Evolutionary Biology

Structural evolution of nitrogenase over 3 billion years

1. Bruno Cuevas Zuviría
2. Franka Detemple
3. Kaustubh Amritkar
4. Amanda K Garcia
5. Lance Seefeldt
6. Oliver Einsle
7. Betül Kaçar

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study presents computational analyses of over 5,000 predicted extant and ancestral nitrogenase structures. The data analyses are convincing, it offers unique insights into the relationship between structural evolution and environmental and biological phenotypes. The data generated in this study provide a vast resource that can serve as a starting point for studies of reconstructed and extant nitrogenases.

Reviewed by eLife

Comparative genomics of Rickettsiella bacteria reveal variable metabolic pathways potentially involved in symbiotic interactions with arthropods

1. Anna M. Floriano
2. Adil El-Filali
3. Julien Amoros
4. Marie Buysse
5. Hélène Jourdan-Pineau
6. Hein Sprong
7. Robert Kohl
8. Ron P. Dirks
9. Peter Schaap
10. Jasper Koehorst
11. Bart Nijsse
12. Didier Bouchon
13. Vincent Daubin
14. Fabrice Vavre
15. Olivier Duron

Reviewed by Peer Community in Evolutionary Biology

Adaptations in wing morphology rather than wingbeat kinematics enable flight in small hoverfly species

1. Camille Le Roy
2. Nina Tervelde
3. Thomas Engels
4. Florian T Muijres

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study addresses how wing morphology and kinematics change across hoverflies of different body sizes. The authors provide convincing evidence that there is no significant correlation between body size and wing kinematics across 28 species and instead argue that non-trivial changes in wing size and shape evolved to support flight across the size range. Overall, this paper illustrates the power and beauty of an integrative approach to animal biomechanics and will be of broad interest to biologists, physicists and engineers.

Reviewed by eLife

Human genetic ancestry, Mycobacterium tuberculosis diversity and tuberculosis disease severity in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

1. Michaela Zwyer
2. Zhi Ming Xu
3. Amanda Ross
4. Jerry Hella
5. Mohamed Sasamalo
6. Maxime Rotival
7. Hellen Hiza
8. Liliana K Rutaihwa
9. Sonia Borrell
10. Klaus Reither
11. Jacques Fellay
12. Damien Portevin
13. Lluis Quintana-Murci
14. Sebastien Gagneux
15. Daniela Brites

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable observational study was conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to investigate potential associations between genetic variation in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and human host vs. disease severity. The authors conclude that human genetic ancestry did not contribute to tuberculosis severity and the evidence supporting this is generally convincing. The findings have significance for the understanding of the influence of host/bacillary genetics on tuberculosis disease.

Reviewed by eLife

Genetic parallels in biomineralization of the calcareous sponge Sycon ciliatum and stony corals

1. Oliver Voigt
2. Magdalena V Wilde
3. Thomas Fröhlich
4. Benedetta Fradusco
5. Sergio Vargas
6. Gert Wörheide

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important paper reports the discovery of calcarins, a protein family that seems to be involved in calcification in the calcareous sponge Sycon ciliatum, significantly enhancing our understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying spicule formation in sponges and the evolution of carbonate biomineralization. The conclusions are supported by compelling evidence based on an integrated analysis that combines transcriptomics, genomics, proteomics, and precise in situ hybridization. These findings will be of broad interest to cell biologists, biochemists, and evolutionary biologists.

Reviewed by eLife

Rapid promoter evolution of male accessory gland genes is accompanied by divergent expression in closely related Drosophila species

1. David W. J. McQuarrie
2. Frannie H. S. Stephens
3. Alexander D. Ferguson
4. Roland Arnold
5. Alberto Civetta
6. Matthias Soller

Reviewed by Review Commons

Fast evolutionary turnover and overlapping variances of sex-biased gene expression patterns defy a simple binary sex classification of somatic tissues

1. Chen Xie
2. Sven Künzel
3. Diethard Tautz

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents data on sex differences in gene expression across organs of four mice taxa. The authors have generated a unique and convincing dataset that fills a gap left by previous studies. They claim that sex-biased expression in the soma can overlap between genetic males and females, and that the relevant patterns both turn over quickly over short evolutionary times and do so faster in somatic than gonadal tissues. These conclusions could largely have been predicted by extrapolating from previous findings in the field, but nevertheless demonstrating them directly is a fundamental advance.

  [Editorial note: The work was originally assessed by colleagues who are active in the field of evolution of sex differences or in areas adjacent to this field (see initial assessment at https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.99602.2). The appeals process involved consultation with experts working in other areas of evolutionary biology. The above assessment synthesises the opinions of both sets of reviewers.]

Reviewed by eLife, Arcadia Science

Integrating ethnolinguistic and archaeobotanical data to uncover the origin and dispersal of cultivated sorghum in Africa: a genomic perspective

1. Aude Gilabert
2. Monique Deu
3. Louis Champion
4. Philippe Cubry
5. Armel Donkpegan
6. Jean-Francois Rami
7. David Pot
8. Yves Vigouroux
9. Christian Leclerc

Reviewed by Peer Community in Evolutionary Biology

The biogeography of evolutionary radiations on oceanic archipelagos

1. Baptiste Brée
2. Thomas J. Matthews
3. José María Fernández-Palacios
4. Christian Paroissin
5. Kostas A. Triantis
6. Robert J. Whittaker
7. François Rigal

Reviewed by Peer Community in Ecology

Iridescent structural coloration in a crested Cretaceous enantiornithine bird from the Jehol Biota

1. Zhiheng Li
2. Jinsheng Hu
3. Thomas A Stidham
4. Mao Ye
5. Min Wang
6. Yanhong Pan
7. Tao Zhao
8. Jingshu Li
9. Zhonghe Zhou
10. Julia A Clarke

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents a potentially fundamental analysis of a fossil feather from a 125-million-year-old enantiornithine bird. Using sophisticated 3D microscopic and numerical methods, the authors conclude that the feather was iridescent and brightly colored, possibly indicating that this was a male bird that used its crest in sexual displays. At present, the strength of evidence supporting the conclusions is considered incomplete based on methodological shortcomings and questions about taphonomy.

Reviewed by eLife