Abstract Endosymbiosis, the beginning of a collaboration between an archaeon and a bacterium and a founding step in the evolution of eukaryotes, owes its success to the establishment of communication routes between the host and the symbiont to allow the exchange of metabolites. As far as lipids are concerned, it is the host that has learnt the symbiont’s language, as eukaryote lipids appear to have been borrowed from the bacterial symbiont. Mitochondria exchange lipids with the rest of the cell at membrane contact sites. In fungi, the endoplasmic reticulum-mitochondria encounter structure (ERMES) is one of the best understood membrane tethering complexes. Its discovery has yielded crucial insight into the mechanisms of intracellular lipid trafficking. Despite a wealth of data, our understanding of ERMES formation and its exact role(s) remains incomplete. Here, I endeavour to summarise our knowledge on the ERMES complex and to identify lingering gaps.

中文翻译：

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内质网-线粒体相遇结构：协调跨膜脂质代谢

摘要 内共生是古细菌和细菌之间合作的开始，也是真核生物进化的奠基步骤，其成功归功于在宿主和共生体之间建立了允许代谢物交换的通信途径。就脂质而言，宿主学会了共生体的语言，因为真核生物的脂质似乎是从细菌共生体借来的。线粒体在膜接触位点与细胞的其余部分交换脂质。在真菌中，内质网-线粒体相遇结构 (ERMES) 是最了解的膜束缚复合物之一。它的发现为细胞内脂质运输的机制提供了重要的见解。尽管数据丰富，我们对 ERMES 形成及其确切作用的理解仍然不完整。在这里，我努力总结我们对 ERMES 综合体的了解，并找出挥之不去的差距。