eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. Organ geometry channels cell fate in the Arabidopsis ovule primordium

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Elvira Hernandez-Lagana
   2. Gabriella Mosca
   3. Ethel Mendocilla Sato
   4. Nuno Pires
   5. Anja Frey
   6. Alejandro Giraldo-Fonseca
   7. Ueli Grossniklaus
   8. Olivier Hamant
   9. Christophe Godin
   10. Arezki Boudaoud
   11. Daniel Grimanelli
   12. Daphné Autran
   13. Célia Baroux

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     The authors use imaging analysis of Arabidopsis developing ovule primordia until the onset of meiosis to clarify the importance of organ morphogenesis in cell fate. They first document the growth of ovule cells in three dimensions, then use computational modelling to predict factors underlying ovule growth, shape and spore mother cell (SMC) differentiation. They test this model through analysis of a mutant of Katanin, encoding a microtubule-severing protein. Overall, this work is elegant, adds new information and confirms previous hypotheses for the field. A well appreciated feature of this paper is OvuleViz, an R-based software tool that they developed, which will provide a consistent way for others to analyze mutants with similar phenotypic abnormalities.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the joint public review from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Sensitizing Staphylococcus aureus to antibacterial agents by decoding and blocking the lipid flippase MprF

   This article has 13 authors:

   1. Christoph J Slavetinsky
   2. Janna N Hauser
   3. Cordula Gekeler
   4. Jessica Slavetinsky
   5. André Geyer
   6. Alexandra Kraus
   7. Doris Heilingbrunner
   8. Samuel Wagner
   9. Michael Tesar
   10. Bernhard Krismer
   11. Sebastian Kuhn
   12. Christoph M Ernst
   13. Andreas Peschel

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This study is of interest to readers in the field of Microbiology and the control of microbial infectious diseases. The authors address the challenge of antibiotic resistant bacteria with an innovative anti-virulence approach using monoclonal antibodies against a Staphylococcus aureus lipid flippase involved in tolerance to cationic peptides. The work indicates that this approach could re-sensitize antibiotic resistant S. aureus and diminish the severity of infections.

     (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 #2 and Reviewer #3 agreed to share their names with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Unexpected plasticity in the life cycle of Trypanosoma brucei

   This article has 8 authors:

   1. Sarah Schuster
   2. Jaime Lisack
   3. Ines Subota
   4. Henriette Zimmermann
   5. Christian Reuter
   6. Tobias Mueller
   7. Brooke Morriswood
   8. Markus Engstler

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This paper describes the transmission of Trypanosoma brucei by the Tsetse vector. As part of these studies, the authors discovered that (i) a single parasite is sufficient for transmission and (ii) two stages of the Trypanosoma brucei life cycle (slender and stumpy forms) can be transmitted by the Tsetse vector - although the stumpy form developed more rapidly into proliferative parasites in the Tsetse midgut. The results are unexpected because it was previously thought that only stumpy forms were important for transmission.

     (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 #3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife, preLights

4. KSR1- and ERK-dependent translational regulation of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition

   This article has 11 authors:

   1. Chaitra Rao
   2. Danielle E Frodyma
   3. Siddesh Southekal
   4. Robert A Svoboda
   5. Adrian R Black
   6. Chittibabu Guda
   7. Tomohiro Mizutani
   8. Hans Clevers
   9. Keith R Johnson
   10. Kurt W Fisher
   11. Robert E Lewis

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This paper demonstrates the involvement of Kinase Suppressor of Ras 1, a protein that acts as a scaffold in the mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascade, in translational control of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. The analysis is thorough and includes both loss-of-function and gain-of-function studies. This study advances our understanding of cancer development.

     (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 #3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase mediates chromatin rewiring and lineage transformation in lung cancer

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Yusuke Inoue
   2. Ana Nikolic
   3. Dylan Farnsworth
   4. Rocky Shi
   5. Fraser D Johnson
   6. Alvin Liu
   7. Marc Ladanyi
   8. Romel Somwar
   9. Marco Gallo
   10. William W Lockwood

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript will be of interest to cancer biologists studying cell fate transitions, particularly adenocarcinoma-to-small cell transitions that occur in prostate and lung cancer, which is a timely topic. While there is not a single linear mechanism identified that fully explains Kras-induced neuroendocrine cell fate suppression in all contexts, multiple new findings will likely be built upon by the field. Overall, the data are properly controlled and the key claims are supported.

