Centriole Duplication: Microtubular Structures

Centriole Duplication: Conclusion Name Institutional Affiliation Course Title Instructor Date Centriole Duplication Conclusion Centrioles are complex barrel-shaped microtubular structures involved in the formation of centrosomes, cilia and flagella1. These highly conserved organelles are the core of centrosomes and take part in an array of processes such as cell division, motility and signaling. The coordination of these cellular functions requires that the number of centrioles is tightly regulated. For this reason, alterations in the number and structure of centrosome have been linked to genome instability and human diseases such as cancer. Mutations in centrosomal proteins have recently been implicated in the etiology of microcephaly, dwarfism and ciliopathies2. In dividing cells, centrioles are duplicated only once in each cell cycle, contrary to what happens in other specialized cells where dozens of basal bodies form simultaneously. Imaging techniques, proteomics, gene-editing tools, and advances in structural biology have elucidated the mechanisms of centriole formation, how their numbers are controlled, and the diseases resulting from aberrations in the processes they regulate3. The last decade has seen an increase in our appreciation of the molecular mechanisms controlling the formation and function of centrioles. In the future, increased understanding of these mechanisms will play a central part in findi...