Evaluated articles

eLife Assessment

This important paper demonstrates that different PKA subtypes exhibit distinct subcellular localization at rest in CA1 neurons. The authors provide compelling evidence that when all tested PKA subtypes are activated by norepinephrine, catalytic subunits translocate to dendritic spines but regulatory subunits remain unmoved. Furthermore, PKA-dependent regulation of synaptic plasticity and transmission can be supported only by wildtype, dissociable PKA, but not by inseparable PKA.

eLife Assessment

This valuable paper introduces Heron, lightweight scientific software that is designed to streamline the implementation of complex experimental pipelines. The software is tailored for workflows that require coordinating many logical steps across interconnected hardware components with heterogeneous computing environments. The authors convincingly demonstrate Heron's utility and effectiveness in the context of behavioral experiments, addressing a growing need among experimentalists for flexible and scalable solutions that accommodate diverse and evolving hardware requirements.

eLife assessment

This manuscript reveals an important mechanism of KCNQ1/IKs channel gating and PUFA modulation of this mechanism. This mechanism is supported by convincing single channel recordings, macroscopic current recordings and mutational analyses. These findings are of importance to the ion channel field and possibly future therapeutic applications.

eLife assessment

This manuscript outlines an interaction between senescence-related 15d-PGJ2 and the proliferation and differentiation of myoblasts, with potential implications for muscle health. This manuscript is useful in understanding the role of lipid metabolite 15d-PGJ2 in myoblast proliferation and differentiation. However, in its current form, the manuscript is incomplete as there are several concerns in the statistical analysis, lack of clarity on the mechanistic details, and concerns about the use of an immortalized C2C12 myoblasts cell line to draw major conclusions related to senescence-associated secreted phenotype.

eLife assessment

This joint computational/experimental study demonstrates the ability of synthetic peptides derived from the stalk-tethered agonist in Polycystin-1 (PC1) to re-activate signaling by a stalkless C-terminal fragment of PC1. The study is valuable as it discovered peptide agonists for PC1 and the integrated in vitro and in silico approach is potentially applicable to the analysis of related systems. Following the revision, the line of evidence presented in the current manuscript is considered convincing.

eLife assessment

In this useful study, the authors investigate the regulatory mechanisms related to toxin production and pathogenicity in Aspergillus flavus. Their observations indicate that the SntB protein regulates morphogenesis, aflatoxin biosynthesis, and the oxidative stress response. The data supporting the conclusions are compelling and contribute significantly the advancing the understanding of SntB function.

eLife assessment

The author demonstrates that deficiency or pharmacological inhibition of O-glcNac transferase (OGT) enhances tumor immunity in colorectal cancer models. This useful study unveils that OGT deficiency triggers a DNA damage response that can affect immune status in colorectal cancers. It provides convincing evidence showing that OGT-mediated processing of HSF1 is crucial in maintaining genomic integrity.

eLife Assessment

This serostudy of blood donors in Bolivia (a country with very high COVID death rates in 2020-21) provides useful insights on the successive viral variants of SARS-CoV-2 over 2021 and 2022. Using compelling antibody and neutralization assays, the authors describe variant specific distributions in the different parts of Bolivia. The main methodological advance is to use serology to understand variant diversity, which in turn helps deepen understanding of "hybrid" immunity from widespread infection (and vaccination).

eLife assessment

How the triplicate interaction between chemokines with both GAGs and G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) works and how gradients are created and potentially maintained in vivo are poorly understood. The authors provide solid evidence to show phase separation can drive chemotactic gradient formation. The paper is a useful advance in the field of chemokine biology.

eLife Assessment

Yu and colleagues used two-sample MR to test the effect of PUFA on cerebral aneurysms. They found that genetically predicted omega-3 and DHA decreased the risk for Intracranial Aneurysm and Subarachnoid Haemorrhage. This work is useful and the revised version provides solid evidence to support the claims.

