The key role of Alms1 in centriole duplication in Drosophila that we uncovered in this work raises the question of the conservation of such function in other species and most specifically in humans, as mutations in ALMS1 are known to lead to Alström syndrome, a severe disorder classified as a ciliopathy (Collin et al, 2002; Hearn et al, 2002). This evidence concerns the gene ALMS1 and ciliopathy.