A new study of a protein found in cilia - the hair-like projections on the cell surface - may help explain how genetic defects in cilia play a role in developmental abnormalities, kidney disease and a ...

Cilia -- tiny hair-like structures that perform feats such as clearing microscopic debris from the lungs and determining the correct location of organs during development -- move in mysterious ways.

A protein called Kurly is needed for cilia to undulate and face in the correct direction to keep fluid moving over the surface of cells. The finding may help explain how genetic defects in cilia play ...