Evolutionary Biology

Kinematics and morphological correlates of descent strategies in arboreal mammals suggest early upright postures in euprimates

1. Séverine LD Toussaint
2. Dionisios Youlatos
3. John A Nyakatura

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study examines how mammals descend effectively and securely along vertical substrates. The conclusions from comparative analyses based on behavioral data and morphological measurements collected from 21 species across a wide range of taxa are convincing, making the work of interest to all biologists studying animal locomotion.

Reviewed by eLife

There and back again: the dynamic evolution of panarthropod germ cell specification mechanisms

1. Jonchee A. Kao
2. Emily L. Rivard
3. Rishabh R. Kapoor
4. Cassandra G. Extavour

Reviewed by preLights

The Primate Major Histocompatibility Complex: A Case Study of Gene Family Evolution

1. Alyssa Lyn Fortier
2. Jonathan K Pritchard

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important manuscript presents a thorough analysis of the evolution of Major Histocompatibility Complex gene families across primates. A key strength of this analysis is the use of state-of-the-art phylogenetic methods to estimate rates of gene gain and loss, accounting for the notorious difficulty to properly assemble MHC genomic regions. Overall the evidence for the authors' conclusions – that there is considerable diversity in how MHC diversity is deployed across species – is compelling.

Reviewed by eLife

Coalescence and Translation: A Language Model for Population Genetics

1. Kevin Korfmann
2. Nathaniel S. Pope
3. Melinda Meleghy
4. Auélien Tellier
5. Andrew D. Kern

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

Tandem duplication of serpin genes yields functional variation and snake venom inhibitors

1. Meilyn S. Ward
2. Matthew L. Holding
3. Laura M. Haynes
4. David Ginsburg

Reviewed by preLights

Evolutionary Adaptations of IRG1 Refines Itaconate Synthesis and Mitigates Innate Immunometabolism Trade-offs

1. Richard V Szeligowski
2. Francois Miros
3. Andres Saez
4. Marisa DeCiucis
5. Gunter P Wagner
6. Hongying Shen

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study addresses the timely and interesting question of how itaconate generation emerged in evolution, using taxonomic analysis of the gene and enzyme cis-aconitate decarboxylase (CAD). The authors provide solid evidence identifying three CAD branches in metazoans and showing that the early metazoan paleo-form indeed generates aconitate and is already linked to innate immunity. They further provide limited evidence suggesting that taxonomic differences in subcellular localisation of this enzyme may allow for innate immune signalling without compromising cellular energetics. The implications of the study will be of high interest to the field of innate host defence and immunometabolism.

Reviewed by eLife

Heterogeneity of Genetic Sequence within Quasi-species of Influenza Virus Revealed by Single-Molecule Sequencing

1. Kenji Tamao
2. Hiroyuki Noji
3. Kazuhito V Tabata

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is a valuable methodological contribution towards accurate characterization of viral genetic diversity using long-read sequencing and unique molecular identifiers (UMIs). However, the methods are currently incomplete and the sensitivity is not rigorously demonstrated. Addressing these gaps would strengthen the manuscript and make it a key addition to the field.

Reviewed by eLife

Convergent iridescence and divergent chemical signals in sympatric sister-species of Amazonian butterflies

1. Joséphine Ledamoisel
2. Bruno Buatois
3. Rémi Mauxion
4. Christine Andraud
5. Melanie McClure
6. Vincent Debat
7. Violaine Llaurens

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents a valuable assessment of and solid evidence for increased similarity in visual appearance combined with increased chemical differences between two butterfly species in sympatry compared with differences between three populations of one of the two species in allopatry. The similarity in visual appearance hints to an evolutionary response to shared predators (but alternative explanations are possible). Thus, the difference in chemical signaling likely helps to avoid between-species mating in sympatry.

Reviewed by eLife

Heterozygote advantage cannot explain MHC diversity, but MHC diversity can explain heterozygote advantage

1. Joshua L Cherry

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The is a valuable evaluation of a previously published simulation model on the role of heterozygote advantage in shaping MHC diversity, showing that the conclusions from this model hold only within a narrow parameter range that might be unrealistic. The author presents an alternative model, in which MHC homozygotes with duplicated MHC genes outperform heterozygotes with single genes, thereby challenging the explanation that heterozygote advantage will lead to high allelic variation at a given MHC gene. The topic is highly relevant for eco-immunology and evolutionary genetics, but several major aspects of the author's claim need to be clarified to make the model interpretable. While the work has the potential to improve our understanding of the question of how the extraordinary diversity at the MHC locus evolves, without this addition, the conclusions remain incomplete.

Reviewed by eLife

Parallel HIV-1 fitness landscapes shape viral dynamics in humans and macaques that develop broadly neutralizing antibodies

1. Kai S Shimagaki
2. Rebecca M Lynch
3. John P Barton

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  In this important quantitative study of HIV-1 evolution in humans and rhesus macaques, selection coefficients are inferred at scale over the HIV genome. Selection coefficients are similar in humans and macaques, providing compelling evidence that these coefficients are representative of the fitness landscapes of these viruses within hosts. This work will be of interest to the community working on quantitative evolution and fitness landscape inference, and the finding that rapid fitness gains in the HIV population predict bNAb emergence has significant implications for HIV vaccine design.

Reviewed by eLife