THE PAPER IN BRIEF • Gut bacteria can affect biological processes at body sites far from the gut. • The extent to which gut bacteria can affect reproductive tissues is not fully understood. • Argaw-Denboba et al.1 report that altering the community of gut bacteria in male mice had negative consequences for the health and … Read more
Hello Nature readers, would you like to get this Briefing in your inbox free every day? Sign up here. A new drug consists of pieces of mRNA encased in a fatty envelope (artist’s impression).Credit: Kateryna Kon/SPL A therapy that extends mRNA technology beyond vaccines has shown early success in treating a rare genetic disease, propionic … Read more
Scientists have pinpointed human gut bacteria that have a useful tool: an enzyme that can convert artery-clogging cholesterol into a more harmless form that is not absorbed by the body. The finding points towards possible treatments for high cholesterol levels. Although the newly described bacterial species can metabolize cholesterol in the laboratory, whether they can … Read more
Illustration: Sam Falconer Andrew Day, a molecular microbiologist at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, is four years sober. His journey to this point inspires his work, which he hopes might help others who are struggling with alcohol. Nature Outlook: The human microbiome There are many risk factors associated with alcohol-use disorder (AUD), including mental-health conditions … Read more