eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Prefrontal PV interneurons facilitate attention and are linked to attentional dysfunction in a mouse model of absence epilepsy

   This article has 3 authors:

   1. Brielle Ferguson
   2. Cameron Glick
   3. John R Huguenard

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     The manuscript by Ferguson and Huguenard examined the mechanism underlying attentional deficits in the haploinsufficient Scn8a mouse model of absence epilepsy. Using a detection behavior paradigm where detection of the cue was dependent on the attention level, they show that Scn8a+/- mice perform worse than controls when cues are of intermediate duration. In the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), high gamma-band power, which is presumed to be mediated by activity in parvalbumin-positive (PV+) interneurons, was reduced in Scn8a+/- mice, but optogenetic stimulation of these neurons at low gamma-frequency normalized performance on the cue-based attention task. The results of this study identify mPFC PV dysfunction, rather than seizure activity, as a potentially important cellular substrate, for attention during cue-presentation.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Convergent mosaic brain evolution is associated with the evolution of novel electrosensory systems in teleost fishes

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Erika L Schumacher
   2. Bruce A Carlson

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This ms examines changes in brain region size in several groups of weakly electric fishes, the Mormyroidea, and the Gymnotiformes and weakly electric catfishes (Synodontis spp.), which evolved electroreception independently of mormyrids. These are an interesting group for examination of mosaic growth. Many analyses are thoughtful and well executed, but there is some concern about whether the observed volumetric decreases are a consequence of the method.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Investigating the relationship of COVID-19 related stress and media consumption with schizotypy, depression, and anxiety in cross-sectional surveys repeated throughout the pandemic in Germany and the UK

   This article has 5 authors:

   1. Sarah Daimer
   2. Lorenz L Mihatsch
   3. Sharon AS Neufeld
   4. Graham K Murray
   5. Franziska Knolle

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This paper is a cross-sectional assessment of the association between COVID-19 related stress and mental wellbeing and whether certain behaviors mediate this association. This work would be of interest to researchers, psychologists, and clinicians involved in the psychological impact of COVID-19. The strength of this work is two folds. First, this is an important and timely topic. The collection of primary data at four time points during the pandemic was innovative. Second, examining the mediatory effects of certain behaviors could shed light on ways to reduce pandemic-related stresses. Future work should address a few limitations, including the inherent biases of using social media as a recruitment strategy and the lack of generalizability.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #2 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife, ScreenIT

4. Squamation and scale morphology at the root of jawed vertebrates

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Yajing Wang
   2. Min Zhu

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript will be of strong interest to scientists studying the development of early jawed vertebrates, in particular the extent and structure of their dermal skeleton, but it will also interest a broader audience, given how it connects modern-day morphological techniques to paleobiology. The authors provide the most complete account to date of the body scales of an antiarch stem-group gnathostome; this is the first work to model in 3-D the entire scale cover of such a fossil fish. The authors show that the body scales are varied in form, regionalized and that they comprise two main tissue layers. Based on this they argue that these conditions are plesiomorphic for antiarchs and the gnathostome crown group.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Non-canonical function of an Hif-1α splice variant contributes to the sustained flight of locusts

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Ding Ding
   2. Jie Zhang
   3. Baozhen Du
   4. Xuanzhao Wang
   5. Li Hou
   6. Siyuan Guo
   7. Bing Chen
   8. Le Kang

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     The hypoxia inducible factor (Hif) pathway was defined based on its role in cellular adaptation to hypoxia. In this paper, the authors examine the function of the pathway under 'physiological' normoxia in highly aerobic locust flight muscle. They find that a muscle-specific variant, Hif-1alpha2, is induced extensively by flying. By integrating bioinformatic analyses, measurements of gene expression and regulation, metabolites as well as redox regulation and flight assays, it is shown that Hif-1alpha2 plays an important role in sustaining prolonged flight by promoting glucose oxidation and upregulating a reactive oxygen species quencher (DJ-1). This study demonstrates the physiological requirement for two Hif-1a variants in a highly aerobic tissue in migratory locusts, a species that is both physiologically fascinating and a major agricultural pest. The work will be of interest to colleagues studying the physiology of muscles and flight.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer 3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Functional requirements for a Samd14-capping protein complex in stress erythropoiesis

