Leonid V. Chernomordik

TL;DR: The conserved fusion-through-hemifusion pathway of merger between biological membranes is discussed and it is proposed that the entire progression, from the close juxtaposition of membrane bilayers to the expansion of a fusion pore, is controlled by protein-generated membrane stresses.

TL;DR: The phenomenology and the pathways of the well-characterized reactions of biological remodeling, such as fusion mediated by influenza hemagglutinin, are compared with those studied for protein-free bilayers and some proteins involved in fusion and fission are considered.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that the entry of TAT peptide into different primary cells is ATP and temperature-dependent, indicating the involvement of endocytosis, and suggested that unconjugated peptide might follow endocytic pathways different from those utilized by T AT peptide conjugated to different proteins.

TL;DR: The results reviewed suggest that membrane fusion in diverse biological fusion reactions involves formation of some specific intermediates: stalks and pores, and suggest a specific geometry to bent fusion intermediates (stalks and pores) and imply a contribution by lipids to the energy of these intermediates.

TL;DR: The results suggest that restriction of lipid flux by a ring of activated HA is necessary for successful fusion, during which a lipidic fusion pore develops in a local and transient hemifusion diaphragm.