eLife assessment

This fundamental study analyzes the roles of post-translational modifications of tubulin by generating a large panel of tubulin mutants and describing their effects on morphogenesis and function of sensory neurons in C. elegans. The work, which is of interest to all cell biologists, in particular researchers with an interest in the microtubule cytoskeleton and neurobiology, presents conclusions that are supported by solid evidence. Demonstrating that all introduced mutations have the intended consequences and exploring their direct effect on microtubules would further increase the impact of the work.

eLife assessment

This important manuscript reports the cryo-EM structure of the ASK1 protein, which is a critical regulator of the MAPKs, JNKs, and p38 MAPKs in diverse cellular stress responses. The evidence of ASK1 interaction with TRX1 is compelling and will eventually allow the discovery of small molecule inhibitors of ASK1 activity.

eLife Assessment

This study presents an important finding on the role of telomeres in modulating interleukin-1 signaling and tumor immunity in TNBC. The evidence supporting these findings is solid, presented through comprehensive analyses including TNBC clinical samples, tumor-derived organoids, cancer cells, and xenografts. The work will be of broad interest to cell and medical biologists focusing on TNBC.

eLife Assessment

Using a large animal model, this study demonstrated valuable findings that R25CPTH(1-34), based on a mutation associated with isolated familial hypoparathyroidism, generated an anabolic osteointegration effect comparable to that of native PTH1-34. The translational aspect of this human-to-animal work, aimed at animal-to-human translation for therapeutic purposes, should be highlighted. The study design is simple and straightforward, and the methods used are solid. The authors have addressed all the questions in their revision.

eLife assessment

This valuable work explores death coding data to understand the impact of COVID-19 on cancer mortality. The work provides solid evidence that deaths with cancer as a contributing cause were not above what would be expected during pandemic waves, suggesting that cancer did not strongly increase the risk of dying of COVID-19. These results are an interesting exploration into the coding of causes of death that can be used to make sense of how deaths are coded during a pandemic in the presence of other underlying diseases, such as cancer.

eLife assessment

This fundamental study addresses discrepancies in determining bacterial burden in osteomyelitis as determined by culture and enumeration using DNA. The authors present compelling data demonstrating the emergence of discrepancies between CFU counts and genome copy numbers detected by PCR in Staphylococcus aureus strains infecting osteocyte-like cells. The observations represent a substantial addition to the field of musculoskeletal infection, with possible broad applicability and clinical benefit to other infectious diseases.

eLife Assessment

This study reports an mRNA-based strategy for restoring sperm motility in a mouse model of monogenic male infertility. The work is technically innovative and potentially valuable, as it demonstrates feasibility of in vivo testicular mRNA delivery without genomic integration of foreign DNA. However, although partial recovery of sperm motility is supported, the evidence for meaningful restoration of fertility remains incomplete, with weak IVF outcomes and difficult-to-interpret ICSI results. In addition, mechanistic questions regarding the persistence of mRNA and the specificity of germ-cell targeting remain insufficiently resolved, limiting the strength of the authors' conclusions.

eLife Assessment

This study presents a valuable finding that synthetically lethal kinase genes FYN and KDM4 may play a role in drug resistance to kinase inhibitors in TNBC. The evidence supporting the claims of the authors is solid, although the exploration of the upstream mechanisms regulating KDM4A or the downstream pathways through which FYN upregulation confers drug resistance would have strengthened the study. The work will be of interest to medical biologists working in the field of breast cancer.

eLife assessment

This important study reports that glutamate signaling in LepRb PMv neurons is necessary for leptin-dependent fertility. The data supporting the conclusion is solid. This work will be of interest to researchers in the fields of both reproductive and metabolic biology.

eLife assessment

This important study links the activity of polymerase III to the regulation of virulence gene expression in the deadliest malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. It identifies Maf1 as a Pol III inhibitor that enables the parasite to respond to external stimuli such as magnesium chloride plasma levels by downregulating Pol III-transcribed ruf6 genes and subsequently regulated var genes. While the evidence presented is generally convincing, some of the results are incomplete, and the mechanistic link between external signals and Maf1 activation remains unknown.