Biophysics

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

Elucidating the Mechanism Underlying UBA7•UBE2L6 Disulfide Complex Formation

1. Pei-Tzu Chen
2. Jia-Yin Yeh
3. Jui-Hsia Weng
4. Kuen-Phon Wu

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  In this important study, the authors employed state-of-the-art biochemistry, cryo-EM, and HDX mass spec approaches to study the formation of the binary Uba7-UBE2L6 and ternary UBA7-UBE2L6-ISG15 complexes. The results established mechanisms by which UBA7 and UBE2L6 form disulfide bonds, disrupting the ISG15 transfer cascade. While the biochemical and structural experiments are largely convincing, the mechanism under in vivo conditions remains unclear, due to the limited use of a single E2 enzyme. The authors need to repeat their experiments with a representative panel of human E2 enzymes.

Reviewed by eLife

Progressive chromosome shape changes during cell divisions

1. Yasutaka Kakui
2. Yoshiharu Kusano
3. Tereza Clarence
4. Maya Lopez
5. Todd Fallesen
6. Toru Hirota
7. Bhavin S Khatri
8. Frank Uhlmann

Reviewed by Review Commons

Structure and Cl- Conductance Properties of the Open State of Human CFTR

1. Zhi-Wei Zeng
2. Christopher E Ing
3. Régis Pomès

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study reports a detailed computational analysis of the CFTR ion channel's permeation mechanism, advancing our understanding of its structure-function relationship. The conclusions are based on extensive molecular dynamics simulations and thorough analysis, but the use of an approximate chloride ion model, known to underestimate key ion-protein interactions, leaves them incomplete without experimental or alternative computational validation. The work will be of interest to biophysicists working on CFTR and cystic fibrosis.

Reviewed by eLife

A thermodynamic framework for nonequilibrium self-assembly and force morphology tradeoffs in branched actin networks

1. Elisabeth Rennert
2. Suriyanarayanan Vaikuntanathan

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  Rennert et al. developed a valuable thermodynamic framework to study the force response of branched actin networks from the crucial and unexplored perspective of energetic cost. They used the fact that the entropy production rate must be positive to derive inequalities that set limits on the maximum force produced by branched actin networks, and speculate that the dissipative cost beyond that required to move the load may be necessary to maintain an adaptive steady state. This work is highly innovative, but remains incomplete until the hypotheses of the model are better justified and the conclusions about the dissipative cost of the system are better established.

Reviewed by eLife