eLife is pleased to present a Special Issue to highlight recent advances in the mechanistic understanding of microbiome function.

eLife has published papers on topics related to the molecular structure and functional mechanisms of a diverse array of ion channel proteins.

Transcriptome analysis of mouse brain revealed that the APOE4 allele and sex can alter air pollution neurotoxicity in adults.

Two novel subsets of microglia identified by their unique autofluorescence profiles differ in their subcellular organization, proteomic signatures and in their response to aging and lysosomal dysfunction.

Human vitamin K epoxide reductase (VKOR) has a four transmembrane domain topology that supports the use of a homology model, enabling identification of active site residues and human variant impact.

Diverse components of the tumor microenvironment affect T cell metabolism in ways that are crucial to improving immunotherapy.

Alternative splicing of a single gene generates functional diversity amongst chromatin regulators.

Extensive molecular profiling shows how loss of highly similar, paralogous ribosomal proteins lead to distinct phenotypic outputs, through translational control of specific mRNAs.

Loss of hepatic Cdk1 leads to oxidative stress, increased fatty acids in blood, and hyperinsulinemia, which resulted in insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis, similar as in diabetes.

Microscopic and biochemical analysis show that the stress-activated MAP kinase pathway targets the formin For3 to modulate actomyosin ring integrity in response to environmental cues.