Medical research articles from across Nature Portfolio

Advancements in single-cell analysis technologies are enabling exploration of the intricacies of the human brain at unprecedented resolution. However, most research thus far has focused on the adult brain. Here, these tools are applied to reveal cell-type-specific gene-expression dynamics as the brain grows from childhood to adulthood.

The SONIA study shows that early use of inhibitors that target both CDK4 and CDK6 (hereafter, CDK4/6) in metastatic breast cancer prolongs time on treatment but does not improve patient outcomes. Postponing innovative treatments to a later stage of the disease could thus safely reduce the time on treatment, the number of adverse effects for people with breast cancer and the burden on health-care resources.

Antibodies from malaria-exposed individuals have been found to target a diverse family of proteins from the malaria-causing parasite. These proteins cause severe disease by enabling infected blood cells to bind to blood vessels.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown some activity in patients with adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC), a rare aggressive malignancy with limited treatment options. Here the authors report the results of a phase 2 trial of camrelizumab (anti-PD1) plus apatinib (VEGFR inhibitor) for previously treated ACC.

Machine learning models are increasingly being deployed in real-world clinical settings and have shown promise in patient diagnosis, treatment and outcome tasks. However, such models have also been shown to exhibit biases towards specific demographic groups, leading to inequitable outcomes for under-represented or historically marginalized communities.

Advancements in single-cell analysis technologies are enabling exploration of the intricacies of the human brain at unprecedented resolution. However, most research thus far has focused on the adult brain. Here, these tools are applied to reveal cell-type-specific gene-expression dynamics as the brain grows from childhood to adulthood.

The SONIA study shows that early use of inhibitors that target both CDK4 and CDK6 (hereafter, CDK4/6) in metastatic breast cancer prolongs time on treatment but does not improve patient outcomes. Postponing innovative treatments to a later stage of the disease could thus safely reduce the time on treatment, the number of adverse effects for people with breast cancer and the burden on health-care resources.