eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Single-mRNA imaging and modeling reveal coupled translation initiation and elongation rates

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Irene Lamberti
   2. Jeffrey A. Chao
   3. Cédric Gobet
   4. Felix Naef

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study provides evidence for dynamic coupling between translation initiation and elongation that can help maintain low ribosome density and translational homeostasis. The authors combine single-molecule imaging with a new approach to analyze mRNA translation kinetics using Bayesian modeling. This work is overall solid, but certain key aspects and model assumptions could be strengthened.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. A Conserved Mycobacterial Nucleomodulin Hijacks the Host COMPASS Complex to Reprogram Pro-Inflammatory Transcription and Promote Intracellular Survival

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Liu Chen
   2. Baojie Duan
   3. Pingping Chen
   4. Qiang Jiang
   5. Yifan Wang
   6. Lu Lu
   7. Yingyu Chen
   8. Changmin Hu
   9. Lei Zhang
   10. Aizhen Guo

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study provides solid evidence that MgdE, a conserved mycobacterial nucleomodulin, downregulates inflammatory gene transcription by interacting with the histone methyltransferase COMPASS complex and altering histone H3 lysine methylation. There are areas where the evidence could be strengthened, for example, GFP immunoblotting and examining MgdE localization during infection. To enhance impact, the authors could consider Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection experiments and/or reworking the manuscript to emphasize general relevance to microbiologists and cell biologists.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Efficiency and localisation of AURKA degradation by PROTACs is modulated by deubiquitinases UCHL5 and target-selective OTUD6A

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Annabel Cardno
   2. Karen Roberts
   3. Catherine Lindon

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study describes a genetic screen to identify deubiquitinases (DUBs) that counteract the activity of small-molecule degraders (PROTACs). The presented data are valuable, identifying OTUD6A and UCHL5 as DUBs that impact the efficacy and potency of PROTACs. While the conclusions are broadly supported and the methods employed are solid, the mechanistic depth and validation are incomplete. Overall, these findings merit further evaluation by the targeted protein degradation community when developing and optimizing PROTACs.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. An aphid-resistant plant metabolite as a candidate aphicide: Insight into the bioactivity and action mode of betulin against aphids

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Junxiu Wang
   2. Matthana Klakong
   3. Qiuyu Zhu
   4. Jinting Pan
   5. Yudie Duan
   6. Lirong Wang
   7. Yong Li
   8. Jiangbo Dang
   9. Danlong Jing
   10. Hong Zhou

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study presents important findings on the insecticidal mechanism of betulin, a plant-derived metabolite, in controlling the aphid Myzus persicae and it provides a demonstration that betulin targets the GABA receptor in aphids, with strong supporting evidence from transcriptomic, biochemical, electrophysiological, and genetic approaches. In particular, the identification of a specific conserved residue (THR228) critical for betulin binding advances our understanding of insect neuropharmacology and offers translational potential for pest management strategies. The evidence supporting the primary claims is solid, with well-integrated methodologies and appropriate controls; however, some interpretative and methodological limitations remain, including the option to further explore off-target effects, as well as the broader evolutionary and ecological context. Addressing these points would strengthen the broader implications of the study.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Chromosome-scale genome assembly of the European common cuttlefish Sepia officinalis

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Simone Rencken
   2. Georgi Tushev
   3. David Hain
   4. Elena Ciirdaeva
   5. Oleg Simakov
   6. Gilles Laurent

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript reports a high-quality genome assembly of the European cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis, a representative species of the Cephalopod lineage. The data are based on current best practices for sequencing and genome assembly, including PacBio HiFi long reads and Hi-C chromatin conformation capture; the analysis is currently in parts incomplete, as further analyses are required to confirm the correct chromosome number. This genome will be a useful resource for the community of researchers interested in cuttlefish biology and comparative genomics in general.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. General Trends in the Calnexin-Dependent Expression and Pharmacological Rescue of Clinical CFTR Variants

