Brain, in 2023 the treasure map will be opened

As artificial intelligence enters a new era, science advances. The powerful tool has emerged across all disciplines. We've seen a brain atlas, new lessons from it Fruit flyAnd the genomes of 240 mammal species, artificial embryos, and more light for the Y chromosome. Outside our planet, we got to know the Milky Way better, found water on the moon and traveled directly to Jupiter…

1. Atlas of the human brain. International team

More than 20 articles Science, science is advancing And Science Translational Medicine Show an atlas Human primate brain Not humans at the cellular level. The study allowed us to describe more than 3,000 types of human brain cells, and revealed the characteristics that distinguish us from other primates. This work is part of the Cell Enumeration Network of the BRAIN Initiative of the US National Institutes of Health.

This study was conducted by, among others, Kimberly Seletti, from Karolinska Institutet (Sweden); Yang Eric Li, University of California, San Diego (USA), and Wei Tian, ​​Salk Institute (USA). Together they created the first blueprint map of human brain cells, including basic gene expression and gene regulatory structure. Great impact in the health field.

2. Zonomia Project. 150 scientists

The Zoonomia project arose to carry out a complex mission: to co-produce the genomes of hundreds of species to understand mammals and their evolution. They cataloged the diversity of their genomes by comparing the DNA sequences of organisms 240 current species, from the anteater and the African savannah elephant, to Bruce's fur or zebu. The work includes eleven studies on genetics, evolutionary innovation, or morphology conducted by more than 150 scientists. The results were published in Sciences.

3. Brain map of the fly larva. Johns Hopkins and Cambridge Universities

Two groups have taken a step further to understand the human brain by using a model model in genetics studies: the larval brain of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, or simply the fruit fly. The article, published in the journal Science, reproduced the most advanced map of brain connections, including… 3016 neurons And all of his connections. Everything is the product of coordination between Johns Hopkins University (USA) and Cambridge University (United Kingdom).

4. Uracil on the asteroid Ryugu. JAXA Agency

The nitrogenous bases that make up RNA are Adenine, guanine, cytosine and uracil. The latter was discovered, according to Nature Communications, on the asteroid Ryugu. The samples were collected in 2019 by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)'s Hayabusa2 probe. The Japanese researchers who analyzed it added to this finding, SINC reported, the presence of another important element in the metabolism of terrestrial life: vitamin B3 or niacin.

5. Y chromosome. T2T group

Y chromosome, linked to development Male sexual characteristicsThis was a challenge for the consortium of researchers from the Telomere-to-Telomere (T2T) project, responsible for unraveling the human genome. according to natureThis final piece of the puzzle has been solved. Completing the sequence of this region of DNA allows the addition of 30 million new genetic reference bases and opens innovative horizons for scientific and medical research.

6. Artificial human embryos. Various equipment

A scientific team produced It is not without controversyHe announced artificial human embryos using stem cells guardian. The team was led by Magdalena Zernicka Goetz and included scientists from the University of Cambridge and the California Institute of Technology. The study coincided with an announcement in the same direction by the Israeli Weizmann Institute, which published similar results last September nature.

7. Neutron star. ICE-CSIC

An international team including the Space Science Institute (ICE-CSIC), led by Curtin University (Australia) and the International Center for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), has discovered a new type of stellar object that challenges our understanding of neutron physics. stars. according to natureIt could be A long-period magnetarIt is a rare type of star with very strong magnetic fields.

8. Ice Cube Telescope. 350 scholars

The IceCube Neutrino Observatory, a massive 1-cubic-kilometer detector built beneath the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, obtained a picture of our galaxy using those images. Small, ghostly astronomical messengers. The members of this international collaboration, consisting of more than 350 scientists, are thus featured in the journal SciencesEvidence of the emission of high-energy neutrinos from our galaxy.

9. Water on the moon. Chinese Academy of Sciences

Researcher Huicun He, from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with other colleagues from his country and the United Kingdom, conducted an analysis Water content of impact glass “balls”. (IGB, its abbreviation in English) thanks to lunar soil samples collected by the Chang'e 5 spacecraft. This probe, as published in the magazine nature Earth Sciences landed on the moon in December 2020, and in the same month brought the collected material back to Earth for analysis.

10. Exploring Jupiter. Which

The Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer (JUICE) was launched in April from Kourou, French Guiana. Ariane 5 missileIn its final operation for a scientific mission, the ship was placed in space. The goal of JUICE is to investigate whether habitable worlds could emerge around the gas giant, as well as the Jupiter system as a whole as an archetype for many exoplanets orbiting other stars.

The following people participated in the voting: José Manuel Sánchez Ron, Bamba García Molina, Manuel Martin Lucches, Manuel Lozano Leyva, José Antonio Lopez Guerrero, Javier Armentia and Francisco Mora.