Abstract
MANY types of cells have membrane junctions so organized as to allow the passage of molecules from the interior of one cell to another with little loss to the outside1–6. At least in some cases, a large part if not all of the surface membrane seems to be capable of this organization, for if the junction is broken and the cell pair rejoined at some other place, the system can become fully communicating within seconds or minutes7,8. Evidently the membranes must undergo profound structural changes in such a way that previously impermeable surface regions become highly permeable. This implies a close spatial matching of the joining regions on the two membranes. The question arises whether such matching can be effected between membranes that differ from each other. To find something out about this problem, we have paired cultured cells from different organs and species, measuring the communication between cells electrically.
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MICHALKE, W., LOEWENSTEIN, W. Communication between Cells of Different Type. Nature 232, 121–122 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1038/232121b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/232121b0
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