eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Meaning-making behavior in a small-brained hominin, Homo naledi, from the late Pleistocene: contexts and evolutionary implications

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Agustín Fuentes
   2. Marc Kissel
   3. Penny Spikins
   4. Keneiloe Molopyane
   5. John Hawks
   6. Lee R Berger

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This paper discusses the cognitive implications of potential intentional burial, wall engraving creation, and fire as light source use behaviors by relatively small-brained Homo naledi hominins. The discussion presented in the paper is valuable theoretically in its healthy questioning of prior assumptions concerning the socio-biological constraints of hominin meaning-making behavior. The discussion also contributes practically given that these behaviors have been ascribed to Homo naledi in two associated papers. Still, the strength of evidence in this contribution relies on the validity of the conclusions from the two associated papers, which remain actively questioned. The ultimate assessment of this work will vary among individual readers depending on how they view this debate, but if the conclusions from the associated papers hold up, the conclusions in the current paper can be considered solid.

   Reviewed by eLife

2. An initial report of circa 241,000- to 335,000-year-old rock engravings and their relation to Homo naledi in the Rising Star cave system, South Africa

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Lee R Berger
   2. John Hawks
   3. Agustín Fuentes
   4. Dirk Van Rooyen
   5. Mathabela Tsikoane
   6. Maropeng Mpete
   7. Samuel Nkwe
   8. Keneiloe Molopyane

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This paper presents important information about potential Homo naledi-associated markings discovered on the walls of the Hill Antechamber of the Rising Star Cave system, South Africa. If confirmed, the antiquity, intentionality, and authorship of the reported markings will have profound archaeological implications, as such behaviors are otherwise widely considered to be unique to our species, Homo sapiens. This report concerns preliminary findings and as it stands the study is incomplete, with further work needed in the future to support the claims about the anthropogenic nature, age, and author of the engravings.

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Evidence for deliberate burial of the dead by Homo naledi

   This article has 37 authors:

   1. Lee R Berger
   2. Tebogo Vincent Makhubela
   3. Keneiloe Molopyane
   4. Ashley Krüger
   5. Patrick Randolph-Quinney
   6. Marina Elliott
   7. Becca Peixotto
   8. Agustín Fuentes
   9. Paul Tafforeau
   10. Vincent Beyrand
   11. Kathleen Dollman
   12. Zubair Jinnah
   13. Angharad Brewer Gillham
   14. Kenneth Broad
   15. Juliet Brophy
   16. Gideon Chinamatira
   17. Paul HGM Dirks
   18. Elen Feuerriegel
   19. Alia Gurtov
   20. Nompumelelo Hlophe
   21. Lindsay Hunter
   22. Rick Hunter
   23. Kudakwashe Jakata
   24. Corey Jaskolski
   25. Hannah Morris
   26. Ellie Pryor
   27. Maropeng Mpete
   28. Eric M Roberts
   29. Jacqueline S Smilg
   30. Mathabela Tsikoane
   31. Steven Tucker
   32. Dirk Van Rooyen
   33. Kerryn Warren
   34. Colin D Wren
   35. Marc Kissel
   36. Penny Spikins
   37. John Hawks

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     The authors study the context of the skeletal remains of three individuals and associated sediment samples to conclude that the hominin species Homo naledi intentionally buried their dead. Demonstration of the earliest known instance of intentional funerary practice – with a relatively small-brained hominin engaging in a highly complex behavior that has otherwise been observed from Homo sapiens and Homo neanderthalensis – would represent a landmark finding. The authors have revised their manuscript extensively in light of the reviews of their initial submission, with improved illustration, context, discussion, and theoretical frameworks, leading to an improved case supporting their conclusion that Homo naledi intentionally buried their dead. One of the reviewers concludes that the findings convincingly demonstrate intentional burial practices, while another considers evidence for such an unambiguous conclusion to be incomplete given a lack of definitive knowledge around how the hominins got into the chamber. We look forward to seeing the continued development and assessment of this hypothesis. It is worth noting that the detailed reviews (both rounds) and comprehensive author response are commendable and consequential parts of the scientific record of this study. The editors note that the authors' response repeatedly invokes precedent from previous publications to help justify the conclusions in this paper. While doing so is helpful, the editors also note that scientific norms and knowledge are constantly evolving, and that any study has to rest on its own scientific merit.

