72 2 OCTOBER 2020 • VOL 370 ISSUE 6512 sciencemag.org SCIENCE
RESEARCH | IN OTHER JOURNALS
NPs encapsulated by hexagonal
boron nitride nanosheets. The
supported NPs were released by
washing away excess salt and
could be loaded onto conven-
tional supports such as alumina.
The strong interaction of Pd NPs
with these nanosheet supports
allowed them to resist sinter-
ing up to 950°C and enabled
their use for CO oxidation in the
presence of water and hydrocar-
bons. —PDS
ACS Cent. Sci. 6 , 1617 (2020).
MATERIALS SCIENCE
Corrosion detection
and protection in one
The corrosion or rusting of
metal structures is an important
problem that shortens the life
span of buildings and vehicles.
Coatings can be used to slow
the corrosion down, but they
can be damaged or worn away
and do not help reverse the
process. Thongchaivetcharat
et al. created Pickering emul-
sions in linseed oil containing
a corrosion sensor, a corrosion
inhibitor, and a healing agent
stabilized by a coating of solid
particles. The Pickering emulsion
droplets were embedded in a
polymer matrix that could be
applied to the surface of a metal.
Corrosion of the metal caused a
color change of the trapped dye
molecules and the release of the
corrosion inhibitors. The coating
also showed self-healing after
mechanical damage. —MSL
ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 12 , 42129
(2020).PHYSIOLOGY
Characterizing the
menstrual cycle
The endometrium, which lines
the uterus, is a distinct tissue
that is capable of monthly
remodeling, shedding, andregeneration. Other than
humans, very few species
exhibit a similar menstrual
cycle. Given the importance
of the endometrium to fertil-
ity and women’s health, Wang
et al. undertook single-cell
transcriptomic characterization
of the endometrium across the
menstrual cycle from 19 healthy
donors. The authors defined
four phases across the cycle
and characterized the window of
implantation and accompanying
changes in gene expression in
the epithelia. They also discov-
ered the presence of ciliated
epithelium and characterized
how these cells and six other
cell types change over the
course of the cycle. These
high-resolution data provide
important insights into female
physiology and have numerous
applications in fertility and endo-
metrial biology. —GKA
Nat. Med. 10.1038/
s41591-020-1040-z (2020).PHYSIOLOGY
Exercise circuit for
training
Exercise has many clear ben-
eficial effects. Aerobic exercise
elicits a coordinated metabolic
response across multiple tissues.
Brandão et al. unraveled the
cross-talk that occurs between
muscle and adipose tissue and
regulation by microRNAs. In
mice induced to exercise, the
authors found that the energy-
sensing protein kinase AMPK
became activated in muscle and
fat cells. A signal released into
the circulation increased the
expression of the type III endori-
bonuclease DICER in fat cells,
which promoted the synthesis of
microRNAs that control transla-
tion of specific messenger RNAs.
Enhanced microRNA production
inhibited glucose use in fat cells,
which then provided substrate
to support muscle in exercise
training. —LBR
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 117 ,
23932 (2020).WORKFORCE DIVERSITY
Three elements to
increase diversity
Women remain underrepre-
sented in STEM career pathways.
Mentoring is a promising
intervention to increase the
representation of women, but
mentorship programs vary in
complexity, cost, and scalability.
Hernandez et al. performed a
randomized experiment with
female undergraduate geosci-
ence majors to identify the
critical elements of a successful
mentorship program. A com-
bination of inspiration through
exposure to female role models
in the geosciences, inocula-
tion through training on how to
grow a mentor network, and an
introduction to a local female
geoscientist mentor were all nec-
essary for success. These three
elements can be easily adapted
and widely implemented across
scientific disciplines to support
undergraduate women at the
start of, and throughout, their
STEM careers. —MMc
Commun. Earth Environ. 1 , 7 (2020).ENVENOMATIONRecovery from paralysis
E
nvenoming by snake bite is recorded unsystematically. The World Health Organization
reports that more than 5 million people are bitten by snakes annually. They estimate that
up to 138,000 die of complications, and many victims are left disabled. Stazi et al. devel-
oped a mouse model of envenoming by the Papuan taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus). This
snake’s poison, taipoxin, is a phospholipase A 2 neurotoxin akin to tetanus and botulinum
toxins. Taipoxin causes the degeneration of motor axon synaptic transport but does not kill
the neurons, and a slow recovery occurs if the victim is given respiratory support. Signaling
by the G protein–coupled receptor CXCR4 is implicated in this synaptic pathophysiology.
The authors studied the effects of a previously identified agonist of CXCR4, NUCC-390, a
nontoxic compound in mice that accelerates regeneration of their synapses, and found that
it significantly accelerated recovery from paralysis. NUCC-390 thus has the potential to
enhance the recovery of patients hospitalized with neuroparalytic snake envenomation. —CA
PLOS Negl. Trop. Dis. 14 , e0008547 (2020).The Paupan taipan poisons
with a neurotoxin that
causes synapse
breakdown, resulting
in paralysis.PHOTO: MATTHIJS KUIJPERS/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO