eLife

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1. The antigenic landscape of N1 neuraminidase in human influenza A virus strains isolated between 2009 and 2020

   This article has 18 authors:

   1. João Paulo Portela Catani
   2. Anouk Smet
   3. Tine Ysenbaert
   4. Laura Amelinck
   5. Yvonne Chan
   6. Dan Tadmor
   7. Philip Davidson
   8. Satyajit Ray
   9. Eric Camire
   10. Liqun Han
   11. Jianxin Zhang
   12. Guadalupe Cortés
   13. Katherine Roebke
   14. Bianca Baum
   15. John Hamberger
   16. Maryann Giel-Moloney
   17. Xavier Saelens
   18. Thorsten U Vogel

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Catani and colleagues provide data on antigenic properties of neuraminidase proteins of pandemic H1N1 and show that antigenic diversity of the neuraminidase from 2009 to 2020 largely falls into two groups. These antigenic groups map to two phylogenetic groups, and substitutions at positions 432 and 321 are likely associated with the antigenic change. These data and results allow useful insights into the antigenic properties of N1 influenza and the evidence supporting the conclusions is solid.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. A comparative analysis of planarian regeneration specificity reveals tissue polarity contributions of the axial cWnt signalling gradient

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. James P Cleland
   2. Hanh T.-K Vu
   3. Johanna EM Dickmann
   4. Andrei Rozanski
   5. Steffen Werner
   6. Andrea Schuhmann
   7. Anna Shevchenko
   8. Jochen C Rink

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study investigates the different mechanisms that provide instructions for a missing body part to regenerate its appropriate identity. The authors use two species of planarians to identify a key role for bodywide canonical Wnt gradients in controlling the outcome of regeneration. The study provides convincing evidence for variable regeneration efficiency among planarian species that will be of interest to developmental biologists interested in regeneration. However, some of the results are over-interpreted and the additional experiments could provide better support for the authors' claims.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Structural basis for collagen recognition by the Streptococcus pyogenes M3 protein and its involvement in biofilm

   This article has 21 authors:

   1. Marta Wojnowska
   2. Takeaki Wajima
   3. Tamas Yelland
   4. Hannes Ludewig
   5. Robert M Hagan
   6. Olivia F McCurry
   7. Grant Watt
   8. Samir W Hamaia
   9. Dominique Bihan
   10. Jean-Daniel Malcor
   11. Arkadiusz Bonna
   12. Helena Bergsten
   13. Laura Marcela Palma Medina
   14. Mattias Svensson
   15. Oddvar Oppegaard
   16. Steinar Skrede
   17. Per Arnell
   18. Ole Hyldegaard
   19. Richard W Farndale
   20. Anna Norrby-Teglund
   21. Ulrich Schwarz-Linek

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     M proteins are essential group A streptococci virulence factors that bind to numerous human proteins; a small subset of M proteins, such as M3, have been reported to bind collagen, which is thought to promote tissue adherence. In this important paper, the authors provide a solid characterization of M3 interactions with collagen. The work raises significant questions regarding the specificity of the structure and its interactions with different collagens, with implications for the variable actions of M protein collagen interactions on biofilm formation.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Representation of male features in the female mouse accessory olfactory bulb, and their stability during the estrus cycle

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Oksana Cohen
   2. Yoram Ben-Shaul

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important work substantially advances our understanding of how accessory olfactory bulb neurons respond to social odor cues across the estrous cycle, showing that responses vary with the strain and sex of the odor source but display no consistent differences between estrous and non-estrous states. It employs a unique electrophysiology preparation that activates the vomeronasal organ pump via electric stimulation, enabling precise recordings of accessory olfactory bulb cell responses to different chemosignals in anesthetized mice. Overall, the study presents convincing findings on the stability and variability of accessory olfactory bulb response patterns, indicating that while accessory olfactory bulb detects social signals, it does not appear to interpret them based on reproductive state. This work will be of interest to those studying olfaction, social behavior, reproductive cycles, and systems neuroscience more broadly.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Dorsal hippocampus mediates light–tone associations in male mice

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Julia S Pinho
   2. Carla Ramon-Duaso
   3. Irene Manzanares-Sierra
   4. Arnau Busquets-Garcia

