Reference - PMID:27798845 - Spatial focalization of pheromone/MAPK signaling triggers commitment to cell-cell fusion.
Reference summary
- PubMed ID
- PMID:27798845
- Title
- Spatial focalization of pheromone/MAPK signaling triggers commitment to cell-cell fusion.
- Authors
- Dudin O, Merlini L, Martin SG
- Citation
- Genes Dev 2016 Oct 01;30(19):2226-2239
- Publication year
- 2016
- Abstract
- Cell fusion is universal in eukaryotes for fertilization and development, but what signals this process is unknown. Here, we show in Schizosaccharomyces pombe that fusion does not require a dedicated signal but is triggered by spatial focalization of the same pheromone-GPCR (G-protein-coupled receptor)-MAPK signaling cascade that drives earlier mating events. Autocrine cells expressing the receptor for their own pheromone trigger fusion attempts independently of cell-cell contact by concentrating pheromone release at the fusion focus, a dynamic actin aster underlying the secretion of cell wall hydrolases. Pheromone receptor and MAPK cascade are similarly enriched at the fusion focus, concomitant with fusion commitment in wild-type mating pairs. This focalization promotes cell fusion by immobilizing the fusion focus, thus driving local cell wall dissolution. We propose that fusion commitment is imposed by a local increase in MAPK concentration at the fusion focus, driven by a positive feedback between fusion focus formation and focalization of pheromone release and perception.
