The connection between the accumulation of Znf518A DNA mutations and ovarian ageing for women with certain CCDC genes is nearly seven years old
“You don’t die of infertility, but for many women who suffer from it, it really is a catastrophe,” Goriely says. “We ought to do something for these women.”
The average age for women with certain variations of that gene is nine years early. The large size of that effect and the specificity of CCDC201 activity suggests that the gene might prove to be a useful target for preventing or treating some cases of infertility, says Goriely. Such an intervention would have to be carefully designed to avoid raising the risk that it would allow eggs to transmit excess damaged DNA to children, but eggs generally contribute many fewer mutations than sperm do anyway, she notes.
The team discovered that women with common genetic variations that had been associated with earlier age at menopause were more likely to have defects in their offspring than women with less common variations.
Murray and her colleagues analysed the genetic sequence of 8000 genetic trios of a mother, father and child, to examine the relationship between the accumulation of DNA Mutations and ovarian Ageing.
Women who have certain forms of the Znf518A gene are far more likely to get menstruating later than women who do not have those forms of the gene. The result was a reproductive lifespan that was, on average, more than six years shorter.
“They are rare, but typically they are impactful,” says Anne Goriely, a geneticist at the University of Oxford, UK, who was not an author of the papers. “New treatments and conceptual advances often come from these rare disorders.”
Did Harris and Trump Declare Rapa Nui Destroy their Island? An Archaeobiological Study of the Preliminary Causal Early Stages of Menopause
One factor that could trigger that early menopause is the accumulation of DNA mutations in a person’s eggs. The eggs can self-destruct if there are such changes to the genes. Murray says the eggs response to DNA damage is key to determining egg number. “And it’s egg number that determines your reproductive lifespan.”
The Rapa Nui theory was proven to be false. Reviewers churned out suspicious reviews for personal gain after Harris and Trump said that science is important.
A study of ancient genomes has dispelled the theory that early inhabitants of Rapa Nui (also known as Easter Island) ravaged its ecosystem and caused the population to crash. The researchers analysed the DNA of Rapanui individuals and found no sign of a population squeeze that might have indicated a collapse. This study, done with the endorsement of and input from officials and Indigenous community members in Rapa Nui, “serves as the final nail in the coffin of this collapse narrative”, says archaeogeneticist Kathrin Nägele.
On Tuesday, US presidential hopefuls Kamala Harris and Donald Trump stepped up to the debate podiums. Science issues took a back seat to the economy, immigration and national security, but candidates exchanged views on abortion and women’s health, the country’s relationship with China and the climate. Nature analyses what the candidates did and did not say about science, and hears what researchers think about the candidates’ stances.
Source: Daily briefing: No, Rapa Nui people didn’t destroy their island
Do peer reviews have a bad reputation? Investigating the scheme to benefit from duplicated reviews in the 2021-2024 era of South Asian journals
The scheme that may allow reviewers to benefit from duplicated reviews was highlighted in an analysis of peer reviews published by some journals. The analysis identified 263 suspicious reviews published by 37 journals between 2021 and 2024. Marketing researcher Maria Ángeles Oviedo-García, the author of the study, suspects that reviewers are using templates to quickly churn out reviews and boost their own professional standing, or in some cases receive credit toward future publishing fees. She believes that some other researchers will base their future research on those fake-reviewed papers.
Some physicians call it the ‘South Asian paradox’: heart disease is common for people of South Asian ancestry, despite fewer of the usual risk factors, such as smoking. “Everywhere you look, in every single South Asian group and diaspora, there is this risk which we cannot explain,” says epidemiologist Mohammed Ali. But genetic data that could shed light on the root cause is scarce. Genetics and genomics are important to the issue, but critics believe a focus on the genetics and genomics of a broadly defined population is unnecessary. “I support the idea of doing more analysis of genetic risk factors,” says epidemiologist Nishi Chaturvedi. I think that the cost of looking at the whole-of-life factors of diabetes and cardiovascular disease is being taken up by that.
Source: Daily briefing: No, Rapa Nui people didn’t destroy their island
Exploring wildfires to save a town in Canada: An indigenous-led stewardship approach using spaceX and the astronaut Polaris Dawn
There are gaps in the data relevant to theSDGs. It’s part of the reason why only a few of the targets have been met by the end of the decade. Data gathering by citizens can help. The implementation of the framework won’t be easy, but it can help to speed up the implementation of the SDG.
In July, a devastating wildfire blazed through Jasper National Park in Canada, destroying much of the town of Jasper — and it is still burning. The damage could have been much worse according to the group of forest scientists and historians. “Proactive fuel mitigation in the forests surrounding Jasper has meant that firefighters were able to save around 70% of the town’s infrastructure,” they write. The researchers suggest combining technology and Indigenous-led stewardship to respond to the ever-increasing wildfires in Canada.
The first privately funded excursion outside of a spaceship was made by engineer Sarah Gillis along with businessman Jared Isakman. They poked their upper bodies out of the hatch of their SpaceX Dragon capsule at a peak altitude of more than 700 kilometres. Isaacman funded Polaris Dawn, which is the second space outing for the crew. (Nature | 6 min read) (SpaceX)