Primary cilia: Versatile regulator in cartilage development.

Cartilage is a connective tissue in the skeletal system and has limited regeneration ability and unique biomechanical reactivity. The growth and development of cartilage can be affected by different physical, chemical and biological factors, such as mechanical stress, inflammation, osmotic pressure, hypoxia and signalling transduction. Primary cilia are multifunctional sensory organelles that regulate diverse signalling transduction and cell activities. They are crucial for the regulation of cartilage development and act in a variety of ways, such as react to mechanical stress, mediate signalling transduction, regulate cartilage-related diseases progression and affect cartilage tumorigenesis. Therefore, research on primary cilia-mediated cartilage growth and development is currently extremely popular. This review outlines the role of primary cilia in cartilage development in recent years and elaborates on the potential regulatory mechanisms from different aspects.