Cell membranes do not spontaneously fuse when touching due to hydration forces and electrostatic repulsion
Cell membranes and vesicles are prevented from spontaneously fusing upon contact primarily due to stabilizing forces such as hydration repulsion and electrostatic barriers.
The retrieved literature consistently supports the established biophysical consensus that hydration forces and electrostatic barriers act as repulsive mechanisms preventing spontaneous membrane fusion, requiring specific conditions, energy inputs, or fusogenic agents to overcome.
A. Herrmann, M. J. Clague, R. Blumenthal. Enhancement of viral fusion by nonadsorbing polymers.. 1993. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0006-3495(93)81054-3
Discusses how hydration repulsion forces act as a barrier that must be overcome for membrane fusion to proceed.
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R. J. Goodband, C. Bain, M. Staykova. Comparative Study of Lipid- and Polymer-Supported Membranes Obtained by Vesicle Fusion. 2022. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c00266
Ascribes the inability of certain supported polymer membrane patches to fuse spontaneously to hydration repulsion forces acting between their edges.
Ayumi Okayama, Michael Postrado, Hiroshi Takahashi. A Comparative Study of the Effects of Cholesterol and Lanosterol on Hydrated Phosphatidylethanolamine Assemblies: Focusing on Physical Parameters Related to Membrane Fusion. 2025. https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes15120352
Notes that sterols enhance short-range repulsive hydration forces which regulate membrane properties and fusion.
Rodion J Molotkovsky, Z. Denieva, I. Senchikhin, E. K. Urodkova, Petr V. Konarev, Georgy S Peters, T. R. Galimzyanov, Rais V. Pavlov, Pavel Bashkirov. Quantifying the Activation Barrier for Phospholipid Monolayer Fusion Governing Lipid Droplet Coalescence. 2025. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262311664
Incorporates hydration repulsion into a continuum fusion model as part of the energy barrier governing membrane coalescence.
Yeonho Song, Hyonseok Hwang. Influence of lipid bilayer head group polarity on micelle behavior and surfactant transfer: a molecular dynamics simulation study.. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1039/d5cp01376c
Demonstrates that interfacial water and head group polarity create an energy barrier that prevents spontaneous transfer or interaction.
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