利物浦大学研究人员发现，E-钙粘蛋白这种在细胞间起粘着作用的分子除了连接细胞外，还能帮助上皮细胞吞噬死亡细胞。1研究团队通过观察活体斑马鱼和小鼠胚胎发现，细胞能够通过重塑其下表面来吞噬细胞碎片，同时保持上表面稳定以维持组织屏障的完整性。1缺少E-钙粘蛋白的死亡细胞以及含有死细胞表面信号的脂肪液滴都能被有效吞噬，但在小鼠早期胚胎中阻断E-钙粘蛋白则导致死亡细胞无法清除。1
由Verena Ruprecht领导的研究团队，包括联合第一作者Hanna-Maria Häkkinen、Marta Batet Palau和Laura F. Bianchi，完成了这项研究。1该成果已发表于《自然通讯》期刊，获得了西班牙科学创新部、人类前沿科学计划、欧盟地平线计划和拉卡伊克基金会的资金支持。1这一发现对于理解慢性炎症机制和改进组织清理过程具有潜在的医学意义。1
Researchers at the University of Liverpool have discovered that E-cadherin, the adhesion molecule responsible for binding cells together, plays a second crucial role in helping epithelial cells engulf and clear away dead cells.1 The finding, published in Nature Communications in 2026, demonstrates that cells can reshape their lower surfaces to consume cellular debris while simultaneously maintaining their upper surfaces to preserve tissue barrier integrity.1
The research team, led by Verena Ruprecht and including joint first authors Hanna-Maria Häkkinen, Marta Batet Palau, and Laura F. Bianchi, conducted experiments using live zebrafish and mouse embryos to observe this process.1 The studies revealed that dead cells lacking E-cadherin and lipid droplets containing surface signals marking dead cells were efficiently engulfed by neighboring epithelial cells.1 When E-cadherin was blocked in early mouse embryos, dead cells failed to be cleared properly, underscoring the molecule's essential role in this cleanup mechanism.1
The discovery carries potential medical implications for understanding chronic inflammation and tissue maintenance processes.1 The work was supported by funding from Spain's Ministry of Science and Innovation, the Human Frontier Science Program, the European Union's Horizon program, and the Lacaixa Foundation.1
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