Zoology

Developmental, regenerative, and behavioral dynamics in acoel reproduction

1. Vikram Chandra
2. Samantha E Tseng
3. Allison P Kann
4. D Marcela Bolaños
5. Mansi Srivastava

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  Xenacoelomorpha is an enigmatic phylum, displaying various presumably simple or ancestral bilaterian features. This valuable study characterises the reproductive life history of Hofstenia miamia, a member of class Acoela in this phylum. The authors describe the morphology and development of the reproductive system, its changes upon degrowth and regeneration, and the animals' egg-laying behaviour. The evidence is convincing, with fluorescent microscopy and quantitative measurements as a considerable improvement to historical reports based mostly on histology and qualitative observations.

Reviewed by eLife

The first complete 3D reconstruction and morphofunctional mapping of an insect eye

1. Anastasia A Makarova
2. Nicholas J Chua
3. Anna V Diakova
4. Inna A Desyatirkina
5. Pat Gunn
6. Song Pang
7. C Shan Xu
8. Harald Hess
9. Dmitri B Chklovskii
10. Alexey A Polilov

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study sets new standards in analyzing the ultrastructure of insect eyes, which have long served as models for understanding how vision works. The way it describes an entire eye with the resolution of electron microscopy is convincing. On top of this, a miniaturized visual system provides additional, remarkable insights towards understanding optimized solutions.

Reviewed by eLife

Integrating entomopathogenic nematodes into sustainable organic potato farming through a three-stage release technology

1. Azimjon Anorbayev
2. Nafosat Kurbonova
3. Nigora Tillyakhodjaeva

Reviewed by PREreview

Synaptic plasticity in the medial preoptic area of male mice encodes social experiences with female and regulates behavior toward young

1. Kazuki Ito
2. Keiichiro Sato
3. Yousuke Tsuneoka
4. Takashi Maejima
5. Hiroyuki Okuno
6. Yumi Hamasaki
7. Shunsaku Murakawa
8. Yuzu Takabayashi
9. Chihiro Yoshihara
10. Sayaka Shindo
11. Haruka Uki
12. Stefan Herlitze
13. Masahide Seki
14. Yutaka Suzuki
15. Takeshi Sakurai
16. Kumi O Kuroda
17. Masabumi Minami
18. Taiju Amano

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study provides important evidence that the postmating behavioral switch in male mice is mediated by distinct stages of synaptic plasticity within the medial amygdala-MPOA-BSTrh pathway. The findings are convincing, supported by rigorous behavioral characterization and electrophysiological approaches that disentangle the contributions of mating, cohabitation, and parental experience to neural circuit changes. While some methodological details and statistical reporting require clarification, the study significantly advances our understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying paternal behavior.

Reviewed by eLife

Geometric analysis of airway trees shows that lung anatomy evolved to enable explosive ventilation and prevent barotrauma in cetaceans

1. Robert L. Cieri
2. Merryn H. Tawhai
3. Marina Piscitelli-Doshkov
4. A. Wayne Vogl
5. Robert E. Shadwick

Reviewed by preLights

Torpor energetics are related to the interaction between body mass and climate in bats of the family Vespertilionidae

1. Jorge Ayala-Berdon
2. Kevin I. Medina-Bello

Reviewed by preLights

Livestock abortion surveillance in Tanzania reveals disease priorities and importance of timely collection of vaginal swab samples for attribution

1. Felix Lankester
2. Tito J Kibona
3. Kathryn J Allan
4. William de Glanville
5. Joram J Buza
6. Frank Katzer
7. Jo E Halliday
8. Blandina T Mmbaga
9. Nick Wheelhouse
10. Elisabeth A Innes
11. Kate M Thomas
12. Obed M Nyasebwa
13. Emanuel Swai
14. John R Claxton
15. Sarah Cleaveland

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This important study reports the use of a surveillance approach in identifying emerging diseases, monitoring disease trends, and informing evidence-based interventions in the control and prevention of livestock abortions, as it relates to their public health implications. The data support the convincing finding that abortion incidence is higher during the dry season, and occurs more in cross-bred and exotic livestock breeds. Aetiological and epidemiological data can be generated through established protocols for sample collection and laboratory diagnosis. These findings are of potential interest to the fields of veterinary medicine, public health, and epidemiology.

Reviewed by eLife

Dose, temperature and formulation shape Metarhizium anisopliae virulence against the oriental fruit fly: lessons for improving on-target control strategies

1. Anaïs Chailleux
2. Oumou Noumou Coulibaly
3. Babacar Diouf
4. Samba Diop
5. Ahmad Sohel
6. Thierry Brévault

Reviewed by Peer Community In Zoology

Museomics of Carabus giant ground beetles shows an Oligocene origin and in situ alpine diversification

1. Marie T. Pauli
2. Jérémy Gauthier
3. Marjorie Labédan
4. Mickael Blanc
5. Julia Bilat
6. Emmanuel F. A. Toussaint

Reviewed by Peer Community In Zoology

Investments in photoreceptors compete with investments in optics to determine eye design

1. Francisco JH Heras
2. Simon B Laughlin

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This paper makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of the tradeoffs in eye design - specifically between improvements in optics and in photoreceptor performance. The authors successfully build a formal theory that enables comparisons across a wide range of species and eye types. The conclusion from the modeling is that resources are split relatively evenly between optics and photoreceptors, and hence that both must be considered in eye design. Evidence for this conclusion is solid, and could be strengthened with a more complete comparison with the experiment.

Reviewed by eLife