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Pinho et al use in vivo calcium imaging and chemogenetic approaches to examine the involvement of hippocampal sub-regions across the different stages of a sensory preconditioning task in mice. They find evidence for sensory preconditioning in male mice. They also find that, in these mice, CaMKII-positive neurons in the dorsal hippocampus encode the audio-visual association that forms in stage 1 of the task. The evidence in support of these findings is convincing. The important study will be of interest to researchers in the fields of learning and memory and/or hippocampus function.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Nanophysiology approach reveals diversity in calcium microdomains across zebrafish retinal bipolar ribbon synapses

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Nirujan Rameshkumar
   2. Abhishek P Shrestha
   3. Johane M Boff
   4. Mrinalini Hoon
   5. Victor Matveev
   6. David Zenisek
   7. Thirumalini Vaithianathan

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The study introduces new tools for measuring the intracellular calcium concentration close to transmitter release sites, which may be relevant for synaptic vesicle fusion and replenishment. This approach yields important new information about the spatial and temporal profile of calcium concentrations near the site of entry at the plasma membrane. This experimental work is complemented by a coherent, open-source, computational model that successfully describes changes in calcium domains. The conclusions are solid and well supported by the data.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Founder effects arising from gathering dynamics systematically bias emerging pathogen surveillance

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Bradford P Taylor
   2. William P Hanage

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important theoretical study introduces an extension to the commonly used SIR model for infectious disease dynamics, to explicitly consider the role of larger group sizes. Instead of the commonly used individual-based network models, the authors developed a simplified approach based on group sampling, with discrete high- and low-risk groups, which makes the results easier to produce and interpret, at the cost of less detail in the model. The evidence is convincing in terms of the soundness of the theoretical projections and the impact that accounting for group sizes may have on inferences from surveillance data. However, it has not yet been demonstrated that the predictions provide more realistic projections when based on real-world data.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Structural insights into heterohexameric assembly of epilepsy-related ligand–receptor complex LGI1–ADAM22

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Takayuki Yamaguchi
   2. Kei Okatsu
   3. Masato Kubota
   4. Ayuka Mitsumori
   5. Atsushi Yamagata
   6. Yuko Fukata
   7. Masaki Fukata
   8. Mikihiro Shibata
   9. Shuya Fukai

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     In this convincing work by Yamaguchi et al. the cryo-EM structure of the heterohexameric 3:3 LGI1-ADAM22 complex is presented. The findings suggest that LGI1 can cluster ADAM22 in a trimeric fashion. The clustering of cell surface proteins is important in controlling signaling in the nervous system. This new version of the manuscript has been improved substantially and the figures have been enhanced and clarified.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Motor unit mechanisms of speed control in mouse locomotion

   This article has 5 authors:

   1. Kyle Thomas
   2. Rhuna Gibbs
   3. Hugo Marques
   4. Megan R Carey
   5. Samuel J Sober

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study characterises the activity of motor units from two of the three anatomical subdivisions ("heads") of the triceps muscle while mice walked on a treadmill at various speeds. Altogether, this is the most thorough characterisation of motor unit activity in walking mice to date, providing convincing evidence for probabilistic recruitment of motor units that differed between the two heads.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Descending locus coeruleus noradrenergic signaling to spinal astrocyte subset is required for stress-induced mechanical pain hypersensitivity

    This article has 10 authors:

    1. Riku Kawanabe-Kobayashi
    2. Sawako Uchiyama
    3. Kohei Yoshihara
    4. Keisuke Koga
    5. Daiki Kojima
    6. Thomas J McHugh
    7. Izuho Hatada
    8. Ko Matsui
    9. Kenji F Tanaka
    10. Makoto Tsuda

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This important study identifies a novel role for Hes5+ astrocytes in modulating the activity of descending pain-inhibitory noradrenergic neurons from the locus coeruleus during stress-induced pain facilitation. The role of glia in modulating neurological circuits including pain is poorly understood, and in that light, the role of Hes5+ astrocytes in this circuit is a key finding with broader potential impacts. This work is supported by convincing evidence, albeit somewhat limited by the indirect nature of the evidence linking adenosine to nearby neuronal modulation, and possible questions on the population specificity of the transgenic approach.

    Reviewed by eLife