eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. A single-cell transcriptomic atlas of inner ear morphogenesis in zebrafish

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Akankshi Munjal
   2. Kalki Kukreja
   3. Samara Williams
   4. Toru Kawanishi
   5. Natasha M O’Brown
   6. Kana Ishimatsu
   7. Allon Klein
   8. Sean G Tsung-Megason
   9. Ian A Swinburne

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This is a valuable study on single-cell transcriptomic analyses, focused on morphogenesis of the zebrafish inner ear in wildtype and lmx1bb mutants. The supporting evidence is mostly convincing, but incomplete in parts.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Functional definition of the Drosophila airway progenitor field through overlapping compensatory regulators

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Ryo Matsuda
   2. Chie Hosono
   3. Kaoru Saigo
   4. Christos Samakovlis

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     In this important manuscript, Matsuda and colleagues present a model describing the regulation of tracheal tubulogenesis in Drosophila melanogaster embryos. The authors support this model using convincing approaches that combine novel experimental results with previously published work from their group. While some conclusions are consistent with earlier studies, the present manuscript introduces distinct molecular markers not previously reported, which reinforce the authors' prior findings. In addition, the manuscript analyses, using experimental strategies, the requirement of the Dpp and EGFR signalling pathways for the maintenance of trachealess (trh), one of the key transcription factors governing tracheal development.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Defining the Antigenic Topology and Prospective Binding Breadth of Vaccination-induced SARS-CoV-2 Neutralizing Antibodies

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Deepika Jaiswal
   2. Clara G Altomare
   3. Daniel C Adelsberg
   4. Iden A Sapse
   5. Florian Krammer
   6. Viviana Simon
   7. Ali H Ellebedy
   8. Goran Bajic

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript provides valuable high-resolution structural insights into the interaction between vaccine-elicited antibodies and SARS‑CoV‑2 evolution. The evidence is solid; however, the conclusions could be strengthened with further experimentation and analysis.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. A stress-responsive morphogenetic program of the uterine epithelium safeguards the establishment of early pregnancy

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Chihiro Ishizawa
   2. Shizu Aikawa
   3. Yamato Fukui
   4. Xueting He
   5. Ryoko Shimizu-Hirota
   6. Daiki Hiratsuka
   7. Mitsunori Matsuo
   8. Takehiro Hiraoka
   9. Yasushi Hirota

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study reports the architectural reorganization of the uterine luminal epithelium during the implantation period. The data presented are solid, although improvements are needed. This work is of interest to reproductive biologists and physicians practicing reproductive medicine.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Calibrated analysis framework for nanopore direct RNA sequencing uncovers cell-specific m6A stoichiometry at conserved sites

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Denise Ohnezeit
   2. Elene Loliashvili
   3. Gregory Putzel
   4. Ruth Verstraten
   5. Jianheng Liu
   6. Luke S Nicholson
   7. Alejandro Pironti
   8. Samie R Jaffrey
   9. Daniel P Depledge
   10. Angus C Wilson

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study compares orthogonal approaches for detecting RNA chemical modifications and provides a helpful framework for improving the reliability of direct RNA sequencing-based identification of RNA modifications. The evidence supporting the technical benchmarking claims is solid. However, support for the broader biological conclusions is not as strong, and the quantitative interpretation of the results, as well as the limitations of the underlying models, would benefit from further clarification.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Selective suppression and biasing of chemokine receptors CCR9 and ACKR4 through targeting CCL25 with de novo miniproteins

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Bas de Boer
   2. Thomas D Lamme
   3. Karlijn Verdwaald
   4. Sara Santamaria Medina
   5. Csongor G Németh
   6. Elisabeth M Elfrink
   7. Martine J Smit
   8. Iwan JP de Esch
   9. Christopher T Schafer

