Cell Biology

A Drug Repurposing Approach Reveals Targetable Epigenetic Pathways in Plasmodium vivax Hypnozoites

1. S. P. Maher
2. M. A. Bakowski
3. A. Vantaux
4. E. L. Flannery
5. C. Andolina
6. M. Gupta
7. Y. Antonova-Koch
8. M. Argomaniz
9. M. Cabrera-Mora
10. B. Campo
11. A. T. Chao
12. A. K. Chatterjee
13. W. T. Cheng
14. E. Chuenchob
15. C. A. Cooper
16. K. Cottier
17. M. R. Galinski
18. A. Harupa-Chung
19. H. Ji
20. S. B. Joseph
21. T. Lenz
22. S. Lonardi
23. J. Matheson
24. S. A. Mikolajczak
25. T. Moeller
26. A. Orban
27. V. Padín-Irizarry
28. K. Pan
29. J. Péneau
30. J. Prudhomme
31. C. Roesch
32. A. A. Ruberto
33. S. S. Sabnis
34. C. L. Saney
35. J. Sattabongkot
36. S. Sereshki
37. S. Suriyakan
38. R. Ubalee
39. Y. Wang
40. P. Wasisakun
41. J. Yin
42. J. Popovici
43. C. W. McNamara
44. C. J. Joyner
45. F. Nosten
46. B. Witkowski
47. K. G. Le Roch
48. D. E. Kyle

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This paper reports a large drug repurposing screen based on an in vitro culture platform to identify compounds that can kill Plasmodium hypnozoites. This valuable work adds to the current repertoire of anti-hypnozoites agents and uncovers targetable epigenetic pathways to enhance our understanding of this mysterious stage of the Plasmodium life cycle. The data presented here are based on solid methodology and represent a starting point for further investigation of epigenetic inhibitors to treat P. vivax infection. This paper will be of interest to Plasmodium researchers and more broadly to readers in the fields of host-pathogen interactions and drug development.

Reviewed by eLife

High resolution mapping of the actin fusion focus reveals myosin V-dependent transport of formin for actin aster compaction

1. Valentine Thomas
2. Hikari Mase
3. Laetitia Michon
4. Andrea Picco
5. Marko Kaksonen
6. Sophie G Martin

Reviewed by Review Commons

A TRPV4-dependent calcium signaling axis governs lamellipodial actin architecture to promote cell migration

1. Ernest Iu
2. Alexander Bogatch
3. Wenjun Deng
4. Jonathan D. Humphries
5. Changsong Yang
6. Fernando R. Valencia
7. Chengyin Li
8. Christopher A. McCulloch
9. Guy Tanentzapf
10. Tatyana M. Svitkina
11. Martin J. Humphries
12. Sergey V. Plotnikov

Reviewed by PREreview

Membrane potential modulates ERK activity and cell proliferation

1. Mari Sasaki
2. Masanobu Nakahara
3. Takuya Hashiguchi
4. Fumihito Ono

Reviewed by eLife

Physiological febrile heat stress increases cytoadhesion through increased protein trafficking of Plasmodium falciparum surface proteins into the red blood cell

1. David Jones
2. Hugo Belda
3. Malgorzata Broncel
4. Gwendolin Fuchs
5. David Anaguano
6. Stephanie D Nofal
7. Moritz Treeck

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study provides compelling evidence that fever-like temperatures enhance the export of Plasmodium falciparum transmembrane proteins, including the cytoadherence protein PfEMP1 and the nutrient channel PSAC, to the red blood cell surface, thereby increasing cytoadhesion. Using rigorous and well-controlled experiments, the authors convincingly demonstrate that this effect results from accelerated protein trafficking rather than changes in protein production or parasite development. These findings significantly advance our understanding of parasite virulence mechanisms and offer insights into how febrile episodes may exacerbate malaria severity.

Reviewed by eLife

Post-translational modifications of microtubules are crucial for malaria parasite transmission

1. Kodzo Atchou
2. Magali Roques
3. Ruth Rehmann
4. Reto Caldelari
5. Melanie Schmid
6. Simone Grossi
7. Bianca Manuela Berger
8. Torsten Ochsenreiter
9. Friedrich Frischknecht
10. Volker Heussler

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study provides valuable insights into microtubule remodeling during liver-stage Plasmodium berghei development, demonstrating that deletion of the alpha-tubulin C-terminal tail impairs parasite growth in mosquitoes and abolishes infection in HeLa cells. The work is technically ambitious, employing advanced microscopy, genetic mutants, and pharmacological approaches. However, key claims are only partially supported due to incomplete evidence linking tubulin modifications to microtubule dynamics and uncertain antibody-based PTM detection.

Reviewed by eLife

Chromatin activity of IκBα mediates the exit from naïve pluripotency

1. Luis G Palma
2. Daniel Álvarez-Villanueva
3. María Maqueda
4. Mercedes Barrero
5. Arnau Iglesias
6. Joan Bertran
7. Damiana Álvarez-Errico
8. Carlos A García-Prieto
9. Cecilia Ballaré
10. Virginia Rodriguez-Cortez
11. Clara Bueno
12. August Vidal
13. Alberto Villanueva
14. Pablo Menéndez
15. Gregoire Stik
16. Luciano Di Croce
17. Bernhard Payer
18. Manel Esteller
19. Lluís Espinosa
20. Anna Bigas

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study describes a non-canonical role for IκBα in regulating mouse embryonic stem cell pluripotency and differentiation, independent of the classical NF-κB pathway. The conclusions are convincingly supported through orthogonal approaches and separation of function mutants. The findings add new insight into pluripotency regulation in mouse cells.

Reviewed by eLife

An expanded palette of bright and photostable organellar Ca2+ sensors

1. Agathe Moret
2. Helen Farrants
3. Ruolin Fan
4. Kelsey G Zingg
5. Bryon Silva
6. Camilla Roselli
7. Thomas G Oertner
8. Christine E Gee
9. Dafni Hadjieconomou
10. Vidhya Rangaraju
11. Eric R Schreiter
12. Jaime de Juan-Sanz

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study introduces a new class of spectrally tunable, dye-based calcium sensors optimized for imaging in organelles with high calcium concentrations, such as the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria. The experimental evidence supporting the applicability of these sensors is convincing, with thorough validation in cultured cells and neurons. The work will be of high interest to researchers studying calcium signaling dynamics in subcellular compartments.

Reviewed by eLife

SARS-CoV-2 envelope protein induces LC3 lipidation via the V-ATPase-ATG16L1 axis

1. Carmen Figueras-Novoa
2. Lewis Timimi
3. Elena Marcassa
4. Raquel Taveira-Marques
5. Lorin Adams
6. Ming Jiang
7. Mary Wu
8. Beatriz Montaner
9. Kevin Ng
10. Giuditta De Lorenzo
11. Wilhelm Furnon
12. Vanessa M. Cowton
13. Nicole Upfold
14. George Kassiotis
15. Ruth Harvey
16. Arvind H Patel
17. Michael Howell
18. Rachel Ulferts
19. Rupert Beale

Reviewed by Review Commons

Cell Adhesion-Dependent Biphasic Axon Outgrowth Elucidated by Femtosecond Laser Impulse

1. Sohei Yamada
2. Kentarou Baba
3. Naoyuki Inagaki
4. Yoichiroh Hosokawa

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  Axon growth is essential to formation of neural connections. This manuscript presents a useful presentation of a new method for assessing the adhesion strength of axons with the use of a laser-induced shock wave. However, the strength of the evidence is incomplete as critical controls for calibration and time course are lacking.

Reviewed by eLife