Ciliogenesis and ciliary abnormalities

Cilia are motile processes extending from the basal bodies, playing important roles in the mucociliary clearance in the respiratory tract and the transport of the ovum from the ovary to the uterus in mammals. Ciliogenesis is divided into four stages: (1) duplication of centrioles; (2) migration of centrioles to the apical cell surface to become basal bodies; (3) elongation of cilia containing the axoneme; and (4) formation of accessory structures of basal bodies. The orderly course of ciliogenesis appears to be disturbed by various internal and external factors and, as a result, various unusual forms of the ciliary apparatus develop in the cell. Inhibition of basal body migration results in development of intracytoplasmic axonemes, cilia within periciliary sheaths, and intracellular ciliated cysts. Swollen cilia and the bulging type of compound cilia are formed during ciliary budding and elongation. This review also discusses the origin, composition, and function of the centriolar precursor structures.