Multi-ciliated cells (MCCs) are terminally differentiated epithelia that are present in all metazoans and many unicellular eukaryotes^1,2. In marine organisms they play a key role in locomotion and feeding³, while in mammals they clear mucus from the lungs, circulate cerebrospinal fluid in the nervous system and transport eggs and sperm in the reproductive tracts².

Individual MCCs contain hundreds of motile cilia that rest on modified centrioles called basal bodies⁴. MCCs are polarized relative to each in a tissue, and individual cilia are polarized relative to each other within the MCC⁵. Individual cilia beat, which generates a unidirectional fluid flow along the planar axis of the tissue⁶. Abnormalities in cilia abundance, orientation and/or beating have severe implications for human health, causing chronic respiratory infections, hydrocephalus and male infertility⁷.

Recent advances in ‘omic’ methodologies and in live cell imaging techniques has renewed interest in understanding MCCs². Most studies use the African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) as a model system in cilia research^4,5. Here, MCCs were obtained by in vitro differentiation of Xenopus-derived cell culture and were imaged using Nanolive’s 3D Cell Explorer. Images were acquired for 4 mins at an acquisition frequency of 1 image every 2 secs.

Sample courtesy of Camille Boutin, IBDM Marseille.

References

1. Brooks, E. R. & Wallingford, J. B. Multiciliated Cells. Curr. Biol. 24, R973–R982 (2014).
2. Spassky, N. & Meunier, A. The development and functions of multiciliated epithelia. Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Biol. 18, 423–436 (2017).
3. Marinković, M., Berger, J. & Jékely, G. Neuronal coordination of motile cilia in locomotion and feeding. Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B. Biol. Sci. 375, 20190165 (2020).
4. Boutin, C. & Kodjabachian, L. Biology of multiciliated cells. Curr. Opin. Genet. Dev. 56, 1–7 (2019).
5. Werner, M. E. & Mitchell, B. J. Understanding ciliated epithelia: The power of Xenopus. Genesis 50, 176–185 (2012).
6. Satir, P., Heuser, T. & Sale, W. S. A structural basis for how motile cilia beat. Bioscience 64, 1073–1083 (2014).
7. Bisgrove, B. W. & Yost, H. J. The roles of cilia in developmental disorders and disease. Development 133, 4131–4143 (2006).

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