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Whole genomes from the extinct Xerces Blue butterfly can help identify declining insect species

   This article has 17 authors:

   1. Toni de-Dios
   2. Claudia Fontsere
   3. Pere Renom
   4. Josefin Stiller
   5. Laia Llovera
   6. Marcela Uliano-Silva
   7. Alejandro Sánchez-Gracia
   8. Charlotte Wright
   9. Esther Lizano
   10. Berta Caballero
   11. Arcadi Navarro
   12. Sergi Civit
   13. Robert K Robbins
   14. Mark Blaxter
   15. Tomàs Marquès
   16. Roger Vila
   17. Carles Lalueza-Fox

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important study illustrates the value of museum samples for understanding past genetic variability in the genomes of populations and species, including those that no longer exist. The authors present genomic sequencing data for the extinct Xerces Blue butterfly and report convincing evidence of declining population sizes and increases in inbreeding beginning 75,000 years ago, which strongly contrasts to the patterns observed in similar data from its closest relative, the extant Silvery Blue butterfly. Such long-term population health indicators may be used to highlight still extant but especially vulnerable-to-extinction insect species – irrespective of their current census population size abundance.

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Spatial transcriptomics of meningeal inflammation reveals inflammatory gene signatures in adjacent brain parenchyma

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Sachin P Gadani
   2. Saumitra Singh
   3. Sophia Kim
   4. Jingwen Hu
   5. Matthew D Smith
   6. Peter A Calabresi
   7. Pavan Bhargava

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     Brain inflammation is a hallmark of multiple sclerosis. Using novel spatial transcriptomics methods, the authors provide solid evidence for a gradient of immune genes and inflammatory markers from the meninges toward the adjacent brain parenchyma in a mouse model. This important study advances our understanding of the mechanisms of brain damage in this autoimmune disease.

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Automated cell annotation in multi-cell images using an improved CRF_ID algorithm

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Hyun Jee Lee
   2. Jingting Liang
   3. Shivesh Chaudhary
   4. Sihoon Moon
   5. Zikai Yu
   6. Taihong Wu
   7. He Liu
   8. Myung-Kyu Choi
   9. Yun Zhang
   10. Hang Lu

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife Assessment

     This Research Advance describes a valuable image analysis method to identify individual neurons within a ‎population of fluorescently labeled cells in the nematode C. elegans. The findings are solid and the method succeeds to identify cells with high precision. The method will be be of interest to the C. elegans research community.

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Condensin positioning at telomeres by shelterin proteins drives sister-telomere disjunction in anaphase

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Léonard Colin
   2. Celine Reyes
   3. Julien Berthezene
   4. Laetitia Maestroni
   5. Laurent Modolo
   6. Esther Toselli
   7. Nicolas Chanard
   8. Stephane Schaak
   9. Olivier Cuvier
   10. Yannick Gachet
   11. Stephane Coulon
   12. Pascal Bernard
   13. Sylvie Tournier

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This is an important study that characterises the involvement of condensin complexes in the segregation of telomeres in fission yeast. The authors present convincing evidence to support their claims, employing a diverse range of complementary techniques. This research will be of interest to cell biologists working on chromosome biology and cell division.

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Evolution of a functionally intact but antigenically distinct DENV fusion loop

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Rita M Meganck
   2. Deanna Zhu
   3. Stephanie Dong
   4. Lisa J Snoderly-Foster
   5. Yago R Dalben
   6. Devina Thiono
   7. Laura J White
   8. Arivianda M DeSilva
   9. Ralph S Baric
   10. Longping V Tse

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This valuable study describes engineered dengue virus variants that can be used to dissect epitope specificities in polyclonal sera, and to design candidate vaccine antigens that dampen antibody responses against undesirable epitopes. While the major claims are supported by solid evidence, experiments to distinguish the impact on antibody binding from neutralizing activities would have strengthened the study. This work will be of interest to virologists and structural biologists working on antibody responses to flaviviruses.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. FSHβ links photoperiodic signaling to seasonal reproduction in Japanese quail

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Gaurav Majumdar
   2. Timothy A Liddle
   3. Calum Stewart
   4. Christopher J Marshall
   5. Maureen Bain
   6. Tyler Stevenson

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     eLife assessment

     This important article provides insights into the neural centers and hormonal modulations underlying seasonal changes associated with photoperiod-induced life-history states in birds. The physiological and transcriptomic analyses of the mediobasal hypothalamus and pituitary gland offer convincing evidence for a timing mechanism for measuring day length, which is relevant for the field of seasonal biology. The study's experiments and findings have the potential to captivate the attention of molecular and organismal endocrinologists and chronobiologists.

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Analysis of RNA processing directly from spatial transcriptomics data reveals previously unknown regulation

    This article has 2 authors:

    1. Julia Olivieri
    2. Julia Salzman

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      eLife assessment:

      This important study describes spatial RNA processing events by combining methods for single-cell transcriptomics data with spatial transcriptomics data. The evidence supporting the claims of the authors is solid, although the analysis could be further strengthened by including a broader range of samples as well as orthogonal validation either by experimental methods or simulated data. The work will be of general interest to researchers in the spatial transcriptomics field as well as researchers investigating alternative pre-mRNA processing across diverse tissues.

    Reviewed by eLife