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Austin Tedman
   2. John A Olson
   3. Minsoo Kim
   4. Catherine Foye
   5. JaNise J Jackson
   6. Eli F McDonald
   7. Andrew G McKee
   8. Karen Noguera
   9. Charles P Kuntz
   10. Jens Meiler
   11. Kathryn Oliver
   12. Lars Plate
   13. Jonathan P Schlebach

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study systematically investigates the effects of calnexin, an endoplasmic reticulum chaperone, on the drug response of approximately 230 disease-causing variants of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein. Through deep mutational scanning, interactome profiling, and functional assays, the findings provide convincing evidence that calnexin significantly influences both CFTR expression and the efficacy of corrector drugs in a variant-specific manner. These insights advance our understanding of how cellular quality control machinery shapes the pharmacological responsiveness of CFTR variants, which are broadly relevant for researchers in protein folding and genetic disease therapeutics.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Concatenated Modular BK Channel Constructs Reveal Divergent Stoichiometry in Gating Control by LRRC26 (γ1), Pore, and Selectivity Filter

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Guanxing Chen
   2. Qin Li
   3. Jiusheng Yan

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     In this important contribution, Yan and colleagues describe a powerful and compelling strategy to generate concatamers of the BK channel and their fusion constructs with the auxiliary gamma subunits, which allows exploring contributions of individual subunits of the tetrameric channel to its gating and the study of heteromeric channel complexes of defined composition. Distinct examples are presented, which illustrate great diversity in the stoichiometric control of BK channel gating, depending on the site and nature of molecular perturbations. The molecular approaches could be extended to other membrane proteins whose N and C termini face opposite sides of the membrane.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Smed-pou4-2 regulates mechanosensory neuron regeneration and function in planarians

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Ryan A McCubbin
   2. Mohammad A Auwal
   3. Shengzhou Wang
   4. Sarai Alvarez Zepeda
   5. Roman Sasik
   6. Robert W Zeller
   7. Kelly G Ross
   8. Ricardo M Zayas

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This is a valuable study that explores the role of the conserved transcription factor POU4-2 in the maintenance, regeneration, and function of planarian mechanosensory neurons. The authors provide solid evidence provided by gene expression and functional studies to demonstrate that POU4-2 is required for the maintenance and regeneration of functional mechanosensory neurons in planarians. Furthermore, the authors identify conserved genes associated with human auditory and rheosensory neurons as potential targets of this transcription factor.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. The Anti-Inflammatory Role of GPNMB in Post-Traumatic Osteoarthritis

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Asaad A Al-Adlaan
   2. Bryson Cook
   3. Solorzano Z Ernesto
   4. Nazar J Hussein
   5. Fatima A Jaber
   6. Trinity Kronk
   7. Salvatore Frangiamore
   8. Hope C Ball
   9. Fayez F Safadi

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study offers useful findings demonstrating the cartilage-protective effects of osteoactivin in inflammatory experimental models. The study provides compelling evidence that osteoactivin may serve as a promising therapeutic target for inflammatory joint diseases.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Atypical collective oscillatory activity in cardiac tissue uncovered by optogenetics

    This article has 7 authors:

    1. Alexander S Teplenin
    2. Nina N Kudryashova
    3. Rupamanjari Majumder
    4. Antoine AF de Vries
    5. Alexander V Panfilov
    6. Daniël Pijnappels
    7. Tim De Coster

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This important work provides mechanistic insights into the development of cardiac arrhythmia and establishes a new experimental use case for optogenetics in studying cardiac electrophysiology. The agreement between computational models and experimental observations provides a convincing level of evidence that wave train-induced pacemaker activity can originate in continuously depolarized tissue, with the limitation that there may be differences between depolarization arising from constant optogenetic stimulation, as opposed to pathophysiological tissue depolarization. Future experiments in vivo and in other tissue preparations would extend the generality of these findings.

    Reviewed by eLife