Publications

Featured Research Articles:

Spatiotemporal coordination of actin regulators generates invasive protrusions in cell–cell fusion.
Lu, Y., Walji, T., Ravaux, B., Pandey, P., Yang, C., Li, B., Luvsanjav, D., Lam, K. H., Zhang, R., Luo, Z., Zhou, C., Habela, C. W., Snapper, S.B., Li, R., Goldhamer, D.J., Schmidtke, D. W., Pan, D., Svitkina, T. M. and Chen, E.H. (2024)
Nature Cell Biology 26: 1860–1877.

Inter-organ steroid hormone signaling promotes myoblast fusion via direct transcriptional regulation of a single key effector gene.
Ruan, Z-R., Yu, Z., Xing, C., and Chen, E.H. (2024)
Current Biology 34: 1438-1452.

• Current Biology Dispatch: Cell fusion: Inter-organ tissue communication promotes a union between myoblasts

The cellular architecture and molecular determinants of the zebrafish fusogenic synapse
Luo, Z., Shi, J., Pandey, P., Ruan, Z-R., Sevdali, M., Bu, Y., Lu, Y., Du, S., and Chen E.H. (2022) 
Dev Cell 57: 1582-197.

Dynamin regulates the dynamics and mechanical strength of the actin cytoskeleton as a multifilament actin-binding protein
Zhang, R., Lee, D.M., Jimah, J.R., Gerassimov, N., Yang, C., Kim, S., Luvsanjav, D., Winkelman, J., Metteln, M., Abrams, M.E., Kalia, R., Keene, P., Pandey, P., Ravaux, B., Kim, J.H., Ditlev, J.A., Zhang, G., Rosen, M.K., Frost, A., Alto, N.M., Gardel, M., Schmid, S.L., Svitkina, T.M., Hinshaw, J.E., and Chen, E.H. (2020)
Nat Cell Biol 22: 674-688. (cover article)

• Faculty Opinions
• UT Southwestern Medical Center news release: Urge to merge: Understanding how cells fuse

Spectrin is a mechanoresponsive protein shaping fusogenic synapse architecture during myoblast fusion
Duan, R., Kim, J.H., Shilagardi, K., Schiffhauer, E.S., Lee, D.M., Son, S., Li, S., Thomas, C., Luo, T., Fletcher, D.A., Robinson, D.N., and Chen, E.H. (2018)
Nat Cell Biol 20: 688-698.

Mechanical tension drives cell membrane fusion
Kim, J.H., Ren, Y, Ng, W.P., Li, S., Son, S., Kee, Y-S., Zhang, S., Zhang, G., Fletcher, D.A., Robinson, D.N., and Chen, E.H. (2015)
Dev Cell 32: 561-573. (cover article)

• NIH Biomedical Beat: Cellular ‘Cruise Control’ Systems Let Cells Sense and Adapt to Changing Demands
• Developmental Cell Preview: Myoblast Fusion: Playing Hard to Get

Actin-propelled invasive membrane protrusions promote fusogenic protein engagement during cell-cell fusion 
Shilagardi, K., Li, S., Luo, F., Marikar, F., Duan, R., Jin, P., Kim, J.H., Murnen, K., and Chen, E.H. (2013)
Science 340: 359-363.

• Nature Research Highlight: Membranes protrude to fuse
• Johns Hopkins University news release

Group I PAKs function downstream of Rac to promote podosome invasion during myoblast fusion in vivo 
Duan, R., Jin, P., Luo, F., Zhang, G., Anderson, N., and Chen, E.H. (2012)
J Cell Biol 199: 169-185.

Competition between Blown fuse and WASP for WIP binding regulates the dynamics of WASP-dependent actin polymerization in vivo
Jin, P., Duan, R., Luo, F., Zhang, G., Hong, S.N., and Chen, E.H. (2011)
Dev Cell 20: 623-638.

An invasive podosome-like structure promotes fusion pore formation during myoblast fusion 
Sens, K.L., Zhang, S., Jin, P., Duan, R., Zhang, G., Luo, F., Parachini, L., and Chen, E.H. (2010)
J Cell Biol 191: 1013-1027.

• Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology In brief: Cytoskeleton
• Journal of Cell Biology news release: Muscle cells point the finger at each other
• Current Biology Dispatch: Cell–Cell Fusion: A New Function for Invadosomes
• Johns Hopkins University news release

A critical function for the actin cytoskeleton in targeted exocytosis of prefusion vesicles during myoblast fusion 
Kim, S., Shilagardi, K., Zhang, S., Hong, S.N., Sens, K.L., Bo, J., Gonzalez, G.A., and Chen, E.H. (2007)
Dev Cell 12: 571-586.

