eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. 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

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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

5. Tgif1-deficiency impairs cytoskeletal architecture in osteoblasts by activating PAK3 signaling

   This article has 5 authors:

   1. Simona Bolamperti
   2. Hiroaki Saito
   3. Sarah Heerdmann
   4. Eric Hesse
   5. Hanna Taipaleenmäki

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important work substantially advances our understanding of osteoblast migration to the sites of bone formation and regeneration. The evidence supporting the conclusion is compelling, with rigorous in vitro assays for cellular and biochemical aspects and with appropriate in vivo models. The work will be of broad interest to developmental biologists and bone biologists.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Identification of a third myosin-5a-melanophilin interaction that mediates the association of myosin-5a with melanosomes

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Jiabin Pan
   2. Rui Zhou
   3. Lin-Lin Yao
   4. Jie Zhang
   5. Ning Zhang
   6. Qing-Juan Cao
   7. Shaopeng Sun
   8. Xiang-dong Li

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This study represents a useful description of a third interaction site between melanophilin and myosin-5a which has a role in regulating the distribution of pigment granules in melanocytes. While much of the data forms a solid case for this interaction, the inclusion of controls for the cellular studies and measurement of interaction affinities would have been helpful.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. CaBP1 and 2 enable sustained CaV1.3 calcium currents and synaptic transmission in inner hair cells

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. David Oestreicher
   2. Shashank Chepurwar
   3. Kathrin Kusch
   4. Vladan Rankovic
   5. Sangyong Jung
   6. Nicola Strenzke
   7. Tina Pangrsic

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This fundamental work substantially advances our understanding of the role of calcium-binding proteins 1 and 2 (CaBP1 and CaBP2) for generating sustained calcium currents in mouse inner hair cells and their capacity for indefatigable exocytosis. The evidence supporting the conclusions is compelling, with rigorous in vitro and in vivo physiological experiments and state-of-the-art microscopy. The work will be of broad interest to synaptic physiologists, cellular biochemists, and hearing researchers.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Metastatic small cell lung cancer arises from TP53/RB1-deficient and MYC overproduction hESC-derived PNECs

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Huanhuan Joyce Chen
   2. Eric E Gardner
   3. Yajas Shah
   4. Kui Zhang
   5. Abhimanyu Thakur
   6. Chen Zhang
   7. Olivier Elemento
   8. Harold Varmus

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Given a great need for novel human model systems to study small cell lung cancer (SCLC), the authors describe an important pre-clinical model with broad potential for the study of how genetic perturbations or drug treatments alter SCLC tumor growth, metastasis, and response to therapy. For the major finding, the authors provide convincing evidence that RB/TP53 suppression coupled with MYC overexpression in an ES cell-derived model system results in aggressive and metastatic SCLC. However, the impact of the work would have been increased with the inclusion of a broader set of genetic perturbations, such as over-expression of MYCL, to better model major SCLC phenotypes. The new model described will be of significant interest to researchers studying lung cancer.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Caenorhabditis elegans Dicer acts with the RIG-I-like helicase DRH-1 and RDE-4 to cleave dsRNA

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Claudia D Consalvo
   2. Adedeji M Aderounmu
   3. Helen M Donelick
   4. P Joseph Aruscavage
   5. Debra M Eckert
   6. Peter S Shen
   7. Brenda L Bass

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     To investigate the evolutionary relationship between the RNAi pathway and innate immunity, this valuable study uses biochemistry and structural biology to investigate the trimeric complex of Dicer-1, DRH-1 (a RIGI homologue), and RDE-4, which exists in C. elegans. The results described include rigorous kinetic analysis of the enzymatic activity of the complex and a moderate resolution cryo-EM structure. The results are convincing and add to the broader understanding of the evolution of antiviral defense.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Cell Adhesion-Dependent Biphasic Axon Outgrowth Elucidated by Femtosecond Laser Impulse

    This article has 4 authors:

    1. Sohei Yamada
    2. Kentarou Baba
    3. Naoyuki Inagaki
    4. Yoichiroh Hosokawa

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      Axon growth is essential to formation of neural connections. This manuscript presents a useful presentation of a new method for assessing the adhesion strength of axons with the use of a laser-induced shock wave. However, the strength of the evidence is incomplete as critical controls for calibration and time course are lacking.

    Reviewed by eLife