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Some stories are just too good to be true. And according to physicist Fabrizio Pinto, that's exactly the case for an analogy routinely used by physicists to illustrate the mysterious Casimir effect - a strange force of attraction seen between two surfaces separated by empty space.

2 teams reveal that a mutant protein implicated in inherited Parkinson’s disease disables the cell’s mitochondria; Researchers report the 1st conducting plastic that shows the signature of a true metal; A fish species that lived more than 400 million years ago may represent a bridge between two lineages that went on to dominate the modern world

Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature. VOL.441 NO.7089 DATED 04 MAY 2006

“Gain of function” gene mutations associated with neonatal diabetes are now thought to be responsible for a range of other neurological dysfunctions.

New information on the complex interplay between host cells and bacteria during infection is reported in the June issue of Nature Immunology. Three studies provide a new understanding of the relationship between salmonella bacteria and the cells infected.

Studies in recent years have shown that some brain regions continue to generate new neurons even during adulthood. Scientists have identified a new target for an old drug that has been used to treat tuberculosis for over 50 years.

The last century has seen a dramatic increase in snowfall in central Asia compared to the previous thousand years, according to research published in this week's Nature.

Rapid treatment and isolation of not just infected cases but also their household contacts will be the key elements of an effective strategy to beat a future influenza pandemic, report researchers who have simulated the spread of such an outbreak in both Great Britain and the United States.

Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature. VOL.440 NO.7088 DATED 27 April 2006 including :LOX stops the spread and ‘Top dog’ determined in the womb

NATURE AND THE NATURE RESEARCH JOURNALS PRESS RELEASE - For papers that will be published online on 23 April 2006

A new study to be published in the June issue of Nature Genetics reports the binding profile of proteins involved in organizing the structure of DNA in the Drosophila genome.

Researchers have shown that by labeling pools of cells with different combinations of dyes, they can generate fluorescent ‘barcodes’….; A technique which helps cell culture make the leap into the third dimension, allowing scientists to more closely replicate naturally occurring arrangements of cells in the laboratory is described

Human societies are notable for cooperation, but the origins of this behaviour are confusing. As the 20-year anniversary of Chernobyl approaches, Nature investigates the health effects of radioactive fallout. The process of protein degradation and clearance of cellular components may be more important than was previously understood

Summaries of newsworthy stories from Nature Vol 440, No 7087 Dated 20 April 2006 including Evolutionary pathways lead to same destination and Invisible skeleton

Nature Publishing Group (NPG) and the Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences (SIBS) today announce the appointment of Dr Dangsheng Li as the new Deputy-Editor-in-Chief for China’s premier life science journal, Cell Research (CR).

Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature. Vol.440 No.7086 Dated 13 April 2006 including Watching synpases at work; The ‘impossible’ microbes; Doting mums let their kids eat them; The gas that won't settle down; A new spin on Vega; Catfish hunts on land

A new idea about why the experimental antibody drug TGN1412 had devastating effects on humans that had not been seen in animal tests is put forward in an exclusive special news report by Nature this week.

The Grand Prix of the 34th International Exhibition of Inventions, New Techniques and Products was awarded by the International Jury to researchers from the Malaysian Institute for Nuclear Technology, for their manufacturing process for organic medical material which does not damage or discolour and produces no toxic gases during sterilisation

Summaries of newsworthy papers published online on 9 April 2006 by Nature and the Nature Research Journals

Summary of newsworthy papers from Nature vol.440, no.7085, 6 April 2006, includes Anthropology: Neolithic dental drill; Genetics: Genome of wastewater-treatment bacterium extracted from the sludge; Development: Motor protein drives asymmetry; Materials science: Liquid silicon for spray-on chips; Escapologist worms show how to burrow out of trouble

A remarkable new fossil published in Nature provides spectacular insight into a major evolutionary transition — when fish first transformed their fins into limbs, opening up the prospect of a migration on to land.

Nature Publishing Group (NPG) announced today that it will be opening two new divisions - NPG India, based in Gurgaon, and NPG Latin America/Spain, based in Mexico City. Along with the recently transformed NPG Nature Asia-Pacific, the new organizations will focus on publishing initiatives in their respective regions.

Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature Research Journals

A research group in Japan have identified the protein that controls silicon uptake in rice - the first such transporter to be found in higher plants

Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature VoL.440 No.7084 Dated 30 March 2006 including Chemical physics:Crystallography without crystals; Physics: Ratcheting backwards; Evolution: Uprooting eukaryotic evolution and Let's not twist again

In a study published online this week by Nature, researchers report that they have isolated stem cells from the adult mouse testis that exhibit properties similar to embryonic stem (ES) cells.

The bird virus binds to cells in different regions of the human airway from those favoured by human influenza viruses; Japanese researchers have found evidence of methane-bearing fluid inclusions in about 3.5-billion-year-old hydrothermal precipitates; A set of molecular pedals that is powered by light and twists another molecule is reported

Summaries of newsworthy papers from Nature. Vol.440 No.7083 Dated 23 March 2006

Stretch marks are not only unsightly, but women with this disorder, appear to be at increased risk for pelvic prolapse, reports an online publication from The Journal of Investigative Dermatology.

Researchers show how to make a good thing even better by modifying a popular system for protein labelling and modification to reduce the risk of unwanted cross-reactions; Stanford University scientists have modified a popular strategy for imaging studies in live animals, making possible a much broader range of biochemical visualization experiments