eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. CD131 contributes to ulcerative colitis pathogenesis by promoting macrophage infiltration

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Zhiyuan Wu
   2. Lindi Liu
   3. Chenchen He
   4. Lin Xiao
   5. Duo Yun
   6. Junliang Chen
   7. Zhihao Liu
   8. Wenjun Li
   9. Qingjie Lv
   10. Xiaodong Tan

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic gut inflammatory condition affecting the colon in humans. This study uses human samples as well as a mouse model of colitis induced by a chemical, DSS, to investigate the role of an immune marker, CD131, in UC pathogenesis. The study, as presented, is incomplete, as experimental details are lacking, the statistical analyses are deficient, and there is not yet direct evidence for a CD131-mediated mechanism of gut inflammation.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Image Correlation Spectroscopy is a Robust Tool to Quantify Cellular DNA Damage Response

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Angelica A Gopal
   2. Bianca Fernandez
   3. Paul W Wiseman
   4. J Matthew Dubach

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable paper shows image correlation spectroscopy (ICS) as a new tool to analyze the clustering of proteins involved in DNA damage response (DDR). The convincing evidence presented demonstrates that ICS is more sensitive than traditional foci counting. This new method provides an alternative tool to quantify immunostained foci for researchers in the fields of DDR and cell biology.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Social and environmental predictors of gut microbiome age in wild baboons

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Mauna R Dasari
   2. Kimberly E Roche
   3. David Jansen
   4. Jordan Anderson
   5. Susan C Alberts
   6. Jenny Tung
   7. Jack A Gilbert
   8. Ran Blekhman
   9. Sayan Mukherjee
   10. Elizabeth A Archie

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study leverages an impressive and comprehensive longitudinal 16S rRNA gut microbiome dataset from baboons to provide important insight regarding the use of a microbiome-based clock to predict biological age. The evidence for age-associated microbiome features and environmental and social variables that impact microbiome aging is convincing. This study of microbiomes as markers of host age will fuel inquiries and studies and interest a broad range of researchers, especially those interested in alternatives to measuring biological aging.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Mapping kinase domain resistance mechanisms for the MET receptor tyrosine kinase via deep mutational scanning

   This article has 12 authors:

   1. Gabriella O Estevam
   2. Edmond Linossi
   3. Jingyou Rao
   4. Christian B Macdonald
   5. Ashraya Ravikumar
   6. Karson M Chrispens
   7. John A Capra
   8. Willow Coyote-Maestas
   9. Harold Pimentel
   10. Eric A Collisson
   11. Natalia Jura
   12. James S Fraser

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript provides an important overview of potential resistance mutations within MET Receptor Tyrosine Kinase. The evidence supporting the findings is convincing - it should be pointed out that the approach is comparatively new for the application of protein kinases and the results are therefore of potentially great value. The results will be of value for clinicians facing drug resistance mutations, computational biologists who are training models of drug resistance mechanisms and biologists with an interest in cell signaling.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Between-species variation in neocortical sulcal anatomy of the carnivoran brain

   This article has 19 authors:

   1. Magdalena Boch
   2. Katrin Karadachka
   3. Kep-Kee Loh
   4. R Austin Benn
   5. Lea Roumazeilles
   6. Mads F Bertelsen
   7. Paul R Manger
   8. Ethan Wriggelsworth
   9. Simon Spiro
   10. Muhammad A Spocter
   11. Philippa J Johnson
   12. Kamilla Avelino-de-Souza
   13. Nina Patzke
   14. Claus Lamm
   15. Karla L Miller
   16. Jérôme Sallet
   17. Alexandre A Khrapitchev
   18. Benjamin C Tendler
   19. Rogier B Mars

