Evolutionary Biology

Colour polymorphism and conspicuousness do not increase speciation rates in Lacertids

1. Thomas de Solan
2. Barry Sinervo
3. Philippe Geniez
4. Patrice David
5. Pierre-André Crochet

Reviewed by Peer Community in Evolutionary Biology

Phylogenomics, biogeography, and trait evolution of the Boletaceae (Boletales, Agaricomycetes, Basidiomycota)

1. Keaton Tremble
2. Terry Henkel
3. Alexander Bradshaw
4. Colin Domnauer
5. Lyda Brown
6. Lê Xuân Thám
7. Guliana Furci
8. Cathie Aime
9. Jean-Marc Moncalvo
10. Bryn Dentinger

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

How hibernation in frogs drives brain and reproductive evolution in opposite directions

1. Wenbo Liao
2. Ying Jiang
3. Long Jin
4. Stefan Lüpold

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  In this important paper, the authors report a link between brumation (or "hibernation") and tissue size in frogs, summarizing convincing evidence that extended brumation is associated with smaller brain size and increased investment in reproduction-related tissues. The research is of broad interest to ecologists, evolutionary biologists, and those interested in global change biology, as the dataset involves significant field work and advanced statistical analyses for insights into how expensive tissues in these ectothermic animals respond to environmental seasonality.

Reviewed by eLife

OH 89: A newly described ~1.8-million-year-old hominid clavicle from Olduvai Gorge

1. Catherine E Taylor
2. Fidelis Masao
3. Jackson K Njau
4. Agustino Venance Songita
5. Leslea J Hlusko

Reviewed by Peer Community in Paleontology

A suite of selective pressures supports the maintenance of alleles of a Drosophila immune peptide

1. Sarah R. Mullinax
2. Andrea M. Darby
3. Anjali Gupta
4. Patrick Chan
5. Brittny R. Smith
6. Robert L. Unckless

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This valuable study investigates evolutionary aspects around a single amino acid polymorphism in an immune peptide of Drosophila melanogaster,. This polymorphism is known to be under long-term balancing selection. Using alleles with different substitutions, the investigators found that one allele provides better survival after systemic infections by a bacterial pathogen, but that the alternative allele endows its carriers with a longer lifespan under certain conditions. The authors suggest that these contrasting fitness effects of the two alleles contribute to balancing their long-term evolutionary fate. The strength of the provided evidence is still incomplete and would benefit from more rigorous approaches.

Reviewed by eLife

Seasonally migratory songbirds have different historic population size characteristics than resident relatives

1. Kevin Winker
2. Kira Delmore

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This study presents valuable finding regarding the role of life history differences in determining population size and demography. The evidence for the claims is still partially incomplete, with concerns about generation times and population structure. Nonetheless, the work will be of considerable interest to biologists thinking about the evolutionary consequences of life history changes.

Reviewed by eLife

Diverse signatures of convergent evolution in cacti-associated yeasts

1. Carla Gonçalves
2. Marie-Claire Harrison
3. Jacob L. Steenwyk
4. Dana A. Opulente
5. Abigail L. LaBella
6. John F. Wolters
7. Xiaofan Zhou
8. Xing-Xing Shen
9. Marizeth Groenewald
10. Chris Todd Hittinger
11. Antonis Rokas

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

The origin, evolution, and molecular diversity of the chemokine system

1. Alessandra Aleotti
2. Matthew Goulty
3. Clifton Lewis
4. Flaviano Giorgini
5. Roberto Feuda

Reviewed by Review Commons

Somatic mutation rates scale with time not growth rate in long-lived tropical trees

1. Akiko Satake
2. Ryosuke Imai
3. Takeshi Fujino
4. Sou Tomimoto
5. Kayoko Ohta
6. Mohammad Na’iem
7. Sapto Indrioko
8. Widiyatno
9. Susilo Purnomo
10. Almudena Mollá–Morales
11. Viktoria Nizhynska
12. Naoki Tani
13. Yoshihisa Suyama
14. Eriko Sasaki
15. Masahiro Kasahara

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  Satake and colleagues' important study elucidates somatic mutation processes in plants, demonstrating that in two tropical trees, mutation rates correlate with age, not growth rates. Their convincing evidence shows that many mutations do not align with cell divisions, suggesting many somatic mutations are generated in a replication-independent manner. This study represents a significant step towards advancing our understanding of plant development and the patterns and inheritance of mutations. This significant research is poised to engage a diverse array of scholars in plant evolution and development.

Reviewed by eLife

miR-252 targeting temperature receptor CcTRPM to mediate the transition from summer-form to winter-form of Cacopsylla chinensis

1. Songdou Zhang
2. Jianying Li
3. Dongyue Zhang
4. Zhixian Zhang
5. Shili Meng
6. Zhen Li
7. Xiaoxia Liu

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This is a valuable study of the molecular basis of summer-to-winter transition in the pear psyllid pest, Cacopsylla chinensis (hemiptera). The molecular and organismal experiments using current methodologies to evaluate the cold responsiveness of the target proteins are mostly convincing, but the structural and phylogenetic analyses remain inconclusive. The results of this study will be of interest to entomologists.

Reviewed by eLife