Nature's News & Views roundup of 2025

Dec 19, 2025

Andy Mitchinson, Chief News and Views Editor at Nature, and Holly Smith, Senior News and Views editor and biologist, share fascinating insights from 2025. They discuss samples from the asteroid Bennu revealing ancient brine, shedding light on prebiotic chemistry. Holly reviews a study showing that RNA expression doesn't always correlate with cell function in zebrafish, highlighting cellular diversity. They also delve into the alarming rise in mortality rates from extreme rainfall in Mumbai, affecting the most vulnerable populations.

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INSIGHT

Asteroid Bennu Held Ancient Brine

Bennu samples returned intact allowed scientists to detect salts indicating ancient salty subsurface water on its parent body.
Loss of that water by evaporation could have concentrated organics and triggered formation of prebiotic molecules.

INSIGHT

Drying Promotes Prebiotic Chemistry

Water hinders formation of some prebiotic molecules, so removal of water can promote their synthesis.
Evaporation-driven salt formation on planetesimals offers a mechanism for producing life's building blocks.

INSIGHT

Bennu Contains Life Precursors

Separate analyses found amino acids and nucleobases among Bennu materials, confirming presence of life's precursors.
These findings contextualize how asteroids might have supplied prebiotic compounds to early Earth.

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Nature: Asteroids, antibiotics and ants: a year of remarkable science

In this episode:

1:58 Evidence of ancient brine on an asteroid

Samples taken from the asteroid Bennu by NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft suggest the parent body it originated from is likely to have contained salty, subsurface water. This finding provides insights into the chemistry of the early Solar System, and suggests that brines might have been an important place where pre-biotic molecules were formed.

News & Views: Asteroid Bennu contains salts from ancient brine

Nature Podcast: Asteroid Bennu contains building blocks of life

08:01 How gene expression doesn't always reflect a cell's function

Cells are often grouped into categories according to the RNA molecules they produce. However a study of zebrafish (Danio rerio) brains revealed that cells can be functionally diverse even if they appear molecularly similar. This finding adds more nuance to how a cell's ‘type’ is ultimately defined.

News & Views: Does a cell’s gene expression always reflect its function?

12:01 The disproportionate mortality risks of extreme rainfall

An assessment of death rates in India’s coastal megacity of Mumbai revealed that the impact of extreme rainfall events will be highest for women, young children and residents of informal settlements. This situation is likely to become more pronounced as a result of climate change.

News & Views: Extreme rainfall poses the biggest risk to Mumbai’s most vulnerable people

14:46 An AI-designed underwater glue

Inspired by animals like barnacles and aided by machine learning, researchers have developed a super-sticky compound that works as an underwater adhesive. To demonstrate its properties, researchers applied it to a rubber duck, which stuck firmly to a rock on a beach despite being battered by the sea.

News & Views: AI learns from nature to design super-adhesive gels that work underwater

Nature Podcast: Underwater glue shows its sticking power in rubber duck test

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