eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Mouse germline cysts contain a fusome-like structure that mediates oocyte development

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Madhulika Pathak
   2. Allan C Spradling

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This manuscript provides evidence that mouse germline cysts develop an asymmetric Golgi, ER, and microtubule-associated structure that resembles the fusome in Drosophila germline cysts. This fundamental study provides new evidence that fusome-like structures exist in germ cell cysts across species. Overall, the data are convincing and represent a significant advance in our understanding of germ cell biology.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Apparent cooperativity between human CMV virions introduces errors in conventional methods of calculating multiplicity of infection

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Christopher Peterson
   2. Joshua Miller
   3. Brent J Ryckman
   4. Vitaly V Ganusov

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The authors combine experiments and mathematical modeling to determine how the infectivity of human cytomegalovirus scales with the viral concentration in the inoculum, i.e., considering the multiplicity of infection (MOI). They propose and test different model assumptions to explain a mechanism termed "apparent cooperativity" of virions based on an observed super-linear increase in the number of infected cells with increasing inocula. The authors present a solid study showing valuable findings for virologists and quantitative scientists working on the analysis and interpretation of viral infection dynamics. Some of the presented aspects would benefit from additional clarification.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Nanoscopy Reveals Heparan Sulfate Clusters as Docking Sites for SARS-CoV-2 Attachment and Entry

   This article has 14 authors:

   1. Sue Han
   2. Xin Wang
   3. Tiansheng Li
   4. Ammar Mohseni
   5. Ivan Kosik
   6. Chung Yu Chan
   7. Alberto Domingo López-Muñoz
   8. Jessica Matthias
   9. Reid Suddaby
   10. Zhixiong Wang
   11. Albert J Jin
   12. Christian A Wurm
   13. Jonathan W Yewdell
   14. Ling-Gang Wu

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study presents a role for heparin sulfate in SARS-CoV-2 entry that runs counter to prevailing data in the field. If the conclusions were firmly supported by the data, the work would be a significant contribution to the field. While the use of diverse cellular models, virological tools, and robust microscopy approaches constitutes a useful data set, the proposed model remains incomplete and requires clarification of entry mechanisms, host factors, and viral variant-specific fusion pathways to substantiate it against established entry models.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Epigenetic Adaptation Drives Monocyte Differentiation into Microglia-Like Cells Upon Engraftment into the Central Nervous System

   This article has 18 authors:

   1. Jie Liu
   2. Fengyang Lei
   3. Bin Yan
   4. Tian Cao
   5. Naiwen Cui
   6. Jyoti Sharma
   7. Victor Correa
   8. Lara Roach
   9. Savvas Nicolaou
   10. Kristen Pitts
   11. James Chodosh
   12. Daniel E Maidana
   13. Demetrios Vavvas
   14. Milica A Margeta
   15. Huidan Zhang
   16. David Weitz
   17. Raul Mostoslavsky
   18. Eleftherios I Paschalis

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The authors investigated the epigenetic mechanisms regulating the differentiation of circulating monocytes that infiltrate the CNS and adopt microglia-like characteristics. The work is useful to the field, as the contribution of circulating myeloid cell-derived microglia remains controversial. However, the evidence presented is inadequate as the analyses are based on a very limited set of genes, which does not sufficiently support the authors' central claims.

   Reviewed by PREreview, eLife

5. Readout and delayed transmission of initial afferent V1 activity in decisions about stimulus contrast

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Kieran S Mohr
   2. Simon P Kelly

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important study reports that EEG recordings of the earliest stage of information processing in human visual cortex can be used to predict subsequent choice responses. The findings provide novel, convincing evidence for integrative processing in low-level sensory cortices at the level of scalp-recorded potentials, with the exact nature of the neural signals at the single cell level to be determined. The paper is likely to be of interest to neuroscientists interested in the contribution of early sensory signals to decision making.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Excitatory cholecystokinin neurons in CA3 area regulate the navigation learning and neuroplasticity

