Developmental Biology

Human spinal cord organoids reveal cell intercalation as a conserved mechanism for secondary neurulation

1. José Blanco-Ameijeiras
2. Yara El Majzoub
3. Mar García-Valero
4. Mariana M Faustino
5. Elena Rebollo
6. Javier Macho-Rendón
7. Jorge Corbacho
8. Juan Ramón Martínez-Morales
9. Elisa Martí

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents a valuable human stem cell-derived organoid model that captures key morphological and cellular features of spinal cord development and provides evidence for a YAP-dependent mechanism of lumen formation relevant to secondary neurulation. Overall, the evidence is convincing, using strong and validated approaches consistent with the current state of the art, including systematic protocol optimisation across multiple cell lines and quantitative analysis of tissue architecture. However, some claims regarding precise anterior-posterior and dorsoventral spinal cord identity, as well as several novelty claims, are at times overstated and would benefit from more direct validation and more careful positioning. The work will be of interest to developmental biologists and researchers studying neural tube defects.

Reviewed by eLife

Patient-specific iPSC models of neural tube defects identify underlying deficiencies in neuroepithelial cell shape regulation and differentiation

1. Ioakeim Ampartzidis
2. Elliott M Thompson
3. Yashica Gupta
4. Andrea Krstevski
5. Nicola Elvassore
6. Eirini Maniou
7. Paolo de Coppi
8. Gabriel L Galea

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The authors used genetic mutations in VANGL2 to study cell morphological changes during differentiation of hPSCs and understand the mechanisms underlying neural tube closure defects. The findings are important as they establish a quantitative, reproducible 2D human iPSC-to-neural-progenitor platform for analyzing cell-shape dynamics during differentiation. The convincing evidence provided, combined with the relative simplicity of the model and its tractability as a patient-specific and reverse genetic platform, make it attractive.

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

Reviewed by eLife, Review Commons

Bruce suppresses autophagy-regulated caspase activity and wing tissue growth in Drosophila

1. Natsuki Shinoda
2. Yutaro Hama
3. Nozomi Hanawa
4. Masayuki Miura

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study reports insights into how the caspase Dcp-1, best known for cell death, can also promote tissue growth in Drosophila, extending the authors' earlier work by identifying regulatory factors that shape this non-lethal activity. The valuable findings identify new Dcp-1-interacting proteins Sirt1, Fkbp59, Debcl, Buffy, Atg2, and Atg8a, and help broaden understanding of how growth and death pathways intersect. The evidence is solid, but some conclusions would be strengthened by additional studies, particularly regarding the nature of the cell death observed and the involvement of autophagy.

Reviewed by eLife

Permissive and instructive Hox codes govern limb positioning

1. Yajun Wang
2. Maik Hintze
3. Jinbao Wang
4. Hengxun Tao
5. Patrick Petzsch
6. Karl Köhrer
7. Longfei Cheng
8. Peng Zhou
9. Jianlin Wang
10. Zhaofu Liao
11. Xu-Feng Qi
12. Dongqing Cai
13. Thomas Bartolomaeus
14. Karl Schilling
15. Joerg Wilting
16. Stefanie Kuerten
17. Georgy Koentges
18. Ketan Patel
19. Qin Pu
20. Ruijin Huang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study provides the first putative evidence that alteration of the Hox code in neck lateral plate mesoderm is sufficient to induce ectopic development of forelimb buds at neck level. The authors use both gain-of-function (GOF) and loss-of-function (LOF) approaches in chick embryos to test the roles of Hox paralogy group (PG) 4-7 genes in limb development. The GOF data provide strong evidence that overexpression of Hox PG6/7 genes are sufficient to induce forelimb buds at neck level. However, the experiments using dominant negative constructs are lacking some key controls that are needed to demonstrate the specificity of the LOF effect rendering the work as a whole incomplete.

Reviewed by eLife

Human pluripotent stem cell-derived macrophages modify development of human kidney organoids

1. Filipa M. Lopes
2. Ioannis Bantounas
3. Alexandra Sarov
4. Adrian S. Woolf
5. Susan J. Kimber

Reviewed by preLights

Progressive mural cell deficiencies across the lifespan in a foxf2 model of cerebral small vessel disease

1. Merry Faye E Graff
2. Emma EM Heeg
3. David A Elliott
4. Sarah J Childs

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study provides important insights into mural cell dynamics and vascular pathology using a zebrafish model of cerebral small vessel disease. The authors present convincing evidence that partial loss of foxf2 function results in progressive, cell-autonomous defects in pericytes accompanied by endothelial abnormalities across the lifespan. By leveraging advanced in vivo imaging and genetic approaches, the work establishes zebrafish as a powerful and relevant model for dissecting the cellular mechanisms underlying cerebral small vessel disease.

Reviewed by eLife

map3k1 is required for spatial restriction of progenitor differentiation in planarians

1. Bryanna Isela-Inez Canales
2. Hunter O King
3. Peter W Reddien

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study examines the role of map3k1, a MAP3K family member that has both kinase and ubiquitin ligase domains, in the differentiation of progenitors in the flatworm Planaria. The convincing analyses demonstrate that map3k1 acts within progenitors to restrict their premature differentiation and to prevent formation of teratomas. This work would be of interest to researchers in the fields of regeneration, developmental biology, and aging.

Reviewed by eLife

Superoxide dismutases maintain niche homeostasis in stem cell populations

1. Olivia Majhi
2. Aishwarya Chhatre
3. Tanvi Chaudhary
4. Devanjan Sinha

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  In this work, the authors intend to assess the existence of a redox potential across germline stem cells and neighbouring somatic stem cells in the Drosophila testis. Some aspects of the manuscript are convincing, like the clear effect of SOD KD on cyst cell differentiation state. Other conclusions of the work, such as the non-autonomous effect of this KD on germ cells are not sufficiently supported by the data. This remains true even with the revised version of the paper, as the effect of redox state of the soma on the germline is a major point of the paper, and this remains a critical flaw. The work could be potentially useful if the critiques of the reviewers were fully addressed; the strength of the evidence of the manuscript as it stands is still inadequate. Readers should use their own judgment about the validity and meaningfulness of different findings.

Reviewed by eLife

Single-Cell Characterization of Anterior Segment Development: Cell Types, Pathways, and Signals Driving Formation of the Trabecular Meshwork and Schlemm’s Canal

1. Revathi Balasubramanian
2. Nicholas Tolman
3. Taibo Li
4. Abdul Hannan
5. Violet Bupp-Chickering
6. Karina Polanco
7. Aakriti Bhandari
8. Sally Zhou
9. Marina Simón
10. John Peregrin
11. Christa Montgomery
12. Krishnakumar Kizhatil
13. Jiang Qian
14. Simon WM John

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important work advances our understanding of the development of the visual system. The data presented is compelling and provides a detailed single-cell atlas of post-natal anterior chamber development in mice, highlighting the trabecular meshwork and Schlemm's canal.

Reviewed by eLife

The livebearers platyfish and swordtails partially regenerate their hearts with persistent scarring

1. Vincent Hisler
2. Lana Rees
3. Simon Blanchoud
4. Heidi EL Lischer
5. Rémy Bruggmann
6. Anna Jaźwińska

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents important findings on how cardiac regenerative capacity diverges across species by examining heart repair in two species of livebearers, platyfish and swordtails. In contrast to zebrafish, the livebearer species show persistent scarring after cryo-injury, and the work highlights how lineage-specific anatomical and immunological traits may constrain regenerative competence. The study is compelling, the data are convincing, and the results contribute to our understanding of the mechanisms underlying heart regeneration across vertebrates.

Reviewed by eLife