Photoreceptor Sensory Cilium: Traversing the Ciliary Gate

Cells

Hemant Khanna¹  Gang Dong¹ 

[1] Department of Ophthalmology, UMASS Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA; E-Mail

关键词: cilia;    flagella;    ciliopathies;    retina;    retinopathies;    transition zone;    protein trafficking;   

DOI  :  10.3390/cells4040674

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Cilia are antenna-like extensions of the plasma membrane found in nearly all cell types. In the retina of the eye, photoreceptors develop unique sensory cilia. Not much was known about the mechanisms underlying the formation and function of photoreceptor cilia, largely because of technical limitations and the specific structural and functional modifications that cannot be modeled in vitro. With recent advances in microscopy techniques and molecular and biochemical approaches, we are now beginning to understand the molecular basis of photoreceptor ciliary architecture, ciliary function and its involvement in human diseases. Here, I will discuss the studies that have revealed new knowledge of how photoreceptor cilia regulate their identity and function while coping with high metabolic and trafficking demands associated with processing light signal.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.