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Suhita Ray
   2. Linda Chee
   3. Yichao Zhou
   4. Meg A Schaefer
   5. Michael J Naldrett
   6. Sophie Alvarez
   7. Nicholas T Woods
   8. Kyle J Hewitt

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This is an interesting study describing the role of Samd14-capping protein (CP) complex in stress erythroid signaling. Using orthogonal cellular, biochemical and genetic complementation approaches, the authors provide evidence to establish a previously unrecognized mechanism for Samd14-CP interaction in regulating Kit signaling in erythroid regeneration in response to acute anemia. Findings of this work will be of broad interest to the study of erythropoiesis and cellular signaling.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Androglobin, a chimeric mammalian globin, is required for male fertility

   This article has 16 authors:

   1. Anna Keppner
   2. Miguel Correia
   3. Sara Santambrogio
   4. Teng Wei Koay
   5. Darko Maric
   6. Carina Osterhof
   7. Denise V Winter
   8. Angèle Clerc
   9. Michael Stumpe
   10. Frédéric Chalmel
   11. Sylvia Dewilde
   12. Alex Odermatt
   13. Dieter Kressler
   14. Thomas Hankeln
   15. Roland H Wenger
   16. David Hoogewijs

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary

     This manuscript demonstrates that male mice lacking androglobin, a poorly understood heme-containing protein, are infertile and have defects in late stage spermatogenesis. A variety of molecular techniques were used to delineate the mechanism of spermatogenesis defect. A strength of the data is the identification of the androglobin interacting partner septin 10. With some clearer data on the mechanism underlying the connection between androglobin and septin, the paper will be of interest to researchers studying spermatogenesis.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

8. A persistent behavioral state enables sustained predation of humans by mosquitoes

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Trevor R Sorrells
   2. Anjali Pandey
   3. Adriana Rosas-Villegas
   4. Leslie B Vosshall

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript describes a female mosquito's behavior after a brief exposure to CO2, which has long been known to trigger host-seeking behaviour in female mosquitoes. The authors develop optogenetic tools in Aedes aegypti that enable the controlled delivery of 'fictive' CO2 to them. They show that a brief pulse of fictive CO2 alters the behavioral state of female mosquitoes, which lasts about 15 minutes. It provides new insights into how activation of CO2-sensing olfactory neurons alters the behavioral state of a mosquito towards sensory cues to increase host-seeking behaviors. The study will be of great value to the vector biology community, as well as to neurobiologists in general.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #2 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife, preLights

9. Cellular mechanisms underlying central sensitization in a mouse model of chronic muscle pain

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Yu-Ling Lin
   2. Zhu-Sen Yang
   3. Wai-Yi Wong
   4. Shih-Che Lin
   5. Shuu-Jiun Wang
   6. Shih-Pin Chen
   7. Jen-Kun Cheng
   8. Hui Lu
   9. Cheng-Chang Lien

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript explores the role of the central amygdala (CeA) on the mechanisms underlying chronic pain. An acid-induced muscle pain (AIMP) mouse model was used. The authors report a key pro-nociception role of CeA Somatostatin (SST) expressing neurons. The central sensitization of CeA-SST neurons was blocked by pregabalin. This work also further highlights the opposing view of the roles of CeA-SST neurons compared to CeA-PKCd neurons in modulating pain-related behaviors. This work will likely have a significant impact in the field and reconciles different previous results.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Claudin5 protects the peripheral endothelial barrier in an organ and vessel-type-specific manner

    This article has 12 authors:

    1. Mark Richards
    2. Emmanuel Nwadozi
    3. Sagnik Pal
    4. Pernilla Martinsson
    5. Mika Kaakinen
    6. Marleen Gloger
    7. Elin Sjöberg
    8. Katarzyna Koltowska
    9. Christer Betsholtz
    10. Lauri Eklund
    11. Sofia Nordling
    12. Lena Claesson-Welsh

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      Evaluation Summary:

      This manuscript provides new knowledge of one of the major molecules, claudin5, expected to maintain the integrity of the cell-cell contacts of the blood vessel wall. The results highlight organ and vessel-type specific significance of this mechanism in the regulation of vascular permeability, partially challenging the current view. A combination of in vivo microscopy and genetic mouse models is used to support the key claims in the paper. This manuscript will be of interest to scientists across vascular biology, and especially in the field of vascular permeability regulation.

      (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #2 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

    Reviewed by eLife