eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Inter-regional delays fluctuate in the human cerebral cortex

   This article has 5 authors:

   1. Joon-Young Moon
   2. Kathrin Müsch
   3. Charles E. Schroeder
   4. Taufik A. Valiante
   5. Christopher J. Honey

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     The authors use human intracranial recordings to investigate the relationship between the power of brain oscillations and the latency and strength of cortico-cortical couplings. In the current version, the authors provide a valuable finding that the delay between nearby electrodes in ECoG data is correlated with the amplitude of power, differently so for high and low frequencies. The findings of this study will interest investigators in the wider field of systems neurophysiology; however, editors and reviewers perceived headroom for improving clarity in the presentation of analyses and results, and the strength of evidence for some of the claims as currently presented was viewed as incomplete.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. A mathematical model that predicts human biological age from physiological traits identifies environmental and genetic factors that influence aging

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Sergiy Libert
   2. Alex Chekholko
   3. Cynthia Kenyon

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study developed a mathematical model to predict biological age by leveraging physiological traits across multiple organ systems. The results presented are convincing, utilizing comprehensive data-driven approaches. However, additional external validation could further strengthen its generalizability. The model provides a way to identify environmental and genetic factors impacting aging and lifespan, revealing new factors potentially affecting aging. It also shows promise for evaluating therapeutics aimed at prolonging a healthy lifespan.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. N-cadherin mechanosensing in ovarian follicles controls oocyte maturation and ovulation

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Alaknanda Emery
   2. Orest W Blaschuk
   3. Doan T Dinh
   4. Tim McPhee
   5. Rouven Becker
   6. Andrew D Abell
   7. Krzysztof M Mrozik
   8. Andrew CW Zannettino
   9. Rebecca L Robker
   10. Darryl L Russell

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     The manuscript describes important findings regarding the significance of CHD2 in ovarian folliculogenesis. Overall, the results lead to convincing conclusions, with minimal concerns raised by the reviewers. Both the results and conclusions are well discussed. This work will be of interest to ovarian biologists and physicians working on female fertility.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Progesterone induces meiosis through two obligate co-receptors with PLA2 activity

   This article has 11 authors:

   1. Nancy Nader
   2. Lama Assaf
   3. Lubna Zarif
   4. Anna Halama
   5. Sharan Yadav
   6. Maya Dib
   7. Nabeel Attarwala
   8. Qiuying Chen
   9. Karsten Suhre
   10. Steven Gross
   11. Khaled Machaca

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study provides solid evidence for a non-genomic action of progesterone in Xenopus oocyte activation. The findings demonstrate that two non-genomic progesterone receptors, ABHD2 and mPRb, function as a novel progesterone-stimulated phospholipase A2. The findings will be of broad interest to reproductive endocrinologists and physiologists.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Reorganization of the flagellum scaffolding induces a sperm standstill during fertilization

   This article has 17 authors:

   1. Martina Jabloñski
   2. Guillermina M Luque
   3. Matias Gomez Elias
   4. Claudia Sanchez Cardenas
   5. Xinran Xu
   6. Jose L de La Vega Beltran
   7. Gabriel Corkidi
   8. Alejandro Linares
   9. Victor Abonza
   10. Aquetzalli Arenas-Hernandez
   11. María DP Ramos-Godinez
   12. Alejandro López-Saavedra
   13. Dario Krapf
   14. Diego Krapf
   15. Alberto Darszon
   16. Adán Guerrero
   17. Mariano G Buffone

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important work substantially advances our understanding of sperm motility regulation during fertilization process by uncovering the midpiece/mitochondria contraction associated with motility cessation and structural changes in the midpiece actin network as its mode of action involved. The evidence supporting the conclusion is solid, with rigorous live cell imaging using state-of-art microscopy, although more functional analysis of the midpiece/mitochondria contraction would have further strengthened the study. The work will be of broad interest to cell biologists working on the cytoskeleton, mitochondria, cell fusion, and fertilization.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Random genetic drift sets an upper limit on mRNA splicing accuracy in metazoans

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Florian Bénitière
   2. Anamaria Necsulea
   3. Laurent Duret

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This fundamental study evaluates the evolutionary significance of variations in the accuracy of the intron-splicing process across vertebrates and insects. Using a powerful combination of comparative and population genomics approaches, the authors present convincing evidence that higher rates of alternative splicing tend to be observed in species with lower effective population size, a key prediction of the drift-barrier hypothesis. The analysis is carefully conducted and has broad implications beyond the studied species. As such, it will strongly appeal to anyone interested in the evolution of genome architecture and the optimisation of genetic systems.

