Atypical Cadherins Dachsous and Fat Control Dynamics of Noncentrosomal Microtubules in Planar Cell Polarity

How global organ asymmetry and individual cell polarity are connected to each other is a central question in studying planar cell polarity (PCP). In the Drosophila wing, which develops PCP along its proximal-distal (P-D) axis, we previously proposed that the core PCP mediator Frizzled redistributes distally in a microtubule (MT)-dependent manner. Here, we performed organ-wide analysis of MT dynamics by introducing quantitative in vivo imaging. We observed MTs aligning along the P-D axis at the onset of redistribution and a small but significant excess of + ends-distal MTs in the proximal region of the wing. This characteristic alignment and asymmetry of MT growth was controlled by atypical cadherins Dachsous (Ds) and Fat (Ft). Furthermore, the action of Ft was mediated in part by PAR-1. All these data support the idea that the active reorientation of MT growth adjusts cell polarity along the organ axis. ► Cells developing planar cell polarity align microtubules (MTs) along an organ axis ► There is small and local asymmetry of MT polarity along the axis ► This MT dynamics are controlled by atypical cadherins Dachsous and Fat ► The action of Fat is mediated in part by the Ser/Thr kinase PAR-1