eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. MicroRNA-218 instructs proper assembly of hippocampal networks

   This article has 18 authors:

   1. Seth R Taylor
   2. Mariko Kobayashi
   3. Antonietta Vilella
   4. Durgesh Tiwari
   5. Norjin Zolboot
   6. Jessica X Du
   7. Kathryn R Spencer
   8. Andrea Hartzell
   9. Carol Girgiss
   10. Yusuf T Abaci
   11. Yufeng Shao
   12. Claudia De Sanctis
   13. Gian Carlo Bellenchi
   14. Robert B Darnell
   15. Christina Gross
   16. Michele Zoli
   17. Darwin K Berg
   18. Giordano Lippi

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This fundamental study addresses the role of miRNA-218 in circuit development, seizure susceptibility, and behavior. The supporting experimental evidence provided by the authors is solid, although more mechanistic insight into how miRNA-218 controls neuronal cell type function during circuit development to then impact seizures and behavior would have strengthened the study. This work has broad implications for researchers working on the role of neuronal microRNA in neurodevelopmental and neurological diseases.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Allosteric inhibition of the T cell receptor by a designed membrane ligand

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Yujie Ye
   2. Shumpei Morita
   3. Justin J Chang
   4. Patrick M Buckley
   5. Kiera B Wilhelm
   6. Daniel DiMaio
   7. Jay T Groves
   8. Francisco N Barrera

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     The authors use a previously described technology of designing soluble transmembrane-targeting peptides, to interfere with the receptor function of the T cell receptor (TCR), which provides useful insights into the molecular mechanism of T cell activation. The designed PITCR peptide has functional effects, but the evidence for the proposed mechanism is still incomplete. With further data to support the conclusion, results from this study will be of interest to those studying the TCR as well as those seeking to use the TCR or its derivatives in synthetic biology studies and immunotherapy.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Complementary CRISPR screen highlights the contrasting role of membrane-bound and soluble ICAM-1 in regulating antigen-specific tumor cell killing by cytotoxic T cells

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Ann-Kathrin Herzfeldt
   2. Marta Puig Gamez
   3. Eva Martin
   4. Lukasz Miloslaw Boryn
   5. Praveen Baskaran
   6. Heinrich J Huber
   7. Michael Schuler
   8. John E Park
   9. Lee Kim Swee

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important research uses complementary CRISPR screening strategies to reveal novel pathways that prevent T cells from killing tumor cells. The evidence presented to support the claims is solid, although some additional assays defining the features of these novel pathways and their clinical relevance are still required. Overall, this work will be of broad interest to immunologists, cancer biologists, and those interested in cell adhesion and cell-cell communication.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Urban birds' tolerance towards humans was largely unaffected by COVID-19 shutdown-induced variation in human presence

   This article has 16 authors:

   1. Peter Mikula
   2. Martin Bulla
   3. Daniel T. Blumstein
   4. Yanina Benedetti
   5. Kristina Floigl
   6. Jukka Jokimäki
   7. Marja-Liisa Kaisanlahti-Jokimäki
   8. Gábor Markó
   9. Federico Morelli
   10. Anders Pape Møller
   11. Anastasiia Siretckaia
   12. Sára Szakony
   13. Michael A. Weston
   14. Farah Abou Zeid
   15. Piotr Tryjanowski
   16. Tomáš Albrecht

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This useful paper examines changes (or lack thereof) in birds' fear response to humans as a result of COVID-19 lockdowns. The evidence supporting the primary conclusion is currently inadequate, because the model used does not properly account for many potentially confounding factors that could influence the study's outcomes. If the analytic approach were improved, the findings would be of interest to urban ecologists, behavioral biologists and ecologists, and researchers interested in understanding the effects of COVID-19 lockdowns on animals.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Unprecedented yet gradual nature of first millennium CE intercontinental crop plant dispersal revealed in ancient Negev desert refuse

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Daniel Fuks
   2. Yoel Melamed
   3. Dafna Langgut
   4. Tali Erickson-Gini
   5. Yotam Tepper
   6. Guy Bar-Oz
   7. Ehud Weiss

