In this episode:
Cancer cells can spread to bones in the late stages of disease and in many cancers, cells actually preferentially metastasise to the spine. The reason for this has been a puzzle to researchers for years, but now a team has found a new kind of stem cell that may be involved in this process. The stem cell is found in mice and humans and could represent a clinical target in the treatment of cancer.
*Research article: *Sun et al.)
*News and Views: *Stem cells provide clues to why vertebrae attract tumour cells)
A preference for certain percussion instruments among palm cockatoos, and modelling where people wait on train platforms.
*Research Highlight: *This parrot taps out beats — and it custom-builds its instruments)
*Research Highlight: *The maths of how we wait in crowded places)
This time, a second trial shows the effectiveness of using MDMA to help treat post-traumatic stress disorder, and how an upgrade to an X-ray laser will let researchers make ultra-crisp ‘molecular movies’.
*Nature News: *Psychedelic drug MDMA moves closer to US approval following success in PTSD trial)
*Nature News: *World’s most powerful X-ray laser will ‘film’ chemical reactions in unprecedented detail) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy) for more information.