   Reviewed by eLife, Peer Community in Evolutionary Biology

7. Whole blood transcriptional profiles and the pathogenesis of tuberculous meningitis

   This article has 16 authors:

   1. Hoang Thanh Hai
   2. Le Thanh Hoang Nhat
   3. Trinh Thi Bich Tram
   4. Do Dinh Vinh
   5. Artika P Nath
   6. Joseph Donovan
   7. Nguyen Thi Anh Thu
   8. Dang Van Thanh
   9. Nguyen Duc Bang
   10. Dang Thi Minh Ha
   11. Nguyen Hoan Phu
   12. Ho Dang Trung Nghia
   13. Le Hong Van
   14. Michael Inouye
   15. Guy E Thwaites
   16. Nguyen Thuy Thuong Thuong

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     In this valuable study, the authors investigate the transcriptional landscape of tuberculous meningitis. They reveal potentially significant molecular differences contributed by HIV co-infection, and derive a prognostic model to predict mortality combining a gene expression signature with clinical parameters. Whilst some of the evidence presented is compelling, the bioinformatics analysis remains limited and cannot be used to make causal inferences and conclusions about immunopathogenesis for tuberculous meningitis. The work will be of broad interest to the infectious disease community however, further validation of the findings is critical for future utility.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. The role of heterochronic gene expression and regulatory architecture in early developmental divergence

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Nathan D Harry
   2. Christina Zakas

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important study examines the extent to which distinct developmental pathways that result in alternative morphs correlate with transcriptome differences in a marine annelid, Streblospio benedicti. The strengths of the study include the experimental design and dense temporal sampling, which together provide convincing evidence that the two morphs can be clearly distinguished at the transcriptome level, despite relatively modest overall differences. The work will be of particular interest to students of the evolution of development.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Association with TFIIIC limits MYCN localisation in hubs of active promoters and chromatin accumulation of non-phosphorylated RNA polymerase II

   This article has 14 authors:

   1. Raphael Vidal
   2. Eoin Leen
   3. Steffi Herold
   4. Mareike Müller
   5. Daniel Fleischhauer
   6. Christina Schülein-Völk
   7. Dimitrios Papadopoulos
   8. Isabelle Röschert
   9. Leonie Uhl
   10. Carsten P Ade
   11. Peter Gallant
   12. Richard Bayliss
   13. Martin Eilers
   14. Gabriele Büchel

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This study presents the valuable finding that TFIIIC interacts with MYCN to regulate RNA polymerase II dynamics by dissecting its impact on 3D chromatin architecture. Authors provide convincing evidence that MYCN and TFIIIC show long-range chromatin contacts, and that the expression of each protein limits the function of the other. The notion emerges that TFIIIC helps MYCN to maintain output at promoters while decreasing less productive associations at larger more extensively connected chromatin hubs. The paper is of interest to molecular biologists working on MYCN-dependent regulation of gene expression.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. The spatial frequency representation predicts category coding in the inferior temporal cortex

    This article has 9 authors:

    1. Ramin Toosi
    2. Behnam Karami
    3. Roxana Koushki
    4. Farideh Shakerian
    5. Jalaledin Noroozi
    6. Ehsan Rezayat
    7. Abdol-Hossein Vahabie
    8. Mohammad Ali Akhaee
    9. Mohammad-Reza A Dehaqani

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This useful study aimed to examine the relationship of spatial frequency selectivity of single macaque inferotemporal (IT) neurons to category selectivity. Interesting findings in this report suggest a shift in preferred spatial frequency during the response, from low to high spatial frequencies. This agrees with a coarse-to-fine processing strategy, which is in line with multiple studies in the early visual cortex. Some of the findings were difficult to evaluate because the methods are incomplete. The conclusion that single-unit spatial frequency selectivity can predict object coding requires further evidence to confirm.

    Reviewed by eLife