Publication Date:
2004-02-14
Description:
Cell-to-cell communication is a crucial prerequisite for the development and maintenance of multicellular organisms. To date, diverse mechanisms of intercellular exchange of information have been documented, including chemical synapses, gap junctions, and plasmodesmata. Here, we describe highly sensitive nanotubular structures formed de novo between cells that create complex networks. These structures facilitate the selective transfer of membrane vesicles and organelles but seem to impede the flow of small molecules. Accordingly, we propose a novel biological principle of cell-to-cell interaction based on membrane continuity and intercellular transfer of organelles.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Rustom, Amin -- Saffrich, Rainer -- Markovic, Ivanka -- Walther, Paul -- Gerdes, Hans-Hermann -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 2004 Feb 13;303(5660):1007-10.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Interdisciplinary Center of Neuroscience (IZN), Institute of Neurobiology, University of Heidelberg, INF 364, Heidelberg 69120, Germany.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14963329" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉
Keywords:
Actins/metabolism
;
Animals
;
Biological Transport
;
Carbocyanines/metabolism
;
*Cell Communication
;
Cell Line
;
Cell Membrane/metabolism
;
Cell Surface Extensions/*metabolism/*ultrastructure
;
Endocytosis
;
Endosomes/metabolism
;
Fluorescent Dyes/metabolism
;
Green Fluorescent Proteins
;
Luminescent Proteins/metabolism
;
Membrane Proteins/metabolism
;
Microscopy, Electron, Scanning
;
Microscopy, Fluorescence
;
Microscopy, Video
;
Organelles/*metabolism
;
PC12 Cells
;
Protein Prenylation
;
Protein Transport
;
Pseudopodia/metabolism/ultrastructure
;
Rats
;
Recombinant Fusion Proteins/metabolism
;
Synaptophysin/metabolism
Print ISSN:
0036-8075
Electronic ISSN:
1095-9203
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Computer Science
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
,
Physics
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