Tiny spider embryos unlock the mystery of body building in nature
Dr. Yasuko Akiyama-Oda's team used single-nucleus sequencing of house spider embryos to rebuild the head-to-tail pattern of developing body segments from gene activity data alone.
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Communications Biology
Features based on peer-reviewed papers published in Communications Biology.
![Diagram of a mouse exposed to microplastics and benzo[a]pyrene, linking gut damage to kidney ferroptosis](https://i0.wp.com/sciencefeatured.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Activation-of-gut-metabolite-ACSL4_LPCAT3-by-microplastics-in-drinking-water-mediates-ferroptosis-via-gut%E2%80%93kidney-axis-1.jpg?crop=7.92%2C8.15%2C84.06%2C83.61&w=560&ssl=1)
Everyday Plastics Trigger Dangerous Kidney Reactions
Dr. Hailong Zhou's team found in animals that polystyrene microplastics combined with the pollutant benzo[a]pyrene damaged the gut lining, letting fats reach the kidneys and trigger ferroptosis.