‘First contact’ with M. tuberculosis bacteria occurs in the deep lung, making early tuberculosis difficult to study. A lung-on-chip model recreates this environment on a platform that allows direct visualization of these early interactions. Together, they reveal that pulmonary surfactant, a substance secreted by non-immune lung cells that facilitates breathing, slows or even halts bacterial growth

Perhaps the most familiar gesture in ordinary communication is index-finger pointing. It exists in every culture, and yet we do not know where it originates. In our studies we found evidence that pointing gestures likely emerge from touch.

A large genomic study reveals ancient demographic events that accompanied the transition to agriculture and changes in metallurgic practices in France by analyzing 243 individuals from archaeological sites representing a 7,000-year time span, from the Mesolithic period (before the onset of agriculture) to the Iron Age.

One of the most significant synthetic biology goals is the development of artificial lifelike structures that can reproduce themselves. One aspect of this is the self-replication of genomes that encode the blueprint of the whole system. We have now succeeded in reconstructing critical parts of this process in test tubes.

By leveraging spatial coherence in storm surge extremes, we have been able to quantify the likelihood of extreme events occurring along European coastlines with high precision, even at locations without historical sea-level data.

The recent discovery of a complete 375 million-year-old fossil from eastern Canada, Elpistostege watsoni, clarifies our understanding of the origin of digits and hands in tetrapods. This subject has puzzled evolutionary biologists for more than 150 years. The Devonian Elpistostege had digits embedded in its pectoral fin - a condition preceding the origin of hands in tetrapods.