Cells behave like cities and organelles carry out infrastructural roles: Mitochondria are powerhouses, the endoplasmic reticulum serves as a transport hub and lysosomes help with waste disposal.
Communication between different parts of a cell is important for metabolism.
This inter-organelle communication can occur at sites where these parts are in contact with each other, known as membrane contact sites.
One of the most abundant interactions occurs at the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria contact sites, or ERMCS, and dysregulation leads to various diseases, including neurodegeneration, obesity, cancer and diabetes.
However, little is known about what drives ERMCS organization.
In a new study, University of Michigan researchers found that the FDA-approved drug fedratinib can lead to ERMCS…