Biophysics

Geometry effects on protein mobility in a synapse

1. Simon Dannenberg
2. Sofiia Reshetniak
3. Sarah Mohammadinejad
4. Silvio O. Rizzoli
5. Stefan Klumpp

Reviewed by PREreview

Arp2/3-mediated bidirectional actin assembly by SPIN90 dimers in metazoans

1. Tianyang Liu
2. Luyan Cao
3. Miroslav Mladenov
4. Guillaume Romet-Lemonne
5. Michael Way
6. Carolyn A. Moores

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

Structural and Dynamic Impacts of Single-atom Disruptions to Guide RNA Interactions within the Recognition Lobe of Geobacillus stearothermophilus Cas9

1. Helen B Belato
2. Alexa L Knight
3. Alexandra M D’Ordine
4. Chinmai Pindi
5. Zhiqiang Fan
6. Jinping Luo
7. Giulia Palermo
8. Gerwald Jogl
9. George P Lisi

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study offers valuable insights into the conformational dynamics of the nucleic acid recognition lobe of GeoCas9, a thermophilic Cas9 from Geobacillus stearothermophilus. The authors investigate the influence of local dynamics and allosteric regulation on guide RNA binding affinity and DNA cleavage specificity through advanced NMR techniques and mutagenesis. The revised manuscript incorporates new experimental data, including molecular dynamics simulations and additional RNA binding studies, which provide convincing support for the findings. While the mutations studied do not lead to significant changes in GeoCas9 cleavage activity, the study contributes to a better understanding of the allosteric mechanisms and interdomain communication in Cas9 enzymes, and will be of great interest to biochemists and biophysicists exploring these complex systems.

Reviewed by eLife

The mechanism of DRB7.2:DRB4 mediated sequestering of endogenous inverted-repeat dsRNA precursors in plants

1. Sneha Paturi
2. Debadutta Patra
3. Priti Chanda Behera
4. Ramdas Aute
5. Nilam Waghela
6. Priyadarshan Kinatukara
7. Mandar V Deshmukh

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The manuscript provides valuable findings in the field for understanding the RNAi regulation in plants at the molecular level with a model of how DRB7.2 and DRB4 form a heterodimer and protect dsRNA from DICER activity. The presented data provide a solid basis for the model, but certain measurements could benefit from replicates for robust statistics.

Reviewed by eLife

Kinetic regulation of kinesin’s two motor domains coordinates its stepping along microtubules

1. Yamato Niitani
2. Kohei Matsuzaki
3. Erik Jonsson
4. Ronald D Vale
5. Michio Tomishige

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study provides compelling evidence that kinesin's stepping mechanism is governed by strain-induced conformational changes in its nucleotide-binding pockets. Using pre-steady state kinetics and single-molecule assays, the authors demonstrate that the neck linker's conformation differentially modulates nucleotide affinity and detachment rates, establishing an asynchronous chemo-mechanical cycle that prevents simultaneous detachment. Supported by cryo-EM structural data, the work presents an important advance in our understanding of kinesin's hand-over-hand movement.

  [Editors' note: this paper was reviewed by Review Commons.]

Reviewed by eLife, Review Commons

Characterization and modulation of human insulin degrading enzyme conformational dynamics to control enzyme activity

1. Jordan M Mancl
2. Wenguang G Liang
3. Nicholas L Bayhi
4. Hui Wei
5. Bridget Carragher
6. Clinton S Potter
7. Wei-Jen Tang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The manuscript by Mancl et al. provides valuable mechanistic insights into the conformational dynamics of Insulin Degrading Enzyme (IDE), a zinc metalloprotease involved in the clearance of various bioactive peptides. Supported by a convincing combination of cryo-EM, SEC-SAXS, enzymatic assays, and molecular dynamics simulations, the study characterizes the dynamic transitions between IDE's open and closed states in the presence of a sub-saturating concentration of insulin. This work contributes to a refined model of IDE's functional cycle, enhancing our understanding of its role in proteolysis.

Reviewed by eLife

Load-based divergence in the dynamic allostery of two TCRs recognizing the same pMHC

1. Ana C Chang-Gonzalez
2. Aoi Akitsu
3. Robert J Mallis
4. Matthew J Lang
5. Ellis L Reinherz
6. Wonmuk Hwang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This useful study reports detailed molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of T-cell receptors (TCRs) in complex with a peptide/MHC complex, for a better understanding of the mechanism of T-cell activation. The MD simulations provide solid evidence supporting that different TCRs can respond mechanically in different ways upon binding to the same pMHC complex. The analyses are systematic and provide testable predictions that can be evaluated by future mutagenesis and force microscopy studies.

Reviewed by eLife

Deletion of PIEZO1 in adult cardiomyocytes accelerates cardiac aging and causes premature death

1. Ze-Yan Yu
2. Yang Guo
3. Scott Kesteven
4. Delfine Cheng
5. Hanzhou Lei
6. Jianxin Wu
7. Evelyn Nadar
8. Peter Macdonald
9. Munira Xaymardan
10. Charles D. Cox
11. Michael P. Feneley
12. Boris Martinac

Reviewed by preLights

A role for JAK2 in mediating cell surface GHR-PRLR interaction

1. Chen Chen
2. Jing Jiang
3. Tejeshwar C Rao
4. Ying Liu
5. Tatiana T Marquez Lago
6. Stuart J Frank
7. André Leier

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is an important study that characterizes a surprising interaction between two different cytokine/hormone receptors using nanoscale resolution (dSTORM) microscopy. The study provides solid evidence that the interaction is ligand-dependent, and is mediated by the receptor-associated intracellular signalling molecule JAK2. While at present limited to growth hormone and prolactin receptors in a limited number of cell lines, there are potentially broad implications for cytokine signalling, as such JAK2-mediated interactions could occur between a range of different cytokines. Moreover, the specific hormone interactions shown in the manuscript may have significant implications for understanding how these hormones can have differential effects in breast cancer, under different conditions.

Reviewed by eLife

Distinct Activation Mechanisms of CXCR4 and ACKR3 Revealed by Single-Molecule Analysis of their Conformational Landscapes

1. Christopher T Schafer
2. Raymond F Pauszek
3. Martin Gustavsson
4. Tracy M Handel
5. David P Millar

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This manuscript describes the characterization of the conformational dynamics of two chemokine receptors at the single-molecule level using FRET. The authors make a convincing case for attributing the distinct interaction and pharmacology of the two receptors to differences in their conformational energy landscape. These important findings will be of interest to scientists working on activation mechanisms of GPCRs and signal transduction.

Reviewed by eLife