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     The study presents important findings on the timing and movement of crops in the Near East. The authors provide convincing data supporting a predominant contribution of Roman Agricultural Diffusion to the spread of a number of cultigens in the region. The work will be of interest to those thinking about the timing and movement of the diffusion of agricultural crops post-domestication.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Selective loss of CD107a TIGIT+ memory HIV-1-specific CD8+ T cells in PLWH over a decade of ART

   This article has 14 authors:

   1. Oscar Blanch-Lombarte
   2. Dan Ouchi
   3. Esther Jimenez-Moyano
   4. Julieta Carabelli
   5. Miguel Angel Marin
   6. Ruth Peña
   7. Adam Pelletier
   8. Aarthi Talla
   9. Ashish Sharma
   10. Judith Dalmau
   11. José Ramón Santos
   12. Rafick-Pierre Sékaly
   13. Bonaventura Clotet
   14. Julia G Prado

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     The present study shows that the expression of some inhibitory receptors (IRGs) on CD8 T cells is increased in people living with HIV (PLWH) and remain elevated even after years of viral suppression by antiretroviral therapy. The authors further report that inhibition of TGIT partially restores the ability of CD8 T cells to produce CD107a but not the other functions. Altogether, the results provide some valuable insights into our understanding of inhibitory receptor expression in the HIV infected individuals but some evidence seems incomplete.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Sexual coordination in a whole-brain map of prairie vole pair bonding

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Morgan L Gustison
   2. Rodrigo Muñoz-Castañeda
   3. Pavel Osten
   4. Steven M Phelps

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This is an important study using 3D mapping of neuronal activation throughout the brain after pair-bonding in the monogamous vole, which can be broadly applied to other species and behaviors. The authors provide compelling evidence that there is some synchrony between male and female partners that have formed a pair bond, the strength of which is based on the number of ejaculations received by the female. Same-sex pairs also form a pair bond and were found to have activation in the same brain regions as mixed sex couples. An overall low level of sex differences in the degree and location of brain activation was observed, which was unexpected. This work will be of interest to those interested in social behavior and its neural mechanisms, or brain systems or behavior more broadly.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Elevated glycolytic metabolism of monocytes limits the generation of HIF1A-driven migratory dendritic cells in tuberculosis

   This article has 24 authors:

   1. Mariano Maio
   2. Joaquina Barros
   3. Marine Joly
   4. Zoi Vahlas
   5. José Luis Marín Franco
   6. Melanie Genoula
   7. Sarah C Monard
   8. María Belén Vecchione
   9. Federico Fuentes
   10. Virginia Gonzalez Polo
   11. María Florencia Quiroga
   12. Mónica Vermeulen
   13. Thien-Phong Vu Manh
   14. Rafael J Argüello
   15. Sandra Inwentarz
   16. Rosa Musella
   17. Lorena Ciallella
   18. Pablo González Montaner
   19. Domingo Palmero
   20. Geanncarlo Lugo Villarino
   21. María del Carmen Sasiain
   22. Olivier Neyrolles
   23. Christel Vérollet
   24. Luciana Balboa

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This useful study tests the hypothesis that monocytes purified from tuberculosis patients differentiate into dendritic cells with different migratory capacities. The authors conclude that these monocytes are metabolically pre-conditioned to differentiate, with reduced expression of Hif1a and a glycolytically exhaustive phenotype, resulting in low migratory and immunologic potential. Overall, the evidence provided is convincing, advancing the field substantively and providing novel insights.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. The title and authors for this article are not available from our external data provider yet:
   10.48550/arxiv.2303.17893

10. Investigating macroecological patterns in coarse-grained microbial communities using the stochastic logistic model of growth

    This article has 2 authors:

    1. William R Shoemaker
    2. Jacopo Grilli

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife assessment

      This valuable study considers empirical macroecological patterns in microbiome data across multiple taxonomic scales. The work convincingly shows that the Stochastic Logistic Growth model is a more appropriate choice of null model than the neutral theory of biodiversity. The work will be of particular interest to microbial ecologists.

    Reviewed by eLife