Spinal Problem

Causing painful curves in the spine, adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) affects around three percent of teenagers worldwide, and in severe cases may continue into adulthood. The exact causes of this handicapping condition are still unclear, but a zebrafish model is beginning to yield answers. Zebrafish with mutation in the ptk7 gene display the same twisted spines typical of AIS, as seen in the skeletal reconstructions on the right, from the side and back, compared to those of the healthy specimen on the left. Scientists traced the origin of the defects in these fish to malfunctioning cilia, tiny hair-like structures whose beating movements enable the flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) during development. Even after the onset of scoliosis, restoring cilia function and fluid flow in these fish halted the progress of spinal deformity, raising hopes that therapies based on the same principle could be developed to alleviate symptoms in humans too.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

Emmanuelle Briolat

Writer

A researcher specialising in visual signals in Lepidoptera, camouflage and the effects of light pollution, Emmanuelle’s writing covers a range of topics, from biomedical research to children’s books about moth defences.

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• Image courtesy of Brian Ciruna
• Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, NJ, USA; Program in Developmental & Stem Cell Biology and The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto and Department of Molecular Genetics, The University of Toronto, Ontario Canada.
• Image copyright held by original authors
• Research published in Science, June 2016