Steering aid

The primary cilium serves as a “cellular GPS” in wound repair and beyond

Soren Tvorup Christensen
University of Copenhagen


If cells held high school reunions, the primary cilium would be the class nerd who comes back in glory as a bioscience millionaire. Once written off as a vestigial organelle left in the evolutionary dust, the primary cilium has in the last decade risen to prominence as a vital cellular sensor at the root of everything from polycystic kidney disease to cancer to left–right anatomical abnormalities. Now comes evidence that the primary cilium may act as a “cellular GPS,” orienting cells that play a critical role in wound healing to move in the right direction.

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