About this Research Topic
In eukaryotic cells, membrane-bound organelles with their characteristic morphologies and dynamics execute specialized functions. These membrane compartments also physically interconnect at membrane contact sites (MCS) through numerous tethering machineries, which facilitate direct interorganellar communication and biomolecule exchange for maintaining cellular homeostasis. Dynamic membrane contact formation has been shown to play important regulatory roles in various fundamental processes, such as non-vesicular lipid transport, calcium uptake, organelle fission and autophagy. How cells actively couple and uncouple diverse intracellular membranes to spatiotemporally modulate MCS functions is still unclear.
With the discovery of major tethering complexes for various membrane contacts, one next effort is to understand how cells regulate these machineries or other factors to coordinate MCS functions with dynamic cellular events. This Research Topic aims to highlight recent advances in molecular mechanisms underlying dynamic regulation of membrane contact formation and function. Studies on how signalling pathways, cytoskeleton and organelle dynamics feed into these regulatory loops are of particular interest to this collection.
We welcome Original Research, Reviews, Methods and Opinion articles. Subtopics include, but are not limited to:
• New physiological functions of MCSs in various cell types.
• Molecular mechanisms underlying assembly and disassembly of organelle contacts.
• Roles of cell signalling pathways in regulating membrane contact functions.
• How cytoskeleton dynamics and organelle remodeling contribute to MCS turnover.
• How organelle morphology affects membrane contact formation and function.
• Regulation of lipid homeostasis at MCSs.
• Evolutionary studies on membrane tethering machineries and functions.
• New methods and tools to study MCS structure, dynamics and function.
With the discovery of major tethering complexes for various membrane contacts, one next effort is to understand how cells regulate these machineries or other factors to coordinate MCS functions with dynamic cellular events. This Research Topic aims to highlight recent advances in molecular mechanisms underlying dynamic regulation of membrane contact formation and function. Studies on how signalling pathways, cytoskeleton and organelle dynamics feed into these regulatory loops are of particular interest to this collection.
We welcome Original Research, Reviews, Methods and Opinion articles. Subtopics include, but are not limited to:
• New physiological functions of MCSs in various cell types.
• Molecular mechanisms underlying assembly and disassembly of organelle contacts.
• Roles of cell signalling pathways in regulating membrane contact functions.
• How cytoskeleton dynamics and organelle remodeling contribute to MCS turnover.
• How organelle morphology affects membrane contact formation and function.
• Regulation of lipid homeostasis at MCSs.
• Evolutionary studies on membrane tethering machineries and functions.
• New methods and tools to study MCS structure, dynamics and function.
Keywords: Membrane Contacts, Organelle Dynamics, Membrane-Cytoskeleton Interactions, Cell Signaling
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
