Issues
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Cover image
Cover Image
Cover: The African turquoise killifish is an extremely short-lived and rapidly ageing vertebrate with the potential to become a powerful model system to study the biology of ageing. These fish rapidly reach sexual maturation (by 4 weeks of age), and within 4 months develop cancer, undergo neurodegeneration, develop learning deficits and progressively lose fecundity. The image shows the colourful tails of two healthy adult male individuals, characterised by a typical terminal colour flag. During the ageing process, fish colour loses intensity and the tail pattern fades away. In the Review, the authors discuss the features that make this species a promising new model system. See article by Kim et al. on page 115.
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EDITORIALS
Disease Models & Mechanisms in 2016: a publisher's brief perspective
Summary: DMM announces changes to its Senior Editor team and thanks its many reviewers.
Using the mouse to model human disease: increasing validity and reproducibility
Summary: Raising standards for carrying out and reporting mouse model studies will improve reproducibility and relevance to human disease research.
REVIEWS
Echoes of the embryo: using the developmental biology toolkit to study cancer
Summary: This article reviews the similarities between embryogenesis and cancer progression and discusses how the concepts and techniques of developmental biology are being applied to provide insight into all aspects of tumorigenesis.
The short-lived African turquoise killifish: an emerging experimental model for ageing
Summary: The short-lived African turquoise killifish is an emerging experimental vertebrate model organism, ideal for studies aimed at discovering the basic mechanisms underlying vertebrate ageing and adult phenotypes.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
Use of a genetically engineered mouse model as a preclinical tool for HER2 breast cancer
Editors' choice: This study demonstrates the utility of a transgenic mouse model of breast cancer to define mechanisms of resistance to a pan-HER family inhibitor and identifies a link with EMT.
Inhibition of signaling between human CXCR4 and zebrafish ligands by the small molecule IT1t impairs the formation of triple-negative breast cancer early metastases in a zebrafish xenograft model
Summary: CXCR4-expressing human tumor cells respond to zebrafish cognate ligands and initiate metastatic events in a zebrafish xenograft model. The CXCR4 antagonist IT1t has promising tumor inhibitory effects.
Live imaging of osteoclast inhibition by bisphosphonates in a medaka osteoporosis model
Summary: Live imaging in the medaka, a popular fish model for human bone research, shows that osteoclast inhibition by bisphosphonates triggers an efficient repair of bone defects by redistributed osteoblasts.
ER stress and basement membrane defects combine to cause glomerular and tubular renal disease resulting from Col4a1 mutations in mice
Summary: Structural and compositional basement membrane defects and ER stress due to Col4a1 mutations cause glomerular and tubular kidney disease, and indicate cell-type-specific disease mechanisms for collagen diseases.
A new gestational diabetes mellitus model: hyperglycemia-induced eye malformation via inhibition of Pax6 in the chick embryo
Summary: Hyperglycemia inhibited Pax6 via oxidative stress and impaired eye development in the chick embryo, a new gestational diabetes mellitus model.
Innate immune responses to gut microbiota differ between oceanic and freshwater threespine stickleback populations
Summary: We developed a gnotobiotic threespine stickleback system to identify the cellular and genetic bases for variation in inflammatory responses to microbiota.
RESOURCE ARTICLES
Standardized orthotopic xenografts in zebrafish reveal glioma cell-line-specific characteristics and tumor cell heterogeneity
Summary: This zebrafish xenotransplant model of glioblastoma enables in vivo imaging of tumor cells and rapid screening for anti-glioma agents. It provides standardization of a model that is easily replicated across laboratories.
Generation of brain tumours in mice by Cre-mediated recombination of neural progenitors in situ with the tamoxifen metabolite endoxifen
Summary: An active tamoxifen derivative can be used for the in vivo induction of recombination in situ in mice by CreERT2. We show how this method can be used to generate brain tumours through recombination of tumour suppressor genes in the subventricular zone.
Pulmonary transcriptome analysis in the surgically induced rabbit model of diaphragmatic hernia treated with fetal tracheal occlusion
Summary: Rabbit fetuses with induced diaphragmatic hernia and treated with prenatal tracheal occlusion have a similar pulmonary transcriptome as unaffected controls. This study describes a valuable database of gene expressions in this model.
Valuing peer review at Disease Models & Mechanisms
We would like to thank our peer reviewers who contributed their time and expertise in 2023. In her latest Editorial, Editor-in-Chief Liz Patton has outlined why we continue to value our peer reviewers dedication.
Subject collection: Building advocacy into research
DMM’s new series - Building advocacy into research - features interviews, ‘The Patient’s Voice’, with patients and advocates for a range of disease types, with the aim of supporting the highest quality research for the benefit of all patients affected by disease.
Travelling Fellowships for early-career researchers
DMM and its sister journals offer Travelling Fellowships of up to £3,000 to graduate students and post-doctoral researchers wishing to make collaborative visits to other laboratories. Find out more about our Travelling Fellowships and read stories from previous grant recipients.
Read & Publish Open Access publishing: what authors say
We have had great feedback from authors who have benefitted from our Read & Publish agreement with their institution and have been able to publish Open Access with us without paying an APC. Read what they had to say.
The Forest of Biologists
Our Publisher Claire Moulton recently visited the two Woodland Trust UK sites where we are planting new native trees for published Research and Review papers and protecting ancient woodland on behalf of our peer reviewers.