• Developmental Cell Comment: Actin on multiple fronts to generate a muscle fiber

Featured Reviews:

The fusogenic synapse at a glance 
Kim, J.H. and Chen, E.H. (2019)
J Cell Sci 132. DOI: 10.1242/jcs.213124

Drosophila Myoblast Fusion: Invasion and Resistance for the Ultimate Union
Lee, D.M. and Chen, E.H. (2019)
Annu Rev Genet 53: 67-91.

Mechanisms of myoblast fusion during muscle development
Kim, J.H., Jin, P., Duan, R., and Chen, E.H. (2015)
Curr Opin Genet Dev 32: 162-70.

Invasive podosomes and myoblast fusion
Chen, E.H. (2011)
Curr Top Membr 68: 235-258.

Cell-cell fusion 
Chen, E.H., Grote, E., Mohler, W.A., and Vignery, A. (2007)
FEBS Letters 581: 2181-2193.

Unveiling the mechanisms of cell-cell fusion 
Chen, E.H. and Olson, E.N. (2005)
Science 308: 369-373.

Towards a molecular pathway of myoblast fusion in Drosophila 
Chen, E.H. and Olson, E.N. (2004)
Trends Cell Biol 14: 452-460.

Other Publications:

Generating and Imaging Mouse and Human Epithelial Organoids from Normal and Tumor Mammary Tissue Without Passaging
Cornelius, S., Colonetta, M., Lake, K., Smith, C., Zhang, Y.A., Roussos-Torres, E., Reddy, S., Chen, E.H., and Chan, I. (2022)
J Vis Exp. DOI: 10.3791/64626

Multiphase coalescence mediates Hippo pathway activation
Wang, L., Choi, K., Su, T., Li, B., Wu, X., Zhang, R., Driskill, J., Li, H., Lei, H., Guo, P., Chen, E.H., Zheng, Y., and Pan, D. (2022)
Cell 185: 4376-4393.

Loss of Myomixer results in defective myoblast fusion, impaired muscle growth, and severe myopathy in zebrafish
Wu, P., Yong, P., Zhang, Z., Xu, R., Shang, R., Shi, J., Zhang, J., Bi, P., Chen, E.H., and Du, S. (2022)
Marine Biotechnology 24: 1023-1038.

To fuse or to divide, that was the question
Chen, E.H. (2022)
Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 24. DOI: 10.1038/s41580-022-00533-3

Yap induces an oncogenic transcriptional program through TET1-mediated epigenetic remodeling in liver growth and tumorigenesis
Wu, B-K., Mei, S-C., Chen, E.H., Zheng, Y., and Pan, D. (2022)
Nat Genet 54: 1202-1213.

Cell competition constitutes a barrier for interspecies chimerism
Zheng, C., Hu, Y., Sakurai, M., Pinzon-Arteaga, C.A., Li, J., Wie, Y., Okamura, D,. Ravaux, B., Barlow, H.R., Yu, L., Sun, H-X., Chen, E.H., Gu, Y., and Wu, J. (2021)
Nature 592: 272-276.

Sex and the single fly: A perspective on the career of Bruce S. Baker 
Andrew, D.J., Chen, E.H., Manoli, D.S., Ryner, L.C., and Arbeitman, M.N. (2019)
Genetics 212: 365-376.

Requirement of the fusogenic micropeptide myomixer for muscle formation in zebrafish
Shi, J., Bi, P., Pei, J., Li, H., Grishin, N.V., Bassel-Duby, R., Chen, E.H., and Olson, E.N. (2017)
Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 114: 11950-11955.

Membrane fission by dynamin: what we know and what we need to know 
Antonny, B., Burd, C., De Camilli, P., Chen, E.H., Daumke, O., Faelber, K. Ford, M., Frolov, V.A., Frost, A., Hinshaw, J.E., Kirchhausen, T., Kozlov, M.M., Lenz, M., Low, H.H., McMahon, H., Merrifield, C., Pollard, T.D., Robinson, P.J., Roux, A., and Schmid, S.
EMBO J 35: 2270-2284.

Elizabeth Chen: Fusing cells press closer
Chen, E. and Sedwick, C. (2014)
J Cell Biol 206: 576-577.

Ultrastructural analysis of myoblast fusion in Drosophila
Zhang, S. and Chen, E.H. (2008)
Methods Mol Biol 475: 275-297.

Control of myoblast fusion by a guanine nucleotide exchange factor, Loner, and its effector ARF6 
Chen, E.H., Pryce, B.A., Tzeng J.A., Gonzalez, G.A., and Olson, E.N. (2003)
Cell 114: 751-762.

• Developmental Cell Preview: Myoblasts Fuse When Loner Meets ARF6

Antisocial, an intracellular adaptor protein, is required for myoblast fusion in Drosophila
Chen, E.H. and Olson, E.N. (2001)
Dev Cell 1: 705-715.