Cell News 3
&
4/2016
10
Session 3: Susanne Önel
New insights into cell–cell fusion:
"Mechanisms of membrane fusion"
The remodelling of membranes is fundamental for intracellu-
lar transport, sexual reproduction and organogenesis. Fusion
proteins (called fusogenes) are known to bring the membra-
nes into close proximity and destabilize the lipid bilayers by
inducing local membrane stress. Relative to the mechanism
of intracellular fusion, little is known about cell–cell fusion
(reviewed by Aguilar et al., 2013; Önel et al., 2014). Cell–cell
fusion occurs during fertilization, epithelia, bone and muscle
formation. It further plays an important role in human patho-
logy, e.g. the entry of enveloped viruses and the metastasis of
cancer cells.
Important progress has been made in the mechanistic under-
standing of fusogenes of enveloped viruses. In mammals and
C. elegans
, two fusogenes have been identified that belong to
classes I and II of viral fusogenes. These are Syncytins, which
mediate placenta formation in mammals and Eff-1 that is re-
quired during skin formation in
C. elegans
(Handwerger, 2010;
Perez-Vargas et al., 2014). However, no fusogenes have been
identified during osteoclast, myoblast and gamete fusion of
yeast and mammals, yet. In this session, we will compare dif-
ferent membrane fusion mechanisms and address the question
whether there are common mechanisms during cell–cell fusion.
CV
1996-1997 “Diploma” work in Developmental Biology at
the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Che-
mistry in the group of Prof. Dr. Herbert Jäckle
(Göttingen, Germany)
1997-1998 Research assistant at the Department of
Anatomy in the group of Prof. Dr. Sarah Bray
(Cambridge, United Kingdom)
1998-2002 PhD in Neurobiology in the group of Prof. Dr.
Christian Klämbt (Münster, Germany)
PhD title: “The functional and molecular cha-
racterization of the Drosophila gene schizo”
2003-2009 Postdoctoral researcher/Wissenschaftliche
Assistentin (C1) at the Department of Develop-
mental Biology in the group of Prof. Dr. Renate
Renkawitz-Pohl (Marburg, Germany)
Since 09.2009 Juniorprofessor (W1) at the Department of
Developmental Biology (Marburg, Germany)
Since 03.2016 “Vertretungsprofessur” Developmental Biology
(Marburg, Germany)
DGZ SPRING MEMBER MEETING 2017
