eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Shared and distinct pathways and networks genetically linked to coronary artery disease between human and mouse

   This article has 15 authors:

   1. Zeyneb Kurt
   2. Jenny Cheng
   3. Rio Barrere-Cain
   4. Caden N McQuillen
   5. Zara Saleem
   6. Neil Hsu
   7. Nuoya Jiang
   8. Calvin Pan
   9. Oscar Franzén
   10. Simon Koplev
   11. Susanna Wang
   12. Johan Björkegren
   13. Aldons J Lusis
   14. Montgomery Blencowe
   15. Xia Yang

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     In this important study, the authors integrated genetic and genomic datasets from humans and mice to unveil shared networks and pathways associated with coronary artery disease. Their compelling analysis led to the identification of new regulatory genes and pathways in vascular tissues and in the liver, allowing for a more in-depth understanding of the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Multi-tiered actions of Legionella effectors to modulate host Rab10 dynamics

   This article has 5 authors:

   1. Tomoko Kubori
   2. Kohei Arasaki
   3. Hiromu Oide
   4. Tomoe Kitao
   5. Hiroki Nagai

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important study explores the interplay between Legionella Dot/Icm effectors that modulate ubiquitination of the host GTPase Rab10, which undergoes phosphoribosyl-ubiquitination by the SidE family of effectors, which in turn are required for Rab10 recruitment to the Legionella containing vacuole (LCV). The evidence supporting the claims of the authors is convincing. The study is not only relevant for the microbiology community, but will also be of interest to colleagues in the broader fields of membrane trafficking and general cell biology.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Caspase-mediated nuclear pore complex trimming in cell differentiation and endoplasmic reticulum stress

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Ukrae H Cho
   2. Martin W Hetzer

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important study outlines a new role for caspases during cellular differentiation. The methodology used is convincing and state-of-the-art. The newly discovered cellular cascade described here uncovers that caspases can achieve high substrate specificity during differentiation. As such, the work will be of broad interest to cell biologists.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Splicing factor SRSF1 is essential for homing of precursor spermatogonial stem cells in mice

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Longjie Sun
   2. Zheng Lv
   3. Xuexue Chen
   4. Rong Ye
   5. Shuang Tian
   6. Chaofan Wang
   7. Xiaomei Xie
   8. Lu Yan
   9. Xiaohong Yao
   10. Yujing Shao
   11. Sheng Cui
   12. Juan Chen
   13. Jiali Liu

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     In this valuable study, the authors characterize the role of splicing factor SRSF1 during spermatogenesis with a conditional knockout of Srsf1 in male germ cells. The phenotype and molecular role of SRSF1 in regulating alternative splicing in precursor spermatogonial stem cells in juvenile testes are convincingly supported. The paper also provides convincing evidence that the mRNA encoding Tial, a factor relevant to spermatogonial maintenance and male fertility, is alternatively spliced in testis and that this splicing is regulated by SRSF1. The work will be of interest to the fields of reproductive biology, stem cell biology, and alternative splicing.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. How accurately can one predict drug binding modes using AlphaFold models?

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Masha Karelina
   2. Joseph J Noh
   3. Ron O Dror

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important study presents findings with broad implications for the use of AlphaFold2 models in ligand binding pose modeling, a common task in protein structure modeling. The computational experiments and analyses provide compelling results for the GPCR protein family data, but the conclusions are likely to apply also to other proteins and they will therefore be of interest to biophysicists, physical chemists, structural biologists, and anyone interested or involved in structure-based ligand discovery.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Essential function of transmembrane transcription factor MYRF in promoting transcription of miRNA lin-4 during C. elegans development

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Zhimin Xu
   2. Zhao Wang
   3. Lifang Wang
   4. Yingchuan B Qi

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     The microRNA lin-4, originally discovered in C. elegans, has a key role in controlling developmental timing across species, but how its expression is developmentally regulated is poorly understood. Here, the authors provide convincing evidence that two MYRF transcription factors are essential positive regulators of lin-4 during early C. elegans larval development. These results provide important insight into the molecular control of developmental timing that could have significant implications for understanding these processes in more complex systems.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. The Plasmodium falciparum artemisinin resistance-associated protein Kelch 13 is required for formation of normal cytostomes

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Madel V. Tutor
   2. Gerald J. Shami
   3. Ghizal Siddiqui
   4. Darren J. Creek
   5. Leann Tilley
   6. Stuart A. Ralph

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     Resistance of Plasmodium falciparum to artemisinin, which has become a threat to malaria control, has been linked to mutations in the parasite protein K13. This study provides important new insights into the function of K13 in the endocytosis of hemoglobin, a central process for the activation of artemisinin derivatives. Conditional protein mislocalization combined with high-resolution imaging provides convincing evidence that K13 is involved in the formation of cytostomes, the structures involved in the endocytosis of host cytosol. This study will be of interest to scientists working on parasite biology as well as antimalarial drug resistance.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. The involvement of the human prefrontal cortex in the emergence of visual awareness

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Zepeng Fang
   2. Yuanyuan Dang
   3. Zhipei Ling
   4. Yongzheng Han
   5. Hulin Zhao
   6. Xin Xu
   7. Mingsha Zhang

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This paper reports valuable results regarding the potential role and time course of the prefrontal cortex in conscious perception. Although the sample size is small, the results are convincing, and strengths include the use of several complementary analysis methods. The behavioral test includes subject report such that the study does not allow for distinguishing between (phenomenal) awareness and conscious access; nevertheless, results do advance our understanding of the contribution of prefrontal cortex to conscious perception.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Cervical cancer screening improvements with self-sampling during the COVID-19 pandemic

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Miriam Elfström
   2. Penelope Grace Gray
   3. Joakim Dillner

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This paper is of interest to researchers and policy makers involved in cervical cancer prevention. The paper provides insight into how the Covid19 pandemic accelerated changes in organized cervical cancer screening. The claim that self-sampling led to a major improvement of test coverage seems somewhat exaggerated and alternative hypotheses to those provided by the authors on the population who chose self-sampling are possible. Nonetheless, this is a valuable piece of work given the scope of the intervention(s) and the precedent it sets i.e. a crisis can in fact accelerate positive changes in screening that have been academic possibilities rather than practical realities.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. An antagonism between Spinophilin and Syd-1 operates upstream of memory-promoting presynaptic long-term plasticity

    This article has 7 authors:

    1. Niraja Ramesh
    2. Marc Escher
    3. Oriane Turrel
    4. Janine Lützkendorf
    5. Tanja Matkovic
    6. Fan Liu
    7. Stephan J Sigrist

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife assessment

      This paper addresses the important question of presynaptic homeostasis and convincingly demonstrates antagonistic interactions between Spinophilin and Syd-1 in this process. It also provides a useful hypothesis for the downstream mechanisms.

    Reviewed by eLife