Peer review process
Not revised: This Reviewed Preprint includes the authors’ original preprint (without revision), an eLife assessment, and public reviews.
Read more about eLife’s peer review process.Editors
- Reviewing EditorVincent LynchUniversity at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, United States of America
- Senior EditorGeorge PerryPennsylvania State University, University Park, United States of America
Reviewer #1 (Public Review):
Summary:
Machii et al. reported a possible molecular mechanism underlying the parallel evolution of lip hypertrophy in African cichlids. The multifaceted approach taken in this manuscript is highly valued, as it uses histology, proteomics, and transcriptomics to reveal how phylogenetically distinct thick-lips have evolved in parallel. Findings from histology and proteomics connected to wnt signaling through the transcriptome are very exciting.
Strengths:
There is consistency between the results and it is possible to make a strong argument from the results.
Weaknesses:
The authors do not discuss based on genomic information; the genomes of the cichlids from the three lakes have been decoded and are therefore available. However, indeed, the species in Lake Tanganyika and Lake Malawi/Victoria are genetically distant from each other, so a comparative genome analysis would not have yielded the results presented here. I recommend adding such a discussion to the Discussion.
Reviewer #2 (Public Review):
I have carefully reviewed the manuscript titled "Pronounced expression of extracellular matrix proteoglycans regulated by Ant pathway underlies the parallel evolution of lip hypertrophy in East African cichlids." I commend the authors for their work on elucidating the mechanism underlying lip thickening that has evolved in parallel across three lakes in Africa.
The use of histological comparison, proteomics, and transcriptomics methods to investigate this phenomenon is commendable and adds depth to the study. The findings indicate that the overexpression of proteoglycans is the cause of lip thickening and provides valuable insights into the evolutionary process.
I found the writing style to be clear and the explanations provided are easy to understand. Overall, I did not identify any significant issues with the manuscript.
