To transmit excitatory signals, nerve cells mostly use glutamate as neurotransmitter. For detecting these transmitter signals, the cells can rely on a whole repertoire of receptors with different signaling properties. Researchers at the Chair of Cellular Neurobiology, led by Professor Andreas Reiner at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, together with their collaboration partners in New York (Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medicine), investigated the function of a specific glutamate receptor complex and made some surprising observations. The findings were reported in the journal Nature Communications on April 24, 2026.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a global health burden, with its progression heavily characterized by irreversible kidney fibrosis. A major driver of this fibrotic scarring is the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), a process where renal tubular epithelial cells lose their standard properties and acquire highly motile, myofibroblast-like features. While the transcription factor Snail1 (encoded by the SNAI1 gene) is widely recognized as the master switch governing EMT, the intricate molecular networks and downstream proteomic alterations it dictates during fibrosis have largely remained elusive. 

Antiretroviral drugs for HIV infection have enabled most people living with the virus to live long and healthy lives. However, a small portion of people experience detectable — and worrisome —traces of the virus that causes AIDS despite strict adherence to long-term treatment regimens and the absence of symptoms. New findings published in Nature Communications suggest that most cases of this phenomenon, which is called non-suppressible viremia, are explained by defective and noninfectious copies of the virus.

A new study published in Science China Life Sciences reports that Buyang Huanwu Decoction, a traditional Chinese medicine formula, improved motor recovery and reduced acute inflammation in a mouse model of spinal cord injury. The study suggests that its protective effects may be linked to the suppression of microglial activation and the regulation of the complement and coagulation cascades.

Some barley beers labeled as “gluten-free” contain small amounts of gluten residues that may trigger celiac disease, which are not detected by the standard antibody-based tests currently in use. This is the conclusion of a study by the Leibniz Institute for Food Systems Biology at the Technical University of Munich. In the study, researchers compared two antibody-based testing methods with a mass spectrometric detection method newly developed at the Institute. The study results show that modern food analytical methods could help further improve the safety of gluten-free products in the future.

Brain stimulation techniques can correct abnormal activity in the neural circuits involved in conditions such as Parkinson's disease and depression. However, current transcranial stimulation methods delivered through the scalp reach only the brain’s surface, limiting their effectiveness. Deep brain stimulation, on the other hand, can target deeper structures but requires surgical implantation of electrodes. A team from the Synapsy Centre for Neuroscience and Mental Health Research at the University of Geneva (UNIGE), in collaboration with ETH Zurich, the Wyss Center Geneva and EPFL, has succeeded in improving a promising intermediate technology called "temporal interference stimulation". This method could allow deeper and more targeted non-invasive brain stimulation. The study can be found in Cell Systems.