Avoiding Sibling Conflict: Lessons from Dendrite Self-Avoidance in C. elegans.

In this issue of Neuron, Liao and colleagues (2018) uncover a surprising way that the guidance molecule MIG14/Wntless operates in dendrite self-avoidance in sensorimotor neurons. Not only does MIG14/Wntless not require the soluble cue Wntless, but it can mediate direct cell-cell contact at the plasma membrane. During dendrite tip contact, MIG14/Wntless drives local bursts of WASP-dependent actin filament assembly that facilitate sister dendrite repulsion.