Thus, the apical microvilli changes in the RPE of Cryba1 cKO mice, an established model of early perifoveal AMD-like pathobiology, provide us with new avenues for investigating both how the RPE loses its polarity, especially in the apex, and the impact that this loss has on the health of both the RPE and the overlying photoreceptors during disease onset and progression. The gene discussed is CRYBA1; the disease is age-related macular degeneration.