The immune environment in the gut is maintained by the constant exchange of information between immune cells, epithelial cells, and the gut microbiota. However, when these channels of communication break down the consequences can be dire—chronic inflammation, infection, or diminished nutrient absorption. This Immunology Select explores the response of intestinal epithelial cells to pathogens an...

This issue's Microbiology Select describes recent insights into the mechanisms and consequences of viral infections, including a functional genomics screen that reports an array of previously unknown host factors required for HIV-1 infection of cultured human cells. New work also defines host factors that restrain the release of HIV-1 from cells and reveals how a class of antimicrobial peptides...

RNAs are versatile molecules capable of an array of functions. In addition to their role as information-carrying intermediaries in gene expression, they act as key catalytic, structural, and regulatory elements in the cell. As highlighted in this issue's Select, recent studies on RNA show how these molecules collaborate with proteins in essential biological processes such as pre-mRNA splicing, ...

Emerging roles for epigenetic modifications and chromatin remodeling in the nervous system provide the focal point for this issue’s Neurobiology Select. Recent evidence shows that changes in chromatin structure are critical to the reconsolidation of fear memories. Other new papers characterize the regulation of neural stem cells by histone acetylation and establish roles for epigenetic modifica...

Pathogens and their hosts have been in an evolutionary arms race for millions of years, and much has been learned about the strategies each has developed to stay on top. This Select focuses on recent papers reporting new insights into the mechanisms used by pathogens to stay in the race, either by hijacking host proteins and cellular pathways or, in one case, by hitching a ride on an insect vec...

Microbial pathogens have evolved strategies to live and multiply within their hosts, who in turn have evolved surveillance systems that detect such pathogens and trigger countermeasures. This Microbiology Select highlights recent papers that reveal new aspects of these host and microbial strategies. The bacterial pathogen that causes typhoid fever in humans, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (S...

The incredible leaps in technology that now make high-speed genome sequencing possible are revolutionizing the hunt for genes and genetic variations associated with disease. A stunning series of recent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified new candidate genes for a number of common diseases including breast cancer, heart disease, diabetes type I and II, obesity, Crohn's disease...

The complete human genome sequence presents researchers with unique opportunities not only for identifying the mechanisms underlying a battery of genetic diseases but also for revealing what makes us human. This issue's Genetics Select highlights recent developments in the field of human genetics that promise to direct future studies in the fields of comparative genomics and human disease resea...

Neural stem cells are widely studied for their therapeutic potential and for the insight they reveal into the mechanisms of brain development. The latest advances in neural stem cell research are the topic of this issue's Neurobiology Select. These findings include a simple protocol for reprogramming human neural stem cells to pluripotency and a report demonstrating that transplanted neural ste...

In our Select pages, we highlight exciting themes that emerge from our review of the recent literature. In this issue's Immunology Select, we discuss a cluster of recent papers that further our understanding of the host innate immune response to viruses and provide an example of the evasion of the immune response by a viral protein. The innate immune response is an early line of defense against...