The primary cilium and the nucleolus represent hubs of signaling pathways that regulate cell homeostasis and stress responses. The primary cilium has long been considered a vestigial organelle that is now considered a sensory antenna that transduces extracellular signals of various origins, including mechano- and chemo-transduction. The nucleolus is traditionally known as the site where ribosomal RNA synthesis and ribosome biogenesis takes place that is now considered a cellular stress sensor and a mediator of the cellular stress response. Both organelles transduce developmental and homeostatic pathways, including Wnt signaling and mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) and autophagy. Although there is no current evidence that their functions are interdependent, nevertheless both organelles are able to adjust their structure and function in response to changes not only in the cellular environmental changes but also in the cellular internal milieu. Interestingly, both organelles are not typical membrane-bound organelles and are able to modify and adapt their structure in a dynamic fashion, suggesting a crucial role in the regulation of cell homeostasis by yet unknown mechanisms.

These conceptual similarities along with the newly discovered impact of deficits of primary cilia and of the nucleolus on neuronal homeostasis brought up the idea of a unprecedented Research Topic in the context of mechanisms underlying both normal neuronal function and neurological disorders.

Themes included in this Research Topic will be linked to the role of the primary cilium and the nucleolus in control of neuronal homeostasis in physiological and pathophysiological conditions as well as to methodological approaches used to investigate their structural changes and functions. The Research Topic will be of broad interest given the potential to indicate mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases triggered by these emerging cellular stress sensors.

Keywords: ribosomes, primary cilium, signaling, neuron

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