Latest preprint reviews

1. Functional characterisation of neuropeptides that act as ligands for both calcitonin-type and pigment-dispersing factor-type receptors in a deuterostome

   This article has 5 authors:

   1. Xiao Cong
   2. Huachen Liu
   3. Lihua Liu
   4. Maurice R Elphick
   5. Muyan Chen

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This valuable study characterises receptors for calcitonin-related peptides from a deuterostomian animal, the echinoderm Apostichopus japonicus, by a combination of heterologous expression, pharmacological experiments, and the quantification of gene-expression levels. The authors provide solid evidence for a functional calcitonin-related peptide system in the sea cucumber, but some of the phylogenetic and statistical analyses and the evidence of a physiological function are incomplete. This work should be of interest to scientists studying the signaling pathways, functions, and evolution of neuropeptides, and could be of relevance to improving the culture conditions of this economically key species.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Chromatin endogenous cleavage provides a global view of yeast RNA polymerase II transcription kinetics

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Jake VanBelzen
   2. Bennet Sakelaris
   3. Donna Garvey Brickner
   4. Nikita Marcou
   5. Hermann Riecke
   6. Niall Mangan
   7. Jason H Brickner

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This valuable study compares ChIP-seq and ChEC-seq2 techniques to investigate RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) binding patterns in yeast, revealing that ChEC-seq2 captures distinct regulatory events associated with active transcription missed by ChIP-seq. The authors use ChEC-seq2 data to build a stochastic model of RNAPII kinetics, providing convincing new insights into transcription regulation and the role of the nuclear pore complex. The paper highlights the importance of careful methodological comparisons in understanding RNAPII dynamics.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Stabilization of GTSE1 by cyclin D1-CDK4/6 promotes cell proliferation: relevance in cancer prognosis

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Nelson García-Vázquez
   2. Tania J González-Robles
   3. Ethan Lane
   4. Daria Spasskaya
   5. Qingyue Zhang
   6. Marc Kerzhnerman
   7. YeonTae Jeong
   8. Marta Collu
   9. Daniele Simoneschi
   10. Kelly V Ruggles
   11. Gergely Rona
   12. Michele Pagano
   13. Sharon Kaisari

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     In this valuable study, García-Vázquez et al. provide solid evidence suggesting that G2 and S phases expressed protein 1 (GTSE1), is a previously unappreciated non-pocket substrate of cyclin D1-CDK4/6 kinases. To this end, this study holds a promise to significantly contribute to an improved understanding of the mechanisms underpinning cell cycle progression. Notwithstanding these clear strengths of the article, it was thought that the study may benefit from establishing the precise role of cyclin D1-CDK4/6 kinase-dependent GTSE1 phosphorylation in the context of cell cycle progression, obtaining more direct evidence that cyclin D1-CDK4/6 kinase phosphorylate indicated sites on GTSE1 (e.g., S454) and mapping a degron in GTSE1 whose function may be blocked by cyclin D1-CDK4/6 kinase-dependent phosphorylation.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Differential growth and transcriptomic profile of stem cell-derived midbrain astrocytes

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Zongze Li
   2. Lucia Fernandez Cardo
   3. Michal Rokicki
   4. Jimena Monzón-Sandoval
   5. Viola Volpato
   6. Frank Wessely
   7. Caleb Webber
   8. Meng Li

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     The manuscript by Li and coworkers analyzed astrocytic differentiation of midbrain floor plate-patterned neural cells originating from human iPS cells, with a LMX1A reporter. This valuable work identifies transcriptomic differences at the single-cell level, between astrocytes generated from LMX1A reporter positive or negative cells, as well as non-patterned astrocytes and neurons. The evidence is solid, but the paper can be strengthened by further analyses of the transcriptomic data, and astrocytic morphology; also, searching for some of the differentially expressed genes by immunohistochemistry in different regions of the mammalian brain, or in human specimens, would be very informative.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. 3D directional tuning in the orofacial sensorimotor cortex during natural feeding and drinking

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Victoria B Hosack
   2. Fritzie I Arce-McShane

