eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Neural dynamics of visual working memory representation during sensory distraction

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Jonas Karolis Degutis
   2. Simon Weber
   3. Joram Soch
   4. John-Dylan Haynes

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study reports a reanalysis of one experiment of a previously-published report to characterize the dynamics of neural population codes during visual working memory in the presence of distracting information. This paper presents solid evidence that working memory representations are dynamic and distinct from sensory representations of intervening distractions. This research will be of interest to cognitive neuroscientists working on the neural bases of visual perception and memory.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. The inevitability and superfluousness of cell types in spatial cognition

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Xiaoliang Luo
   2. Robert M Mok
   3. Bradley C Love

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study demonstrates that some degree of spatial tuning (e.g., place cells) and ability to decode spatial location emerges in sufficiently complex systems trained to process visual information. This intriguing observation challenges existing approaches and findings used in the study of spatial navigation. However, the strength of evidence regarding the nature and quality of spatial tuning, its compatibility with experimental data, and the overall interpretation of the study remains incomplete. This work will be of interest to the research community of spatial navigation.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Micro-scale control of oligodendrocyte morphology and myelination by the intellectual disability-linked protein acyltransferase ZDHHC9

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Hey-Kyeong Jeong
   2. Estibaliz Gonzalez-Fernandez
   3. Ilan Crawley
   4. Julia M Coakley
   5. Jinha Hwang
   6. Dale DO Martin
   7. Shernaz X Bamji
   8. Jong-Il Kim
   9. Shin H Kang
   10. Gareth M Thomas

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study provides an in-depth exploration of the impact of X-linked ZDHHC9 gene mutations on cognitive deficits and epilepsy, with a particular focus on the expression and function of ZDHHC9 in myelin-forming oligodendrocytes (OLs). These valuable findings offer insights into ZDHHC9-related X-linked intellectual disability (XLID) and shed light on the regulatory mechanisms of palmitoylation in myelination. The experimental design and analysis of results are solid, providing a reference for further research in this field.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Directed differentiation of functional corticospinal-like neurons from endogenous SOX6+/NG2+ cortical progenitors

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Abdulkadir Ozkan
   2. Hari K Padmanabhan
   3. Seth L Shipman
   4. Eiman Azim
   5. Priyanka Kumar
   6. Cameron Sadegh
   7. A Nazli Basak
   8. Jeffrey D Macklis

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study presents fundamental new findings introducing a new approach for the reprogramming of brain glial cells to corticospinal neurons. The data is highly compelling, with multiple lines of evidence demonstrating the success of this new assay. These exciting findings set the stage for future studies of the potential of these reprogrammed cells to form functional connections in vivo and their utility in clinical conditions where corticospinal neurons are compromised.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. The emergence of visual category representations in infants’ brains

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Xiaoqian Yan
   2. Sarah Shi Tung
   3. Bella Fascendini
   4. Yulan Diana Chen
   5. Anthony M Norcia
   6. Kalanit Grill-Spector

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study investigates the development of high-level visual responses in infants, finding that neural responses specific to faces are present by 4-6 months but not earlier. The study is methodologically convincing, using state-of-the-art experimental design and analysis approaches. The findings would be of broad interest to the cognitive neuroscience and developmental psychology research communities.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Single-cell RNA sequencing of the holothurian regenerating intestine reveals the pluripotency of the coelomic epithelium

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Joshua G Medina-Feliciano
   2. Griselle Valentín-Tirado
   3. Kiara Luna-Martínez
   4. Alejandra Beltran-Rivera
   5. Yamil Miranda-Negrón
   6. José E Garcia-Arraras

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript describes a resource detailing the econstitution of Holothuria glaberrima gut following self-evisceration in response to a potassium chloride injection, using scRNAseq and fluorescent RNA localization in situ. It provides some new findings about organ regeneration, as well as the origins of pluripotent cells, and places these findings in the context of regeneration across species. The paper's schematic model and HCR images are a valuable foundation for future work. The authors provide convincing RNA localization images to validate their data and to provide spatial context. These validation experiments are of good quality but remain challenging to connect to the complex spatial organization of complex tissues. This resource will be of interest to the field of regeneration, particularly in invertebrates, but also in comparative studies in other species, including evolutionary studies.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Activity-dependent lateral inhibition enables the synchronization of olfactory bulb projection neurons

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Tal Dalal
   2. Rafi Haddad

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study uses optogenetics in combination with single cell recordings to selectively activate sensory input channels within the olfactory bulb, providing direct evidence for activity-dependent and distance-independent enhancement of stimulus-evoked gamma oscillations via lateral interactions between input channels, most likely via granule cells. The article presents solid evidence to support the main conclusions.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Recurrent disruption of tumour suppressor genes in cancer by somatic mutations in cleavage and polyadenylation signals

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Yaroslav Kainov
   2. Fursham Hamid
   3. Eugene V Makeyev

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study substantially advances our understanding of noncoding somatic mutations by identifying a novel class of mutations that affect 3'UTR polyadenylation signals enriched in tumor suppressor genes in cancer. The evidence supporting the conclusions is convincing, with rigorous statistical analyses. The work will be of broad interest to cancer researchers.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Telomerase RNA component knockout exacerbates Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia by extensive inflammation and dysfunction of T cells

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Yasmina Reisser
   2. Franziska Hornung
   3. Antje Häder
   4. Thurid Lauf
   5. Sandor Nietzsche
   6. Bettina Löffler
   7. Stefanie Deinhardt-Emmer

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     In this manuscript, the authors sought to elucidate mechanistic intricacies of inflammatory responses, with emphasis on T cell dysfunction, to S. aureus-induced pneumonia in the context of aging process using Terc deficient mice. Conceptually, the study is very interesting with a set of useful findings. Although some experimental approaches are appropriate, the work as shown in the revised manuscript remains significantly underpowered and the absence of rigorous controls make this study incomplete in support of its claims.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Endothelin B receptor inhibition rescues aging-dependent neuronal regenerative decline

    This article has 8 authors:

    1. Rui Feng
    2. Sarah F Rosen
    3. Irshad Ansari
    4. Sebastian John
    5. Michael B Thomsen
    6. Oshri Avraham
    7. Cedric G Geoffroy
    8. Valeria Cavalli

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This important study examines the role of endothelin signaling in nerve regeneration, providing convincing evidence that it functions as a default brake on axon regrowth. Inhibiting endothelin signaling with Bosentan promotes regeneration and counteracts the decline in regenerative potential caused by aging. Since Bosentan is an FDA-approved drug, these findings could have therapeutic value in clinical settings where peripheral nerve regeneration is not adequate or seriously impaired, as is often the case in older individuals.

    Reviewed by eLife