RESEARCH IMAGES Click on each to enlarge
	Image 1. Drosophila embryonic musculature marked by MHC-tauGFP. MHC: myosin heavy chain
	Image 2. Schematic of Drosophila myoblast fusion. Muscle founder cell attracts fusion competent myoblasts (FCMs) and fuse with them to form multinucleated muscle fibers.
	Image 3. Wild-type (left) and loner mutant (right) embryos labeled with anti-MHC antibody.
	Image 4. 3D representation of an invasive F-actin focus (middle). Horizontal confocal section reveals its invasion into the apposing founder cell (left); and vertical section reveals rings of cell adhesion molecules (Duf and Sns) enclosing the F-actin focus. The F-actin focus and the cell adhesion molecule Sns compose of a podosome-like structure (PLS) at the protruding tip of the FCM.
	Image 5. Electron micrograph showing an invasive FCM (pseudo colored light purple) projecting finger-like protrusions into the apposing founder cell.
	Image 6. Cellular events during myoblast fusion. The engagement of cell adhesion molecules induces the formation of asymmetric F-actin-enriched structures -- a dense actin focus in the FCM and a thin sheath of actin underlying the apposing founder cell membrane. The F-actin propelled invasion into the founder cell leads to tightly apposed cell membranes and the subsequent formation of a single-channel fusion pore.