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This useful study characterises motor and somatosensory cortex neural activity during naturalistic eating and drinking tongue movement in nonhuman primates. The data, which include both electrophysiology and nerve block manipulations, will be of value to neuroscientists and neural engineers interested in tongue use. However, data analysis needs to be improved to strengthen the inadequate support for some of the main claims in the paper.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Genetic diversity affects ecosystem functions across trophic levels as much as species diversity, but in an opposite direction

   This article has 11 authors:

   1. Laura Fargeot
   2. Camille Poesy
   3. Maxim Lefort
   4. Jérôme G. Prunier
   5. Madoka Krick
   6. Rik Verdonck
   7. Charlotte Veyssière
   8. Murielle Richard
   9. Delphine Legrand
   10. Géraldine Loot
   11. Simon Blanchet

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This study presents valuable findings from an observational dataset in a riverine ecosystem about the effects of genetic and species diversity, across multiple trophic levels, on ecosystem functions. However, the support for these findings is currently incomplete because raw data are not provided and there is insufficient information in the manuscript for readers to understand and assess the statistical analyses and conclusions. The work will be of broad interest to ecologists.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Linalool’s Multifaceted Antimicrobial Potential: Unveiling its Antimicrobial Efficacy and Immunomodulatory Role Against Saprolegnia parasitica

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Tao Tang
   2. Weiming Zhong
   3. Puyu Tang
   4. Rongsi Dai
   5. Jiajing Guo
   6. Zhipeng Gao

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This study presents useful findings on the efficacy and mechanism of linalool protection against Saprolegnia parasitica oomycetes in the grass carp model. The evidence is incomplete since the claims are partially justified, thus there is a need for more experimental data and more rigorous statistical data analysis . Revisions according to the recommendations will improve the work, making it of interest to scientists within the fields of aquaculture, ichthyology, microbiology, and drug discovery.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Decreased Astrocytic CCL5 by MiR-324-5p Ameliorates Ischemic Stroke Injury via CCR5/ERK/CREB Pathway

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Jingxiu Li
   2. Keyuan Gao
   3. Lili Wang
   4. Xinrui Wang
   5. Yubing Wang
   6. Chao Li
   7. Zhiqin Gao
   8. Chenxi Sun

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This study presents a useful finding on the interplay of CCL5 and miR-324-5p during ischemic stroke injury. Despite its importance, the evidence supporting the claims of the authors is incomplete. In particular, the lack of methodological information, inappropriate statistical testing, a flawed culture system, and the temporal mismatch in the expression of CCL5 and miR-324-5p following stroke have hindered further evaluation of the claims. The work will be of interest to neuroscientists working on brain injury such as stroke.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Ultrastructural sublaminar-specific diversity of excitatory synaptic boutons in layer 1 of the adult human temporal lobe neocortex

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Astrid Rollenhagen
   2. Akram Sadeghi
   3. Bernd Walkenfort
   4. Claus Hilgetag
   5. Kurt Saetzler
   6. Joachim HR Luebke

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This is a useful study depicting the ultrastructural features of layer 1 of the human temporal cortex, the authors assess various synaptic parameters, astrocytic volumetric ratio, and mitochondrial morphology. The data were collected using a solid methodology, however, the analysis of the functional vesicle pools is incomplete, and reliance solely on electron microscopy limits the scope of the work to structural observation. The work will be of interest to neuroscientists and computational researchers investigating cortical and network function.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. The penetration ring is a novel infection structure formed by the penetration peg for invading plant cell membrane in rice blast fungus

    This article has 11 authors:

    1. Wenqin Fang
    2. Xiaoyu Zai
    3. Jia Chen
    4. Yakubu Saddeeq Abubakar
    5. Qiuqiu Wu
    6. Zhenyu Fang
    7. Xiuwei Huang
    8. Xiang Gan
    9. Daniel J Ebbole
    10. Zonghua Wang
    11. Wenhui Zheng

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife assessment

      This study describes the formation of a penetration ring in the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae during host cell invasion. The work provides useful insights into how the penetration ring facilitates the transition of penetration pegs into invasive hyphae, which leads to a better understanding of plant-pathogen interactions. However, the evidence supporting the function of this novel infection structure remains incomplete and further work is needed to help clarify the exact role of the penetration ring in the infection process.

    Reviewed by eLife