In this Review, Lusk et al. discuss emerging insights into nuclear pore complex variability with regard to composition and dilation state, and propose nuclear mechanics as a key determinant of driving such plasticity and any associated diseases.

In this Review, Andersson et al. discuss emerging insights into ageing of the haematopoietic system and its role in driving organismal ageing, in particular inflammageing and immunosenescence, as well as in rejuvenation of the immune system.

As biomedical research prioritizes human models and translational promise, classic model organisms are increasingly dismissed. Here we argue that they have a lasting value, both in enabling discovery and in cultivating scientific thinking, by training researchers in systems reasoning, integrative thinking and independent inquiry.

Vanni et al. show a role for microtubules in YAP/TAZ mechanosignalling. Mechanoresponsive microtubule reorganization into centrosomal arrays allows for AMOT delivery to pericentrosomal proteasomes and degradation, leading to YAP/TAZ activation.

Li, He, Liu and colleagues characterize the dynamic bivalent chromatin landscape during mouse peri-implantation development. They find that factor ZBTB17 works with KDM6A/B to resolve transiently maintained bivalent domains and prime gene activation.

Zhang et al. delineate the heterogeneity of core regulatory circuitry in glioblastoma and identify HOXB3 condensation as a vulnerability that may be targeted with a therapeutic peptide in mouse models.

Li, Burgos-Bravo and colleagues report that NDF phase separation regulates FACT condensation, which enhances transcription by generating a localized biochemical environment that promotes nucleosome disassembly while preserving chromatin integrity by retaining histones.

McCreery, Stubb et al. show that mechano-osmotic changes in the nucleus induce general transcriptional repression and prime chromatin for cell fate transitions by relieving repression of specific differentiation genes.

Zhang et al. demonstrate that AMPK can be activated by signalling metabolite, adenosine, under non-stress conditions during Drosophila development. The intestine regulates adenosine levels, thus, remotely controlling wing disc AMPK activation and growth.

As biomedical research prioritizes human models and translational promise, classic model organisms are increasingly dismissed. Here we argue that they have a lasting value, both in enabling discovery and in cultivating scientific thinking, by training researchers in systems reasoning, integrative thinking and independent inquiry.

We hypothesize that stress-induced RNA structural changes, stabilized by RNA-binding proteins in biomolecular condensates, propagate via conformational catalysis in a prion-like manner across generations. Our model suggests that RNA structure encodes heritable memory, and its roles should be explored in epigenetic inheritance, evolutionary adaptation and disease.