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Updated: May 31, 2026

A Micropatterning Assay for Measuring Cell Chirality
Published on: March 11, 2022
Chirality in planar cell shape contributes to left-right asymmetric epithelial morphogenesis
Kiichiro Taniguchi1, Reo Maeda, Tadashi Ando
1Department of Biological Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan.
Animal organs show left-right asymmetry. In Drosophila, planar cell-shape chirality (PCC) drives hindgut rotation, revealing intrinsic cell chirality as a key mechanism in asymmetric tissue development.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Biology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Organisms exhibit left-right (LR) asymmetry in various organs.
- Understanding the mechanisms of LR asymmetric morphogenesis is crucial for developmental biology.
- The Drosophila hindgut epithelial tube provides a model system to study LR asymmetric morphogenesis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of planar cell-shape chirality (PCC) in LR directional rotation of the Drosophila hindgut.
- To elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying PCC and its contribution to tissue morphogenesis.
Main Methods:
- Observation of LR directional rotation in the Drosophila hindgut epithelial tube.
- Analysis of Drosophila E-cadherin (DE-Cad) distribution and its LR asymmetry.
- Investigating the function of Myosin ID in regulating LR polarity.
- In silico simulation to assess the sufficiency of PCC in inducing tissue rotation.
Main Results:
- Hindgut epithelial cells exhibit LR asymmetric (chiral) shapes, termed planar cell-shape chirality (PCC).
- Drosophila E-cadherin (DE-Cad) distribution shows LR asymmetry, contributing to PCC.
- Myosin ID influences LR polarity in both PCC and DE-Cad distribution, correlating with rotation direction.
- In silico models confirm PCC's sufficiency in driving directional tissue rotation.
Conclusions:
- Intrinsic cell chirality, specifically PCC, is a fundamental mechanism driving LR asymmetric tissue morphogenesis.
- DE-Cad asymmetry and Myosin ID activity are key regulators of PCC and hindgut rotation.
- This study provides insights into the cellular basis of left-right asymmetry in developing organs.
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