     (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. All reviewers agreed to share their names with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

6. A Liquid-to-Solid Phase Transition Enhances the Catalytic Activity of SARM1

   This article has 2 authors:

   1. Heather S. Loring
   2. Paul R. Thompson

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript describes an interesting regulatory mechanism that activates SARM1, an enzyme that degrade NAD+ and promote axon degeneration. Previous structural and biochemical studies mostly focus on how SARM1 is auto-inhibited at basal conditions and this manuscript provides evidences supporting that phase transition could promote its activity, thus providing new understanding about its regulatory mechanism. The finding also enables in vitro assays to be carried out more easily and thus could facilitate the development of small molecule modulators of SARM1 for therapeutics purposes.

     (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 names with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Prenatal methadone exposure disrupts behavioral development and alters motor neuron intrinsic properties and local circuitry

   This article has 21 authors:

   1. Gregory G Grecco
   2. Briana E Mork
   3. Jui-Yen Huang
   4. Corinne E Metzger
   5. David L Haggerty
   6. Kaitlin C Reeves
   7. Yong Gao
   8. Hunter Hoffman
   9. Simon N Katner
   10. Andrea R Masters
   11. Cameron W Morris
   12. Erin A Newell
   13. Eric A Engleman
   14. Anthony J Baucum
   15. Jiuen Kim
   16. Bryan K Yamamoto
   17. Matthew R Allen
   18. Yu-Chien Wu
   19. Hui-Chen Lu
   20. Patrick L Sheets
   21. Brady K Atwood

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This work studied mice that had already taken oxycodone that then were switched to methadone treatment prior to becoming pregnant, to model prenatal methadone exposure (PME). The experimental design featured a study of a wide array of measures in the next generation progeny: including physical development, sensorimotor behavior, vocalizations, brain imaging, electrophysiology, and histology. All three reviewers agreed this work provides a novel, thorough, and highly clinically-relevant model of PME that has high value to the field of neuroscience of addictions and developmental neuropharmacology.

     (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 names with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Multi-dimensional leaf phenotypes reflect root system genotype in grafted grapevine over the growing season

   This article has 14 authors:

   1. Zachary N Harris
   2. Mani Awale
   3. Niyati Bhakta
   4. Daniel H Chitwood
   5. Anne Fennell
   6. Emma Frawley
   7. Laura L Klein
   8. Laszlo G Kovacs
   9. Misha Kwasniewski
   10. Jason P Londo
   11. Qin Ma
   12. Zoë Migicovsky
   13. Joel F Swift
   14. Allison J Miller

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Summary: Experimentally, this is a very solid and nicely replicated experimental design that provides a strong ability to interrogate the questions at hand. Both reviewers had a concern that the use of PCs was underpowering the analysis to test the key questions that were the goal of the experiment. The manuscript could also be improved by working to interleave the different omics datasets to develop a deeper insight.

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Cryo-EM structure of the yeast TREX complex and coordination with the SR-like protein Gbp2

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Yihu Xie
   2. Bradley P Clarke
   3. Yong Joon Kim
   4. Austin L Ivey
   5. Pate S Hill
   6. Yi Shi
   7. Yi Ren

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This is an interesting paper describing the structure of the yeast THO:Sub2 complex and how it interacts with the SR like protein Gbp2. The paper extends what we have learned from two recently published Tho:Sub2 complex structures by the Conti and Plaschka groups in two ways. Firstly, it shows how Gbp2 interacts with the THO complex. Secondly, it reveals a substantially different orientation between THO:Sub2 protomers compared with the earlier structure, so provides more information on the flexibility and range of movements that the two protomers might make with respect to each other. The structural inferences are supported by some biochemical experiments but mechanistically the work has limitations, similar to other recent cryo-EM structures of this complex. However, this is an important structure of wide interest to people working on gene expression in eukaryotes and it undoubtedly advances the field.

     (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. The reviewers opted to remain anonymous to the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Imaging cytoplasmic lipid droplets in vivo with fluorescent perilipin 2 and perilipin 3 knock-in zebrafish

    This article has 3 authors:

    1. Meredith H Wilson
    2. Stephen C Ekker
    3. Steven A Farber

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      Evaluation Summary:

      This manuscript has generated novel and useful tools to mark cytoplasmic lipid droplets and monitor their dynamics in various tissues in live animals. It will be of interest to researchers studying lipid metabolism and related human diseases.

      (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