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Planar cell polarity in kidney development and disease
1Department of Internal Medicine (Nephrology), University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA. thomas.carroll@utsouthwestern.edu
Organogenesis
|October 27, 2011
Summary
Planar cell polarity (PCP) coordinates cell orientation in tissues. This review explores PCP
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Biology
- Tissue Polarity
Background:
- Planar cell polarity (PCP) governs tissue cell orientation, crucial for development.
- Disruptions in PCP signaling negatively impact organ development and repair.
- Conserved pathways for PCP establishment are known in flies and vertebrates.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the roles of PCP in the metanephric kidney.
- To compare PCP establishment in the kidney with that in flies, focusing on Wnt signaling.
- To propose a model for PCP organization in the kidney epithelium.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of PCP studies in flies, vertebrates, and the metanephric kidney.
- Comparative analysis of PCP pathways across species.
- Hypothetical modeling of PCP signaling in kidney development.
Main Results:
- PCP is essential for metanephric kidney development and repair.
- Similarities and differences exist in PCP establishment between the kidney and flies, with Wnt signaling playing a key role.
- A model suggests stromal fibroblasts contribute to kidney epithelial PCP.
Conclusions:
- PCP is a critical process in kidney development.
- Understanding kidney PCP, particularly Wnt signaling, offers insights into developmental mechanisms.
- Stromal-epithelial interactions are likely important for organizing kidney planar cell polarity.
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