eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Interrogating the structure and function of the human voltage-gated proton channel (hH _v 1) with a fluorescent noncanonical amino acid

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Emerson M. Carmona
   2. William N. Zagotta
   3. Sharona E. Gordon

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This elegant study presents a valuable approach to probing the structural features of the full-length human Hv1 channel as a purified protein, supported by rigorous biochemical assays and spectral FRET analysis, which will interest biophysicists and physiologists studying Hv1 and other ion channels. Overall, the work introduces an interesting labeling strategy and provides methodological observations that are of value in investigating hHV1. However, the analysis appears incomplete, requiring additional structural interpretation and mechanistic insight. Since the manuscript does not provide compelling evidence regarding the possible conformational change induced by zinc, we suggest that the manuscript be changed to "Tools and resources".

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Developmental sleep reallocation enables metabolic adaptation in desert flies

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Shuhao Li
   2. Milan Szuperak
   3. Ceazar Nave
   4. Si Hao Tang
   5. Jeffrey M. Donlea
   6. Matthew S. Kayser

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Li et al. present an important and innovative study linking developmental changes in sleep to ecological context in Drosophila mojavensis, and propose that sleep at one stage of an animal's life might anticipate needs at a future stage. The results fit well with this model, but are correlative in nature. The work is convincing, scientifically rigorous, and effectively bridges sleep biology and evolutionary ecology, opening promising new directions for the field.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Sleep-Wake Transitions Are Impaired in the AppNL-G-F Mouse Model of Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Ryan K Tisdale
   2. Yu Sun
   3. Stephanie R Miller
   4. Stephanie M Lee
   5. Sunmee Park
   6. Jia Shin
   7. Giancarlo Allocca
   8. Jorge J Palop
   9. Thomas S Kilduff

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study provides useful insights regarding the alterations of sleep architecture in a knock-in mouse model of Alzheimer's Disease (AD). These include age-related hyperactivity that is typically associated with increased arousal, a normal homeostatic response to sleep loss, and a stronger AD-like phenotype in females. Although the analyses are robust, evidence for the proposed mechanisms underlying abnormal sleep architecture is incomplete. Overall, the study may have a focused impact on the sleep and AD fields.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Drosophila melanogaster model of RVCL-S demonstrates age dependent disease progression

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Elena Gracheva
   2. Abigail Matt
   3. Fei Wang
   4. Raymond Hsin
   5. Hongwu Liang
   6. Xiangping Ouyang
   7. Jimin Ding
   8. Jonathan J. Miner
   9. Chao Zhou

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript describing the phenotypes associated with loss and gain of RVCL-S documents important findings that have practical implications. Although the data and methods are solid and support many claims, there remain some concerns about mechanisms.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Bifunctional Architecture Enables Substrate Catalysis and Channeling in Paracoccus TMAO Demethylase

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Trung Thach
   2. KanagaVijayan Dhanabalan
   3. Shiwangi Maurya
   4. Yu Han-Hallet
   5. Senwei Quan
   6. Jane Allison
   7. Gurunath Ramanathan
   8. Ramaswamy Subramanian

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript reports high-resolution cryo-EM structures of a trimethylamine N-oxide demethylase and advances the intriguing hypothesis that the enzyme is bifunctional, coupling TMAO demethylation to formaldehyde capture at a distal tetrahydrofolate-binding site via an enclosed intramolecular tunnel. Supported by biochemical assays and molecular dynamics simulations, the structural findings are valuable and potentially of broad interest, particularly the unusual oligomeric architecture and the proposed conduit for a reactive intermediate. However, the mechanistic framework is considered incomplete, raising substantial concerns regarding the proposed catalytic mechanism, metal/cofactor requirements, and the interpretation of biochemical data supporting formaldehyde channelling.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Distinct Mechanisms for Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease: Dimerization Promoted by Peptidomimetic Inhibitors and Disrupted by Ebselen

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Chengxi Liu
   2. Qinyu Jia
   3. Chang Zhao
   4. Zhong-Ping Yao

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study provides a comprehensive comparison of the mechanisms through which different inhibitors affect the SARS-CoV-2 main protease, a pivotal antiviral drug target, and suggests a potentially broad-spectrum strategy to inhibit this critical viral enzyme by disrupting its dimerization states. However, whereas the biophysical analyses of the dimer stability are convincing, evidence supporting this new mode of mechanism to inhibit the main protease is incomplete and would benefit from a correlation of the biophysical observations with functional activity. With the functional validation part strengthened, this work would be of interest to biochemists and virologists working on anti-coronavirus drug discovery.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Language comprehension functionally modulates first-order relay thalamic nuclei

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Liu Mengxing
   2. Shiya Wang
   3. Carmen Vidaurre
   4. Sara Guediche
   5. Garikoitz Lerma-Usabiaga
   6. Pedro M Paz-Alonso

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study presents a potentially valuable exploration of the role of thalamic nuclei in language processing. The results will be of interest to researchers interested in the neurobiology of language. However, the evidence is incomplete to support robust conclusions at this point.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Dynamics of sensorimotor plasticity during spatial finger augmentation

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Dominika Radziun
   2. Siebe Geurts
   3. Valeria C Peviani
   4. Luke E Miller

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study provides a useful contribution to understanding how wearable augmentation devices interact with human proprioception, using a longitudinal design over a single session. Results demonstrate that the perceptual representation of the biological finger and augmentation device changes across different phases of device exposure and use. The evidence supporting a representational change over time is solid, although it is still not clear whether these changes reflect three distinct phases of sensorimotor plasticity, as argued, versus 'washout' or adaptation effects. This work will be of interest to researchers studying body representation, sensorimotor learning, and human-technology interaction.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. EOLA1, a novel mitochondria-localized protein critical for heart functions via regulating mitochondrial translation

   This article has 16 authors:

   1. Xiaoyan Shi
   2. Yangyi Zhang
   3. Nanbo Liu
   4. Ruiqi Wang
   5. Nan Zhang
   6. Yanlan Cao
   7. Dian Wang
   8. Yuxuan Jin
   9. Qingren Meng
   10. Simin Fan
   11. Jia Yao
   12. Chih-hung Hsu
   13. Shuoji Zhu
   14. Ping Zhu
   15. Yang Shi
   16. Hao Chen

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     In this study, the authors identify EOLA1 as a novel mitochondrial protein required for mitochondrial translation and normal cardiac function. The characterization of the molecular role of EOLA1 is still incomplete, and additional controls will be necessary. Nevertheless, the identification of a novel factor critical for mitochondrial gene expression and oxidative phosphorylation will be useful for cell biologists working on mitochondrial dysfunction.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Temporal dynamics of peri-microsaccadic modulations within the foveola

    This article has 2 authors:

    1. Zoe Stearns
    2. Martina Poletti

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      Stearns and Poletti present a technically impressive study that aims to uncover a deeper understanding of microsaccade function: their role in perceptual modulation and the associated temporal dynamics. The question is useful, and advances prior work by adding temporal granularity. However, the strength of the evidence is currently incomplete. Additional analysis is needed to control for the effects of endogenous attention and to demonstrate changes in perceptual performance.

    Reviewed by eLife