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Fengwen Huang
   2. Abdul Baset
   3. Stephen Temitayo Bello

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study presents data suggesting that excitatory cholecystokinin (CCK)-expressing neurons in hippocampal area CA3 influence hippocampal-dependent memory using multiple methods to manipulate excitatory CCK-expressing CA3 neurons. The study is valuable, particularly considering that most past studies of CCK-expressing neurons have focused on those neurons that co-express CCK and GABA. Currently, the strength of evidence is incomplete, but it would improve if evidence of specificity was provided and other concerns were addressed. If this is not possible, the conclusions, particularly those requiring evidence of specific targeting of excitatory neurons, should be modified accordingly.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Progressive postnatal hearing development limits early parent-offspring vocal communication in the zebra finch

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Tommi Anttonen
   2. Jakob Christensen-Dalsgaard
   3. Coen PH Elemans

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Zebra finches are a prominent model system for vocal learning and auditory system function, yet little is known about the functional development of the auditory system. Here, the authors convincingly show that newly hatched zebra finches lack detectable auditory brainstem responses and that auditory neural signals emerge only days after hatching, challenging influential claims of prenatal acoustic communication in altricial birds. This important work clarifies the developmental timeline for auditory communication and highlights the value of neuroscientific methods for validating and complementing behavioral ecological studies of animal perception.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Acute opioid responses are modulated by dynamic interactions of Oprm1 and Fgf12

   This article has 17 authors:

   1. Paige M Lemen
   2. Yanning Zuo
   3. Alexander S Hatoum
   4. Price E Dickson
   5. Guy Mittleman
   6. Arpana Agrawal
   7. Benjamin C Reiner
   8. Wade Berrettini
   9. David G Ashbrook
   10. Mustafa Hakan Gunturkun
   11. Xusheng Wang
   12. Megan K Mulligan
   13. Caleb J Browne
   14. Eric J Nestler
   15. Francesca Telese
   16. Robert W Williams
   17. Hao Chen

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This study integrates large-scale behavioral, genetic, and molecular analyses in animal models to investigate morphine response. Utilizing high-quality, time-series Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL) mapping, the work provides compelling evidential support for novel, time-dependent genetic interactions (epistasis). A fundamental result of this rigorous analysis is the discovery of a novel Oprm1-Fgf12-MAPK signaling pathway, which offers new insights into the mechanisms of opioid sensitivity.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Hugin-AstA circuitry is a novel central energy sensor that directly regulates sweet sensation in Drosophila and mouse

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Wusa Qin
   2. Tingting Song
   3. Zeliang Lai
   4. Daihan Li
   5. Liming Wang
   6. Rui Huang

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This important work by Qin et al. delineates layered neuropeptidergic mechanisms that regulate sugar intake in a hunger state-dependent manner. Using a combination of genetic, physiological, and behavioral experiments, the authors convincingly show that Hugin- and Allatostatin A-releasing neurons are selectively active in sated flies and suppress sugar feeding by reducing the sensitivity of Gr5a-expressing gustatory neurons. They further demonstrate that Neuromedin U neurons share key physiological properties with fly Hugin neurons, highlighting conserved peptide functions across animal phyla.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Regulation of sensorimotor serial learning in speech production by motor compensation rather than sensory error

    This article has 6 authors:

    1. Yuhan Lu
    2. Xiaowei Tang
    3. Zhenyan Xiao
    4. Anqi Xu
    5. Junxi Chen
    6. Xing Tian

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife Assessment

      This study investigates how people adapt their speech when auditory feedback is altered. The analyses are rigorous and the work makes a valuable contribution by extending methods from limb motor control to speech. However, because the paradigm does not directly measure sensory error, the evidence for the proposed mechanism of sensorimotor learning is incomplete. The findings are best viewed as evidence for how prior motor adjustments influence subsequent behaviour, highlighting the need for future studies to more precisely separate sensory and motor contributions to adaptation.

    Reviewed by eLife