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Ciliary diffusion barrier: The gatekeeper for the primary cilium compartment
Author(s) -
Hu Qicong,
Nelson W. James
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
cytoskeleton
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.95
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1949-3592
pISSN - 1949-3584
DOI - 10.1002/cm.20514
Subject(s) - cilium , intraflagellar transport , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , ciliopathy , cytoskeleton , septin , membrane protein , membrane , biochemistry , cell , gene , flagellum , cytokinesis , cell division , phenotype
The primary cilium is a cellular antenna that detects and transmits chemical and mechanical cues in the environment through receptors and downstream signal proteins enriched along the ciliary membrane. While it is known that ciliary membrane proteins enter the cilium by way of vesicular and intraflagellar transport, less is known about how ciliary membrane proteins are retained in, and how apical membrane proteins are excluded from the cilium. Here, we review evidence for a membrane diffusion barrier at the base of the primary cilium, and highlight the recent finding of a septin cytoskeleton diffusion barrier. We also discuss candidate ciliopathy genes that may be involved in formation of the barrier, and the role of a diffusion barrier as a common mechanism for compartmentalizing membranes and lipid domains. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.