.

Nuclear-weapons risks are back — and we need to act like it

Remembering Hiroshima Nagasaki nuclear abolition

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by Ankit Panda / 22h

Nature, Published online: 06 August 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-02506-w Far from being relics of the past, atomic bombs must be managed as the embodiments of human-made catastrophe that they are.