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study describes computationally designed proteins that bind to the chemokine CCL25. The authors present evidence that some binders simply prevent chemokine binding to the CCR9 receptor, while one binder changes the downstream signaling triggered by chemokine binding. The evidence is solid overall, but some uncertainty remains with respect to functional selectivity due to sensitivity differences between functional assays and the degree of binder selectivity between the large family of chemokine ligands.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Programmed Delayed Splicing: A Mechanism for Timed Inflammatory Gene Expression

   This article has 14 authors:

   1. Jacob S Dearborn
   2. Luke Frankiw
   3. Damas W Limoge
   4. Christian H Burns
   5. Logan Vlach
   6. Patricia Turpin
   7. Tylar Kirch
   8. Zachary D Miller
   9. William Dowell
   10. Sylvester Languon
   11. Yvette Garcia-Flores
   12. Robert C Cockrell
   13. David Baltimore
   14. Devdoot Majumdar

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study analyzes the temporal dynamics of gene expression following TNF stimulation in macrophages. The work brings valuable data and new methodological approaches to implicate the splicing rate of certain introns as a mechanism regulating mature mRNA expression. This will be of interest to audiences in RNA biology and innate immune response regulation. The experimental design is solid for the core findings, although in places the data limit the conclusions.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Selective JAK Inhibition Reveals Paradoxical and Hierarchical Control of interferon-γ-driven Autoimmunity in AIRE Deficiency

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Eliezer Heller
   2. Lucas dos Santos Dias
   3. Michail S Lionakis

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     These findings are important because they suggest that more selective JAK inhibition, particularly targeting JAK1 or JAK2, can effectively reduce organ pathology and pathogenic IFN-γ-producing immune cells in AIRE deficiency, refining therapeutic strategies beyond broad JAK inhibition. The work highlights JAK2 inhibition as a promising and potentially more targeted clinical approach for treating autoimmunity in this setting. The evidence is solid and moderately strong, building on the prior efficacy of ruxolitinib and supported by comparative studies in Aire-deficient models, though further validation in human systems would strengthen translational confidence.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. An ancient transcription factor functions as the master regulator of primary cilia formation

   This article has 17 authors:

   1. Weihua Wang
   2. Xiqi Zhang
   3. Yaxuan Qiu
   4. Xiangrui Meng
   5. Sitong Cheng
   6. Yutong Chen
   7. Siqi Liu
   8. Wenhui Chen
   9. Jiayan Yi
   10. Xiwen You
   11. Hongni Liu
   12. Junqiao Xing
   13. Cheng Xu
   14. Haochen Jiang
   15. Haibo Wang
   16. Guangmei Tian
   17. Zhangfeng Hu

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This useful study identified XAP5 as an ancient transcriptional regulator critical for primary ciliogenesis. The evidence supporting the conceptual framework linking evolutionary conservation to functional specialization in primary ciliogenesis remains incomplete. This work will be of interest to developmental biologists and to those studying diseases caused by ciliopathies.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. NK2R signaling governs intestinal lipid mobilization and mucosal inflammation

    This article has 12 authors:

    1. Pedro A. Perez
    2. Chung-Chih Liu
    3. Alessandra Ferrari
    4. Nicole Littlejohn
    5. John Paul Kennelly
    6. Emma Robinson
    7. Vân T B Nguyen-Tran
    8. Jon Athanacio
    9. Sean B Joseph
    10. Zaid Amso
    11. Peter Tontonoz
    12. Supriya Srinivasan

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This is an important study on the role of the neurokinin-2 receptor (NK2R) as a regulatory node connecting intestinal lipid metabolism, mucosal immunity, and the gut microbiome, bidirectionally regulating enterocyte lipid uptake, lipid droplet storage, chylomicron output, and systemic metabolic parameters in DIO mice. The authors present solid evidence linking Tacr2 deletion to reprogrammed epithelial lineage allocation, dampened immune gene expression, and male-biased protection from DSS colitis, despite dysbiotic microbiota. However, the causal evidence for some mechanistic and pro-inflammatory NK2R claims remains incomplete and potentially confounding, requiring additional cell-type-specific and functional experiments.

    Reviewed by eLife