IMMUNOLOGY: Gold Shows Mettle Against Rheumatoid Arthritis
Gold therapy, once a common treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, fell out of favor in part because no one could figure out how exactly it works to quell inflammation. Brian DeDecker (pictured), Stephen De Wall, and their colleagues report in the Feb. 27 Nature Chemical Biology that gold, along with other precious metals such as platinum, frees peptides from the grip of the MHC class II proteins, essentially disarming the immune response. The discovery could lead to a safer, more effective version of gold therapy, which is still in use in developing countries.

INFECTIOUS DISEASE: RNA Sequence Restrains Fatal Encephalitis
One short sequence of RNA protected mice from deadly brain inflammation caused by West Nile virus and Japanese encephalitis virus, report Priti Kumar (on right), Manjunath Swamy, and Premlata Shankar (not pictured). The findings, which appear online and in the April PLoS Medicine, underscore the therapeutic potential of the fast-moving field of RNA interference. It has only been four years since scientists first showed that RNA interference, which protects plants, flies, and worms from viral infections, also works in mammalian cells. Now, at least two experimental siRNA therapies already have advanced to phase I safety trials in people. Short interfering RNA (siRNA) silences genes most commonly by triggering the destruction of RNA before proteins can be made.

NEUROSCIENCE: Ancient Molecules Guide New Synapse Growth
Recent research has shifted the understanding of a group of specialized molecules in the extracellular matrix, recasting them from scaffolding only to key cue-providers that help guide the formation of the nervous system. The findings are reported in the Feb. 16 Neuron by (clockwise from left) Misao Higashi, April Duckworth, Aurnab Ghose, Thomas Schwarz, Alan Tenney, and David Van Vactor, along with John Flanagan (not pictured) and other colleagues. The team focused on two of these heparan sulfate proteoglycans and found that through a certain receptor, they compete to accomplish different tasks in synapse formation. The study suggests a preliminary model for a molecular synapse-forming mechanism.