NudE-like protein (Ndel1) is expressed in the testis, brain, heart, hypothalamus, liver, lung, spleen, and stomach, specifically in the interphase centrosome and mitotic spindle. It positively regulates minus-end directed dynein. Evidence suggests that Ndel1 interacts with LIS1 to sustain the function of dynein, thereby impacting microtubule organization, nuclear translocation, and neuronal positioning. Ndel1 is phosphorylated during mitosis and seems to tether dynactin and dynein to the mother centriole for microtubule anchoring. Loss of function of Ndel1 in the developing neocortex impairs neuronal positioning and uncouples the centrosome and nucleus. Ndel1 may also impair mitochondrial transport or function, initiating a cascade of events culminating in psychiatric illness such as lissencephaly and schizophrenia.
