eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Strikingly different neurotransmitter release strategies in dopaminergic subclasses

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Ana Dorrego-Rivas
   2. Darren J Byrne
   3. Yunyi Liu
   4. Menghon Cheah
   5. Ceren Arslan
   6. Marcela Lipovsek
   7. Marc C Ford
   8. Matthew S Grubb

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study provides evidence for distinct neurotransmitter release modalities between two subclasses of dopaminergic neurons in the olfactory bulb. Specifically, it demonstrates dendritic neurotransmitter release in anaxonic neurons and axonal release in axon-bearing neurons. The presence of GABAergic self-inhibition in anaxonic neurons further underscores the functional divergence between these subtypes. Overall, the manuscript presents solid evidence and offers biologically important insights into the organization and function of dopaminergic circuits within the olfactory bulb.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. A single cysteine residue in vimentin regulates long non-coding RNA XIST to suppress epithelial–mesenchymal transition and stemness in breast cancer

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Saima Usman
   2. William Andrew Yeudall
   3. Muy-Teck Teh
   4. Fatemah Ghloum
   5. Hemanth Tummala
   6. Ahmad Waseem

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study reveals that the structural protein vimentin promotes the epithelial-mesenchymal transition in breast cancer cells. Utilizing robust and validated methodologies, the data collected provide a solid foundation for further investigation into metastasis models. This work will be of significant interest to researchers in the field of breast cancer.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Orexin population activity precisely reflects net body movement across behavioral and metabolic states

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Alexander L Tesmer
   2. Paulius Viskaitis
   3. Dane Donegan
   4. Eva F Bracey
   5. Nikola Grujic
   6. Tommaso Patriarchi
   7. Daria Peleg-Raibstein
   8. Denis Burdakov

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study shows that the activity of hypothalamic hypocretin/orexin neurons (HONs) correlates with body movement over multiple behaviors. Compelling evidence, supported by sophisticated, cutting-edge tools and data analyses, highlights a link that appears to be unique to HONs. This work should be of interest to scientists studying peptidergic neurons, movement, energy regulation, and brain-body coordination.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Mesoscale functional architecture in medial posterior parietal cortex

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Riichiro Hira
   2. Leah B Townsend
   3. Ikuko T Smith
   4. Che-Hang Yu
   5. Jeffrey N Stirman
   6. Yiyi Yu
   7. Spencer LaVere Smith

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This fundamental study measures the functional specialization of distinct subregions within the mouse posterior parietal cortex (PPC) using mesoscopic two-photon calcium imaging during visual discrimination and choice history-dependent tasks. It presents compelling evidence supporting the existence of functional specialized subregions within the PPC. The work will be of interest to system and computational neuroscientists interested in decision-making, working memory, and multisensory integration.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. A-to-I RNA editing of CYP18A1 mediates transgenerational wing dimorphism in aphids

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Bin Zhu
   2. Rui Wei
   3. Wenjuan Hua
   4. Lu Li
   5. Wenlin Zhang
   6. Pei Liang

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study presents an important finding on the molecular mechanism for transduction of environmentally induced polyphenism. The evidence supporting the claims of the author is solid. This paper would be of interest to those studying aphids wing dimorphism.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Impacts of structural properties of myosin II filaments on force generation

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Shihang Ding
   2. Pei-En Chou
   3. Shinji Deguchi
   4. Taeyoon Kim

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The authors present a useful agent-based model to study the tensile force generated by myosin mini-filaments in actin systems (bundles and networks); by numerically solving a mechanical model of myosin-II filaments, the authors provide insights into how the geometry of the molecular components and their elastic responses determine the force production. This work is of interest to biophysicists (in particular theoreticians) investigating force generation of motor molecules from a biomechanical engineering and physics perspective. The authors convincingly show that cooperative effects between multiple myosin filaments can enhance the total force generated, but not the efficiency of force generation (force per myosin) if passive cross-linkers are present. This work would benefit from a more extensive discussion of the physiological relevance of the results in view of the existing experimental literature, and how the principles that govern the behavior could be different for different motor proteins.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Scrutinized lipid utilization disrupts Amphotericin-B responsiveness in clinical isolates of Leishmania donovani

   This article has 11 authors:

   1. Supratim Pradhan
   2. Dhruba Dhar
   3. Debolina Manna
   4. Shubhangi Chakraborty
   5. Arkapriya Bhattacharyya
   6. Khushi Chauhan
   7. Rimi Mukherjee
   8. Abhik Sen
   9. Krishna Pandey
   10. Soumen Das
   11. Budhaditya Mukherjee

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study investigates the propensity of the intravacuolar pathogen, Leishmania, to scavenge lipids which it utilizes for its accelerated growth within macrophages. The authors present compelling evidence that supports this hypothesis, although the genetic basis for the parasite's requirement for lipids remains unresolved. The study adds to other work that has implicated pathogen-derived processes in the selective recruitment of vesicles to the pathogen-containing vacuole, based on the content of the cargo.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Force transmission through the inner kinetochore is enhanced by centromeric DNA sequences

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Elise Miedlar
   2. Grace E Hamilton
   3. Samuel R Witus
   4. Sara J Gonske
   5. Michael Riffle
   6. Alex Zelter
   7. Rachel E Klevit
   8. Charles L Asbury
   9. Yoana N Dimitrova
   10. Trisha N Davis

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Centromeres are specific sites on chromosomes that are essential for mitosis and genome fidelity. This valuable research advance builds upon previous studies to convincingly show that the centromere-histone core contributes to force transduction through the kinetochore. The centromere mainly strengthens one of the two paths of force transduction, influenced by the centromeric DNA sequence. The mechanism underlying this phenomenon will be an exciting future avenue of research, given that centromeric DNAs are not conserved. This work will be of interest to those studying cell division and chromosome segregation.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Spatial confinement induces reciprocating migration of epidermal keratinocytes and forms triphasic epithelia

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Takuma Nohara
   2. Junichi Kumamoto
   3. Yosuke Mai
   4. Mayuna Shimano
   5. Sora Kato
   6. Hiroyuki Kitahata
   7. Hideki Nakamura
   8. Shota Takashima
   9. Mika Watanabe
   10. Masaharu Nagayama
   11. Tsukasa Oikawa
   12. Hideyuki Ujiie
   13. Ken Natsuga

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     In this manuscript the authors established a novel three-dimensional culture system for stratified epithelia that allows epithelial cells to undergo epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and subsequent mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (MET) while migrating through a membrane with 3.0-µm micropores, and, thus, provides a valuable tool to study EMT and possibly wound regeneration or metastasis. Furthermore, a set of experiments provides solid data suggesting that TGF beta signaling and actin polymerization promote movement of epithelial cells into the pores, while Piezo1 and Keratin 6 prevent keratinocyte migration and EMT.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Conformational changes, excess area, and elasticity of the Piezo protein-membrane nanodome from coarse-grained and atomistic simulations

    This article has 3 authors:

    1. Sneha Dixit
    2. Frank Noé
    3. Thomas R Weikl

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This work represents an important contribution to our understanding of how membrane energetics influence protein conformation and function in mechano-sensitive channels. Through extensive molecular dynamics simulations and energetic analysis, the study convincingly demonstrates how the channel structure is shaped by a balance of protein and membrane-induced forces, effectively reconciling experimental data from different membrane environments. This work will appeal broadly to researchers and readers with interests in ion channel structure and function, mechanosensation, and membrane biophysics.

    Reviewed by eLife