Spatial atlas of the human brain vasculature reveals specialized cell ensembles.

July 31, 2026| Source: Cell

The brain vasculature comprises diverse specialized cells that are essential for brain function, yet their spatial organization remains poorly understood. Here, we construct a comprehensive cerebrovascular cell atlas encompassing 314,535 transcriptomes that captures the arteriovenous axis and defines consensus cell states. We then perform spatial transcriptomics to map 1,529,740 cells across the human temporal cortex and hippocampus, uncovering stereotyped micro-communities termed vascular cell ensembles. These ensembles comprise specialized subsets of endothelial cells, mural cells, fibroblasts, and perivascular macrophages that align with the arteriovenous architecture to coordinate segment-specific functions, such as neurovascular coupling, blood-brain barrier transport, and immune surveillance. By overlaying genetic risk and pharmacologic reactivity, we identify ensemble-specific susceptibilities and candidate therapeutic targets across neurological diseases, including small vessel disease and stroke. This study provides a resource to dissect the spatial and functional logic underlying human cerebrovascular biology and establishes a blueprint for decoding neurological disease susceptibility and therapeutic response.

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Chronic cigarette smoke exposure induces distinct stem cell states driving genetic driver-specific non-small cell lung cancer subtypes.

Cigarette smoke-induced chronic inflammation (CI) potentiates development of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by mediating genetic and epigenetic events. Using normal lung organoids (LOs), we define how chronic cigarette smoke condensate (CSC) exposure drives two separate stem cell populations to evolve premalignant states harboring progressive epigenetic and linked transcriptomic abnormalities in the absence of major driver mutations. These dynamics facilitate evolution of an immune evasive s

Health & MedicineOctober 13, 2026

Extended fractional Hofstadter states at high field in twisted bilayer graphene above the magic angle.

When a Chern band is partially filled, a fractional Chern insulator (FCI)-the lattice analog of a fractional quantum Hall state-can arise. Though the full range of possible scenarios for producing such a state is not established, the most tractable models combine strong electronic interactions with the quantum geometry of the parent Chern band meeting specific criteria. In twisted bilayer graphene, the importance of interactions can be tuned by varying the interlayer twist. Here, we study a samp

Health & MedicineOctober 13, 2026

Phenotypic screening identifies kenpaullone as a prolymphangiogenic compound to improve heart repair following myocardial infarction.

Myocardial infarction (MI) induces cardiac muscle death and its subsequent replacement by a noncontractile fibrotic scar, which underlies progression to heart failure. Current treatments restore blood flow and assist with cardiac workload but do not promote regeneration. We have previously shown endogenous growth of the cardiac lymphatic system following MI and further stimulation with the lymphatic endothelial specific mutated Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor-C (VEGF-C) isoform, VEGFC-C156S,

Health & MedicineOctober 13, 2026

Dopamine suppresses pathological retinal oscillations and enhances the signal-to-noise ratio.

Infantile nystagmus is a debilitating involuntary eye movement disorder often associated with retinal diseases such as congenital stationary night blindness (CSNB). The oscillating eye movements of infantile nystagmus come with reduced visual acuity and strongly impair quality of life. No cure exists for this condition. Previously, we demonstrated that nystagmus in the CSNB mouse model Nyx nob has a retinal cause. Specifically, we found that synchronized oscillations of retinal ganglion cells (R

Health & MedicineOctober 13, 2026

Spatial and single-nucleus transcriptomics reveals the molecular pathology of type 2 diabetes-associated cognitive dysfunction.

The mechanisms underlying type 2 diabetes-associated cognitive dysfunction (DACD) remain poorly understood, hindering therapeutic progress. Here, we integrated spatial transcriptomics and single-nucleus RNA sequencing to delineate the spatiotemporal molecular and cellular landscape of DACD in brain tissues from 3- and 6-mo-old mouse models. Our findings revealed region- and cell-type-specific transcriptomic alterations, with excitatory neurons in the hippocampus and isocortex emerging as the mos