Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 12 August 2026 · From issue 20

In lab experiments, one artificial genetic letter got copied much more easily than its designed partner.

Qingrong Li, Peini Hou et al., Hydrophobic unnatural base pair promotes trigger loop closure and catalysis in cellular RNA polymerase independent of hydrogen bonding, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Integrity screen: passed (3 checks) Checked 13 August 2026. Read the source

The plain-language reading of this paper is in the full issue, for subscribers.

Read the full issue

Get it free, every two days

Five papers free every issue, about 15 emails a month. No spam. Leave in one click.

Also in issue 20 15 papers

Fertility treatment raised stroke related risk by 44% but not other heart disease risks.
PLOS Medicine
A baby's gut bacteria come mainly from its mother's gut, not birth or milk.
Nature
In lab-grown human fetal brain tissue, an immune signal sped up brain growth and caused early folding.
Nature Neuroscience
In climate models, fixing a rainfall error made simulated Pacific warming look more like the real ocean.
Geophysical Research Letters
Monsoon winds carry ground pollution high into the sky, sparking new tiny particles there.
Nature Communications
Two closely related fish species use totally different decision styles, even with identical senses and goals.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
In a lab material, magnetic swirls moved smoothly together at high current, with no wobble.
Nature Physics
A single computer model explains how eyes move during reading to save effort.
Nature Human Behaviour
In simulations, bursts of star formation push carbon gas far outside young galaxies, creating glowing halos.
The Astrophysical Journal
In mini brains grown in dishes, key brain stem cells skip the strict timing seen in real embryos.
Nature
In bacteria, a DNA cutting and pasting tool works better at inserting DNA than removing it.
Nature
In mice, two gene switches normally curb harmful immune cells but fail inside inflamed brain tissue.
PLOS Biology
In lab tests, a key deep-Earth mineral holds almost no water, less than 70 parts per million.
Nature Communications
Ancient inner ear shapes show deep local ancestry and a big population shift with farming.
Nature Communications

More from Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

In animals, fat bubbles carried genetic instructions across the brain's protective barrier into brain cells.
Issue 22 · 17 August 2026
In a computer model, glycerol crosses a human cell tunnel very slowly, taking microseconds to pass through.
Issue 22 · 17 August 2026
A common science claim of "no difference" often just means the test was not sensitive enough.
Issue 22 · 17 August 2026
In plants, extra fat droplets in cells cut virus levels without slowing growth.
Issue 19 · 11 August 2026
In mice and monkeys, a new gene tool skipped broken gene sections better than older versions.
Issue 19 · 11 August 2026