eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Natural xanthones as α-Mangostin induce vasorelaxation via binding to key gating residues in the S6 domain of BK channels

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Sönke Cordeiro
   2. Robert Patejdl
   3. Thomas Baukrowitz
   4. Marianne Musinszki

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The present manuscript by Cordeiro et al., shows convincing evidence that α-mangostin, a xanthone obtained from the fruit of the Garcinia mangostana tree, behaves as a strong activator of the large-conductance (BK) potassium channels; macroscopic currents and single-channel experiments show that α-mangostin produces an increase in the probability of opening, without affecting the single-channel conductance. The authors put forward that α-mangostin activation of the BK channel is state-independent, and molecular docking and mutagenesis suggest that α-mangostin binds to a site in the internal cavity. Additionally, the authors show that α-mangostin can relax arteries, further suggesting the plausibility of the proposed effects of this compound. These are valuable findings that should be of interest to channel biophysicists and physiologists alike.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. In search of nonlipogenic ABCA1 inducers (NLAI): precision coregulator TR-FRET identifies diverse signatures for LXR ligands

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Megan S. Laham
   2. Martha Ackerman-Berrier
   3. Fahmida Alam
   4. Sarah Turner
   5. Ganga Reddy Velma
   6. Christopher Penton
   7. Soumya Reddy Musku
   8. Manan Rana
   9. Senthil Kumar
   10. Anandhan Annadurai
   11. Maha Ibrahim Sulaiman
   12. Nina Ma
   13. Gregory R J Thatcher

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The study highlights development of a multiplex coregulator TR-FRET (CRT) assay that detects ligands with theoretical full agonist, partial agonist, antagonist, and inverse agonist signatures within the same chemical series. The findings are valuable and will have theoretical and practical implications in the subfield, with respect to guiding the design of non-lipogenic liver X receptor (LXR) agonists. The strength of the evidence is solid, whereby the methods, data, and analyses broadly support the claims with only minor weaknesses that can be dealt with through improvements in the data analysis and the discussion. This study will be of interest to experts working in the areas of pharmacology, medicinal chemistry, and drug discovery in Alzheimer's diseases and dementias.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Three pathways feed the folate-dependent one carbon pool for growth and virulence of Listeria monocytogenes

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Sandra Freier
   2. Sarah Frentzel
   3. Susan Scheffler
   4. Sabrina Wamp
   5. Moritz Müller
   6. Tim Engelgeh
   7. Janina Döhling
   8. Dunja Bruder
   9. Sascha Kahlfuss
   10. Sven Halbedel

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The one-carbon tetrahydrofolate metabolism plays a crucial role in producing essential metabolic intermediates. In this study, the authors employ a genetics-based approach to demonstrate that three different metabolic pathways are essential for synthesizing 1C-tetrahydrofolates (1C-THF). Disrupting any of these pathways impairs both growth and virulence. Although the work presented is valuable, the experimental evidence remains incomplete without direct quantification of folate intermediates.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Endogenous corazonin signaling modulates the post-mating switch in behavior and physiology in females of the brown planthopper and Drosophila

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Ning Zhang
   2. Shao-Cong Su
   3. Ruo-Tong Bu
   4. Yi-Jie Zhang
   5. Lei Yang
   6. Jie Chen
   7. Dick R. Nässel
   8. Cong-Fen Gao
   9. Shun-Fan Wu

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study presents convincing evidence that uncovers a novel signaling axis impacting the post-mating response in females of the brown planthopper. The findings open several avenues for testing the molecular and neurobiological mechanisms of mating behavior in insects, although broad concerns remain about the relevance of some claims.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Brain Perfusion Imaging of a Large Population: Arterial Spin Labelling MRI in UK Biobank

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Thomas W. Okell
   2. Xinyi Xu
   3. Martin Craig
   4. Fidel Alfaro-Almagro
   5. David L. Thomas
   6. Enrico De Vita
   7. Steve Garratt
   8. Thomas E. Nichols
   9. Matthias Günther
   10. Paul M. Matthews
   11. Karla L. Miller
   12. Stephen M. Smith
   13. Michael A. Chappell

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study reports on the relationships between cerebral haemodynamics and a number of factors that relate to genetics, lifestyle, and medical history using data from a large cohort. Compelling evidence suggests that brief arterial spin labelling MRI acquisition can lead to both expected observations about brain health, as manifested in cerebral blood flow, and biomarkers for use in diagnosis and treatment monitoring. The results can be used as a starting point for hypothesis generation and further evaluation of conditions expected to affect haemodynamics in the brain.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. High-throughput development and characterization of new functional nanobodies for gene regulation and epigenetic control in human cells

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Jun Wan
   2. Abby R. Thurm
   3. Sage J. Allen
   4. Connor H. Ludwig
   5. Aayan N. Patel
   6. Lacramioara Bintu

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript describes a valuable screening approach to identifying nanobodies with the potential to modulate gene expression via epigenetic regulators. While the concept is of interest and the screening strategy is well designed, the current evidence supporting mechanistic specificity remains incomplete.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Increased layer 5 Martinotti cell excitation reduces pyramidal cell population plasticity and improves learned motor execution

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Thawann Malfatti
   2. Anna Velica
   3. Jéssica Winne
   4. Barbara Ciralli
   5. Katharina Henriksson
   6. George Nascimento
   7. Richardson Leao
   8. Klas Kullander

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study addresses a critical and timely question regarding the role of a subpopulation of cortical interneurons (Chrna2-expressing Martinotti cells) in motor learning and cortical dynamics. However, while some of the behavior and imaging data are impressive, the small sample sizes and incomplete behavioral and activity analyses make interpretation difficult; therefore, they are insufficient to support the central conclusions. The study may be of interest to neuroscientists studying cortical neural circuits, motor learning, and motor control.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Sensitivity of the human temporal voice areas to nonhuman primate vocalizations

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Leonardo Ceravolo
   2. Coralie Debracque
   3. Thibaud Gruber
   4. Didier Grandjean

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study shows that regions of the human auditory cortex that respond strongly to voices are also sensitive to vocalizations from closely related primate species. The study is methodologically solid, though additional analyses - particularly those isolating the acoustic features that differentiate chimpanzee from bonobo calls - would further strengthen the conclusions. With additional analyses and discussions, the work has the potential to offer key insights into the evolutionary continuity of voice processing and would be of interest to researchers studying auditory processing and evolutionary neuroscience in general.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. TSvelo: Comprehensive RNA velocity by modeling the cascade of gene regulation, transcription and splicing

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Jiachen Li
   2. Zhe Wang
   3. Hong-Bin Shen
   4. Ye Yuan

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study presents a valuable tool named TSvelo, a computational framework for RNA velocity inference that models transcriptional regulation and gene-specific splicing. The evidence supporting the claims of the authors is solid, although elaboration of the computational benchmark and datasets would have strengthened the study. The work will be of interest to computational scientists working in the field of RNA biology.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Geomagnetic and visual cues guide seasonal migratory orientation in the nocturnal fall armyworm, the world’s most invasive insect

    This article has 10 authors:

    1. Yi-Bo Ma
    2. Gui-Jun Wan
    3. Yi Ji
    4. Hui Chen
    5. Bo-Ya Gao
    6. Dai-Hong Yu
    7. Eric J. Warrant
    8. Yan Wu
    9. Jason W. Chapman
    10. Gao Hu

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This fundamental study presents experimental evidence on how geomagnetic and visual cues are integrated in a nocturnally migrating insect. The evidence supporting the conclusions is compelling. The work will be of broad interest to researchers studying animal migration and navigation.

    Reviewed by eLife