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Detection and Quantification of Tunneling Nanotubes Using 3D Volume View Images

Detection and Quantification of Tunneling Nanotubes Using 3D Volume View Images

Published on: August 31, 2022

RNA transfer through tunneling nanotubes.

Gal Haimovich¹, Sandipan Dasgupta¹, Jeffrey E Gerst¹

¹Department of Molecular Genetics, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.

Biochemical Society Transactions

|December 28, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

RNA molecules transfer between cells via tunneling nanotubes (TNTs), a process supported by growing evidence in animal and plant cells. This review explores TNT-mediated RNA transfer, its challenges, and implications for health and disease.

Keywords:

RNA transfer mRNA microRNA plasmodesmata tunneling nanotubes viral RNA

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Area of Science:

Cell Biology
Molecular Biology
Genetics

Background:

Early hypotheses suggested RNA transfer between mammalian cells in the 1970s.
Direct evidence for RNA transfer in animal and plant cells emerged decades later.
Tunneling nanotubes (TNTs) are cellular structures facilitating intercellular cargo exchange.

Purpose of the Study:

To review evidence for RNA transfer between cells mediated by tunneling nanotubes (TNTs).
To discuss the technical challenges associated with studying TNT-mediated RNA transfer.
To explore the potential significance of this intercellular RNA communication pathway in health and disease.

Main Methods:

Review of existing scientific literature on RNA transfer and tunneling nanotubes.
Analysis of studies demonstrating the transfer of various RNA types (mRNA, viral RNA, non-coding RNA) via TNTs.
Discussion of experimental techniques and challenges in visualizing and quantifying intercellular RNA transport.

Main Results:

Tunneling nanotubes (TNTs) facilitate the transfer of diverse RNA molecules, including messenger RNAs (mRNAs), viral RNAs, and non-coding RNAs, between connected cells.
Evidence supports RNA transfer via TNTs in both animal and plant cell systems.
Technical hurdles remain in definitively proving and quantifying TNT-mediated RNA transport.

Conclusions:

Intercellular RNA transfer through tunneling nanotubes (TNTs) is a validated biological process with potential roles in cellular communication.
Understanding TNT-mediated RNA transfer is crucial for deciphering its implications in physiological and pathological conditions.
Further research is needed to overcome technical challenges and fully elucidate the functional significance of this pathway.