Developmental Biology

Human pluripotent stem cell-derived atrioventricular node-like pacemaker cells exhibit biological conduction bridge properties in vitro and in vivo

1. Michelle Lohbihler
2. Amos A. Lim
3. Stéphane Massé
4. Maggie Kwan
5. Omar Mourad
6. Olya Mastikhina
7. Brandon M. Murareanu
8. Malak Elbatarny
9. Renu Sarao
10. Beiping Qiang
11. Wahiba Dhahri
12. Matthew L. Chang
13. Alice L.Y. Xu
14. Amine Mazine
15. Shahryar Khattak
16. Sara S. Nunes
17. Kumaraswamy Nanthakumar
18. Michael A. Laflamme
19. Stephanie Protze

Reviewed by preLights

Tumors mimic the niche to inhibit neighboring stem cell differentiation

1. Yang Zhang
2. Yuejia Wang
3. Jinqiao Song
4. Lizhong Yan
5. Ziguang Wang
6. Dongze Song
7. Yudi Zhao
8. Shaowei Zhao

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents results supporting a model that tumorous germline stem cells (GSCs) in the Drosophila ovary mimic the stem cell niche and inhibit the differentiation of neighboring cells. The valuable findings show that GSC tumors often contain non-mutant cells whose differentiation is suppressed by the GSC tumorous cells. However, the evidence showing that the GSC tumors produce BMP ligands to suppress differentiation of non-mutant cells is incomplete. It could be strengthened by the use of sensitive RNA in situ hybridization approaches.

Reviewed by eLife

SLC35G3 is a UDP-N-acetylglucosamine transporter for sperm glycoprotein formation and underpins male fertility in mice

1. Daisuke Mashiko
2. Shingo Tonai
3. Haruhiko Miyata
4. Martin M Matzuk
5. Masahito Ikawa

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study reports the physiological function of a putative transmembrane UDP-N-acetylglucosamine transporter called SLC35G3 in spermatogenesis. The conclusion that SLC35G3 is a new and essential factor for male fertility in mice and probably in humans is supported by convincing data. This study will be of interest to reproductive biologists and physicians working on male infertility.

Reviewed by eLife

Glial betaPix is essential for blood vessel development in the zebrafish brain

1. ShihChing Chiu
2. Qinchao Zhou
3. Chenglu Xiao
4. Linlu Bai
5. Xiaojun Zhu
6. Wanqiu Ding
7. Jing-Wei Xiong

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable manuscript presents findings supported by solid data to identify a surprising glia-exclusive function for betapix in vascular integrity and angiogenesis. The manuscript also describes the optimisation of a modified CRISPR-based Zwitch approach to generate conditional knockouts in zebrafish

Reviewed by eLife

Transcriptional Repression of reaper by Stand Still Safeguards Female Germline Development in Drosophila

1. Masaya Matsui
2. Shinichi Kawaguchi
3. Toshie Kai

Reviewed by Review Commons

Smed-pou4-2 regulates mechanosensory neuron regeneration and function in planarians

1. Ryan A McCubbin
2. Mohammad A Auwal
3. Shengzhou Wang
4. Sarai Alvarez Zepeda
5. Roman Sasik
6. Robert W Zeller
7. Kelly G Ross
8. Ricardo M Zayas

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is a valuable study that explores the role of the conserved transcription factor POU4-2 in the maintenance, regeneration, and function of planarian mechanosensory neurons. The authors present convincing evidence provided by gene expression and functional studies to demonstrate that POU4-2 is required for the maintenance and regeneration of mechanosensory neurons and mechanosensory function in planarians. Furthermore, the authors identify conserved genes associated with human auditory and rheosensory neurons as potential targets of this transcription factor.

Reviewed by eLife

Cataloguing the postnatal small intestinal transcriptome during the first postnatal month

1. Luiz Fernando Silva Oliveira
2. Radhika S Khetani
3. Yu-Syuan Wu
4. Venkata Siva Dasuri
5. Amanda W Harrington
6. Oluwabunmi Olaloye
7. Jeffrey Goldsmith
8. David T Breault
9. Liza Konnikova
10. Shannan J Ho Sui
11. Amy E O’Connell

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents a useful inventory of genes that are up- and down-regulated in the mouse small intestine (duodenum and ileum) during the first postnatal month; the data were collected and analyzed using solid and validated methodology and can be used as a starting point for additional validation of specific markers and for follow-up functional studies. Some aspects of the study were incomplete, with claims being only partially supported by the data, and it is suggested that additional validation be performed. The authors attempted to correlate gene expression changes with periods of high and low NEC susceptibility, but these correlations are speculative and not supported by functional follow-up studies. Discussion of gene expression changes with NEC susceptibility would be more appropriate to include in the Discussion section and to be tempered in the results section.

Reviewed by eLife

Spatiotemporal WNT and BMP gradients orchestrate regional enteroendocrine cell diversity along the Drosophila midgut

1. Jiaying Lv
2. Xingting Guo
3. Rongwen Xi

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study is a comprehensive investigation into the regulatory mechanisms and regional distribution of enteroendocrine cell subtypes in the Drosophila midgut, significantly advancing the understanding of how WNT and BMP gradients contribute to EE diversity. The methodological foundation and robust genetic evidence are solid in supporting the key roles of compartment boundary signals, particularly WNT and BMP, in specifying EE subtypes and division modes. However, there is a lack of full mechanistic insight regarding Notch pathway involvement, incomplete quantification of phenotype data, and insufficient global pattern analysis, which detracts from fully supporting some proposed models. Overall, the study provides a platform for future work but would benefit from stronger data integration and expanded mechanistic exploration.

Reviewed by eLife

Deep learning predicts tissue outcomes in retinal organoids

1. Cassian Afting
2. Norin Bhatti
3. Christina Schlagheck
4. Encarnación Sánchez Salvador
5. Laura Herrera-Astorga
6. Rashi Agarwal
7. Risa Suzuki
8. Nicolaj Hackert
9. Hanns-Martin Lorenz
10. Lucie Zilova
11. Joachim Wittbrodt
12. Tarik Exner

Reviewed by Review Commons

Life-cycle-related gene expression patterns in the brown algae

1. Pélagie Ratchinski
2. Olivier Godfroy
3. Benjamin Noel
4. Jean-Marc Aury
5. J Mark Cock

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This manuscript presents an in-depth analysis of gene expression across multiple brown algal species with differing life histories, providing convincing evidence for the conservation of life cycle-specific gene expression. While largely descriptive, the study is an important step forward in understanding the core cellular processes that differ between life cycle phases, and its findings will be of broad interest to developmental and evolutionary biologists.

Reviewed by eLife