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study presents the first detailed and comprehensive description of brain sulcus anatomy of a range of carnivoran species based on a robust manual labeling model allowing species comparisons. The database and method for reconstructing cortical surfaces are compelling, and the evidence supporting the conclusions is solid. Despite the additional specimen, the evaluation of intra-species variations remains limited, but an insight into the inter-individual variability is now available for certain species. Exploring the associations between sulcal length and behavioral characteristics further suggests the potential of sulci as a proxy of functional organization. Setting an instructive foundation for comparative anatomy, this study will be of interest to neuroscientists and neuroimaging researchers interested in that field, as well as in brain morphology and sulcal patterns, their phylogeny and ontogeny in relation to functional development and behaviour.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Molecular and mechanical signatures contributing to mouse epidermal differentiation and barrier formation

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Alexandra Prado-Mantilla
   2. Wenxiu Ning
   3. Terry Lechler

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The authors address a fundamental question for cell and tissue biology. They use the skin epidermis as a paradigm and ask how stratifying self-renewing epithelia induce differentiation and upward migration in basal dividing progenitor cells to generate suprabasal barrier-forming cells that are essential for a functional barrier formed by such an epithelium. The authors provide compelling evidence time that an increase in intracellular actomyosin contractility, a hallmark of barrier-forming keratinocytes, is sufficient to trigger terminal differentiation, providing in vivo evidence of the interdependency of cell mechanics and differentiation. To illustrate their points, the authors use a combination of genetic mouse models, RNA sequencing, and immunofluorescence analysis. Precisely how the changes in gene expression, cell morphology, mechanics, and cell position are instructive and whether consecutive changes in differentiation are required still remain unclear, but the paper takes a nice step in advancing our knowledge of the process.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. The title and authors for this article are not available from our external data provider yet:
   10.48550/arxiv.2312.17293v4

8. The dominance of large-scale phase dynamics in human cortex, from delta to gamma

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. David M Alexander
   2. Laura Dugué

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study introduces a novel method for estimating spatial spectra from irregularly sampled intracranial EEG data, revealing cortical activity across all spatial frequencies, which supports the global and integrated nature of cortical dynamics. It showcases important technical innovations and rigorous analyses, including tests to rule out potential confounds. However, further direct evaluation of the model, for example by using simulated cortical activity with a known spatial spectrum (e.g., an iEEG volume-conductor model that describes the mapping from cortical current source density to iEEG signals, and that incorporates the reference electrodes and the particular montage used), would even further strengthen the solid evidence.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Striatal cholinergic interneuron pause response requires Kv1 channels, is absent in dyskinetic mice, and is restored by dopamine D5 receptor inverse agonism

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Cecilia Tubert
   2. Rodrigo Manuel Paz
   3. Agostina Mónica Stahl
   4. Kianny Miroslava Sanchez Armijos
   5. Lorena Rela
   6. Mario Gustavo Murer

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The authors investigated the mechanisms underlying the pause in striatal cholinergic interneurons (SCINs) induced by thalamic input, identifying that Kv1 channels play a key role in this burst-dependent pause. The experimental evidence is convincing.
     The study provides important mechanistic insights into how burst activity in SCINs leads to a subsequent pause, highlighting the involvement of D1/D5 receptors.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Responses to membrane potential-modulating ionic solutions measured by magnetic resonance imaging of cultured cells and in vivo rat cortex

    This article has 8 authors:

    1. Kyeongseon Min
    2. Sungkwon Chung
    3. Seung-Kyun Lee
    4. Jongho Lee
    5. Phan Tan Toi
    6. Daehong Kim
    7. Jung Seung Lee
    8. Jang-Yeon Park

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      The authors show MRI relaxation time changes that are claimed to originate from cell membrane potential changes. This would be a substantial contribution if true because it may provide a mechanism whereby membrane potential changes could be inferred noninvasively. However, the membrane potential manipulations applied here are performed on a slow time scale and are known to induce cell swelling. Cell swelling has been previously shown to affect relaxation time. Experiments could be performed to rule out this hypothesis, but the authors have chosen not to perform these experiments. The study is therefore useful, but the evidence is incomplete.

    Reviewed by eLife