(July 1, 2015) When
it comes to communicating with each other, some cells may be more "old
school" than was previously thought.
Certain types of stem cells use microscopic, threadlike
nanotubes to communicate with neighboring cells, like a landline phone
connection, rather than sending a broadcast signal, researchers at University
of Michigan Life Sciences Institute and University of Texas Southwestern
Medical Center have discovered.
The findings, published online July 1 in Nature, offer new
insights on how stem cells retain their identities when they divide to split
off a new, specialized cell.
The fruit-fly research also suggests that short-range,
cell-to-cell communication may rely on this type of direct connection more than
was previously understood, said co-senior author Yukiko Yamashita, a U-M
developmental biologist whose lab is located at the Life Sciences Institute.