Role and organization of the actin cytoskeleton during cell-cell fusion

SG Martin - Seminars in cell & developmental biology, 2016 - Elsevier
Seminars in cell & developmental biology, 2016Elsevier
Cell-cell fusion is a ubiquitous process that underlies fertilization and development of
eukaryotes. This process requires fusogenic machineries to promote plasma membrane
merging, and also relies on the organization of dedicated sub-cortical cytoskeletal
assemblies. This review describes the role of actin structures, so called actin fusion foci,
essential for the fusion of two distinct cell types: Drosophila myoblast cells, which fuse to
form myotubes, and sexually differentiated cells of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces …
Abstract
Cell-cell fusion is a ubiquitous process that underlies fertilization and development of eukaryotes. This process requires fusogenic machineries to promote plasma membrane merging, and also relies on the organization of dedicated sub-cortical cytoskeletal assemblies. This review describes the role of actin structures, so called actin fusion foci, essential for the fusion of two distinct cell types: Drosophila myoblast cells, which fuse to form myotubes, and sexually differentiated cells of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, which fuse to form a zygote. I describe the respective composition and organization of the two structures, discuss their proposed role in promoting plasma membrane apposition, and consider the universality of similar structures for cell-cell fusion.
Elsevier