eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Serotonergic amplification of odor-evoked neural responses maps onto flexible behavioral outcomes

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Yelyzaveta Bessonova
   2. Baranidharan Raman

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This useful work shows that the experimental application of serotonin to locust antennal lobes induces an increased feeding-related response to some odorants (even in food-satiated animals). To explain how the odorant-specific effects are seen despite similar consequences of 5-HT modulation on all projection neuronal types, the authors propose a simple quantitative model built around projection with different downstream connections. While they are consistent with the authors' conclusions, the current panel of experiments is incomplete and additional future work will be required to fully support the conclusions the authors currently draw from their observations.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Haplotype function score improves biological interpretation and cross-ancestry polygenic prediction of human complex traits

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Weichen Song
   2. Yongyong Shi
   3. Guan Ning Lin

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This valuable paper presents a new approach for association testing, using the output of neural networks that have been trained to predict functional changes from DNA sequences. As such, the approach is an interesting addition to statistical genetics, and the evidence for the presented method being able to identify trait-associations in regions where GWASs are typically underpowered is solid. A limitation is, however, that it is unclear how the quality of these associations compares to those detected using conventional methods. Additional work assessing this method's power and characterizing false positives / false negative regions would be critical to ensure that the method is broadly adopted by the field.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Alternative end-joining results in smaller deletions in heterochromatin relative to euchromatin

   This article has 15 authors:

   1. Jacob M. Miller
   2. Sydney Prange
   3. Huanding Ji
   4. Alesandra R. Rau
   5. Varandt Y. Khodaverdian
   6. Xiao Li
   7. Avi Patel
   8. Nadejda Butova
   9. Avery Lutter
   10. Helen Chung
   11. Chiara Merigliano
   12. Chetan C. Rawal
   13. Terrence Hanscom
   14. Mitch McVey
   15. Irene Chiolo

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This manuscript describes valuable new findings on the impact of chromatin context on the outcomes of microhomology-mediated end joining of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), specifically a preference for DSB-proximal microhomologies in repair within a heterochromatic compared to a euchromatic locus. The authors develop the Drosophila spermatogonia as a model for repair at induced DSBs in a mitotically-active tissue and leverage this system to provide convincing evidence that the local environment impacts the preference for repair mechanism and outcome. The work could be strengthened by the use of additional euchromatin insertion(s) to robustly validate the findings.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Rho GTPase signaling and mDia facilitate endocytosis via presynaptic actin

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Kristine Oevel
   2. Svea Hohensee
   3. Atul Kumar
   4. Irving Rosas-Brugada
   5. Francesca Bartolini
   6. Tolga Soykan
   7. Volker Haucke

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This manuscript provides convincing evidence for the involvement of membrane actin, and its regulatory proteins, mDia1/3, RhoA, and Rac1 in the mechanism of synaptic vesicle re-uptake (endocytosis). These important data fill a gap in the understanding of how the regulation of actin dynamics and endocytosis are linked. The manuscript will be of interest to all scientists working on cellular trafficking and membrane remodeling.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. mTORC1/S6K1 signaling promotes sustained oncogenic translation through modulating CRL3IBTK-mediated ubiquitination of eIF4A1 in cancer cells

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Dongyue Jiao
   2. Huiru Sun
   3. Xiaying Zhao
   4. Yingji Chen
   5. Zeheng Lv
   6. Qing Shi
   7. Yao Li
   8. Chenji Wang
   9. Kun Gao

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This study reports a novel substrate and a mediator of oncogenesis downstream of mTORC1, a fundamental advance in our understanding of the mechanistic basis of mTORC1-regulated cap-dependent translation and protein synthesis. Using an array of biochemical, proteomic and functional assays, the authors provide compelling evidence for a novel mTORC1/S6K1-IBTK-eIF4A1 signaling axis that promotes cancer pathogenic translation. This work is of broad interest and significance, given the importance of aberrant protein synthesis in cancer.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Hypothalamic representation of the imminence of predator threat detected by the vomeronasal organ in mice

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Quynh Anh Thi Nguyen
   2. Andrea Rocha
   3. Ricky Chhor
   4. Yuna Yamashita
   5. Christian Stadler
   6. Crystal Pontrello
   7. Hongdian Yang
   8. Sachiko Haga-Yamanaka

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study addresses one way in which animals identify predator-associated cues and respond in a manner that reflects the imminence of the potential threat. The report shows that, in mice, fresh saliva from a natural predator (cat) elicits a greater defensive response compared to old cat saliva and implicates the vomeronasal organ and ventromedial hypothalamus as part of a circuit that underlies this process. The evidence supporting the main conclusions is solid. This study will be of interest to those interested in aversive behavior, its processes, and mechanisms.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. The intricate relationship of G-Quadruplexes and bacterial pathogenicity islands

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Bo Lyu
   2. Qisheng Song

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This fundamental study explores the relationship between guanine-quadruplex structures and pathogenicity islands in 89 bacterial strains representing a range of pathogens. Guanine-quadruplex structures were found to be non-randomly distributed within pathogenicity islands and conserved within the same strains. These compelling findings shed light on the molecular mechanisms of Guanine-quadruplex structure-pathogenicity island interactions and will be of interest to all microbiologists.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Natural forgetting reversibly modulates engram expression

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. James D O'Leary
   2. Rasmus Bruckner
   3. Livia Autore
   4. Tomás J Ryan

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This is an important paper on the role of engrams and relevant conditions that influence memory and forgetting. The variety of methods used, namely, behavioural, labeling, interrogation, immunohistochemistry, microscopy, pharmacology, computational, are exemplary and provide convincing evidence for the role of engrams in the dentate gyrus in memory retrieval and forgetting. This examination will be of interest broadly across behavioural and neural science communities.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Cholecystokinin facilitates motor skill learning by modulating neuroplasticity in the motor cortex

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Hao Li
   2. Jingyu Feng
   3. Mengying Chen
   4. Min Xin
   5. Xi Chen
   6. Wenhao Liu
   7. Liping Wang
   8. Kuan Hong Wang
   9. Jufang He

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This valuable paper examines the link between the neuropeptide cholecystokinin (CCK) and motor learning and neural plasticity in the motor cortex. While CCK was known to be involved in neural plasticity in other brain regions and behavioral contexts, this study is the first to provide evidence that CCK manipulation causes deficits in motor learning. However, the evidence for specific effects regarding behavior, activity, and pathways is currently incomplete.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Pharmacologic hyperstabilisation of the HIV-1 capsid lattice induces capsid failure

    This article has 13 authors:

    1. KM Rifat Faysal
    2. James C Walsh
    3. Nadine Renner
    4. Chantal L Márquez
    5. Vaibhav B Shah
    6. Andrew J Tuckwell
    7. Michelle P Christie
    8. Michael W Parker
    9. Stuart G Turville
    10. Greg J Towers
    11. Leo C James
    12. David A Jacques
    13. Till Böcking

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife assessment

      In this important study, the authors propose that lenacapavir inhibits HIV-1 replication by inducing "lethal hyperstabilization" of the capsid, based on experiments that clearly demonstrate such an effect at high drug concentrations. Data supporting the model are incomplete at low drug concentrations, and a firm correlation between the in vitro effects and therapeutic mechanism of action has not yet been established.

    Reviewed by eLife