Nature Podcast24 Sep 2025

How a dangerous tick-borne virus sneaks into the brain

00:48 New insights into tick-borne encephalitis

Researchers have identified a key protein that helps tick-borne encephalitis virus enter the brain. In rare cases an infection can lead to serious neurological symptoms, but little was known about how the virus interacts with human cells. Now, a team show that a protein found on the outside of cells plays an important role in infection. In mouse experiments, they show that blocking the ability of the virus to bind to this protein protected the mice from disease. Currently no treatments exist, but the team hopes that this research will ultimately lead to a viable drug for this disease.

Research Article: Mittler et al.

08:47 Research Highlights

The squirming robot that speeds up the insertion of an emergency breathing tube — plus, the 10,000-year-old remains that could be the oldest intentionally preserved mummies

Research Highlight: Soft robot steers itself down the human airway

Research Highlight: Smoke-dried mummies pre-date Egypt’s embalmed bodies

11:21 How might cancelled NIH grants affect the future of US science?

To assess the potential impact of cuts to funding by the Trump administration, Nature trained a machine-learning bot to try and reproduce the NIH’s method of cancelling grants and applied it to science that was successfully funded around ten years ago. This thought experiment shows that highly impactful science and medical research might have been at risk had a similar process been followed a decade ago, revealing the potentially broad-reaching consequences of these actions today.

Nature Index: What research might be lost after the NIH’s cuts? Nature trained a bot to find out

News: Are the Trump team’s actions affecting your research? How to contact Nature

20:54 Briefing Chat

What researchers understand about chatbot-induced psychosis, and the AI designed viruses capable of killing E. coli bacteria.

Nature: Can AI chatbots trigger psychosis? What the science says

Nature: World’s first AI-designed viruses a step towards AI-generated life

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

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28 Aug 14min

Highest-ever ocean temperatures recorded as El Niño intensifies

Why extreme temperatures are expected to weaken ocean carbon sinks — plus, how mitochondrial injections could treat vision loss.00:46 The world’s oceans reach a record temperatureNature: Ocean tempera...

26 Aug 19min

Briefing Chat: New narcolepsy drug could unlock host of novel brain therapies

Nature staff discuss how an FDA-approved drug for narcolepsy could have promise beyond the condition, and the longest-lived human brain organoids yet.00:28 The promise of a new narcolepsy drugNature: ...

21 Aug 12min

A black hole's spin could finally be measured by a high-speed star

Star orbiting close to Sagittarius A* could reveal its spin — plus, how exoskeletons might change the way humans move.00:46 The star that could reveal a black hole’s spinResearch article: Dayem et al....

19 Aug 29min

Briefing Chat: Anthropic rolls out new AI watermark — will it make a difference?

In this episode:00:29 What does Anthropic’s new watermark mean for research?Nature: Can Anthropic’s invisible watermarks curb ‘AI slop’? Researchers remain sceptical10:57 Ticklishness is a distinct, s...

14 Aug 16min

The probiotic bacteria engineered to treat diabetes

Genetically modified bacteria lower high blood-sugar in animal trials — plus, how to safely watch a solar eclipse.00:45 A living diabetes treatmentResearch article: Guan et al.08:03 Research Highlight...

12 Aug 19min

Briefing Chat: Is DNA repair the secret to a long life? Whales and mole-rats offer tantalizing hints

Nature staff discuss how animal studies are starting to uncover how DNA repair could prolong life, and how COVID-19 can reawaken dormant viruses.00:25 Could reawakened viruses have a link to long-COVI...

7 Aug 13min

Junk plastic turns into high-value commodity with chemistry trick

Researchers untangle the chemistry behind turning PVC into high-grade motor lubricant — plus, how engineered yeast can help make a cancer drug.00:45 The chemistry behind converting PVC into lubricantR...

5 Aug 13min