Integrin-linked kinase in ciliary Hedgehog signaling

Hedgehog is a conserved developmental pathway governing embryo patterning, tissue morphogenesis and differentiation. Vertebrate Hh signaling is coordinated in the primary cilium, a MT (MT)-based structure derived from the basal body (centriole) that projects singly from the surface of most cells. Defects in cilia and Hedgehog signaling cause developmental disorders affecting a range of organ systems, and recent years have witnessed an increasing appreciation of the role of cilia and dysregulated Hh signaling in promoting cancer.1