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Science 15 April 2005:
Vol. 308. no. 5720, pp. 369 - 373
DOI: 10.1126/science.1104799
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Review

Unveiling the Mechanisms of Cell-Cell Fusion

Elizabeth H. Chen1* and Eric N. Olson2*

Cell-cell fusion is fundamental to the development and physiology of multicellular organisms, but little is known of its mechanistic underpinnings. Recent studies have revealed that many proteins involved in cell-cell fusion are also required for seemingly unrelated cellular processes such as phagocytosis, cell migration, axon growth, and synaptogenesis. We review advances in understanding cell-cell fusion by contrasting it with virus-cell and intracellular vesicle fusion. We also consider how proteins involved in general aspects of membrane dynamics have been co-opted to control fusion of diverse cell types by coupling with specialized proteins involved in cell-cell recognition, adhesion, and signaling.

1 Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
2 Department of Molecular Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: echen{at}jhmi.edu (E.H.C.); eric.olson{at}utsouthwestern.edu (E.N.O.)

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