HEALTH NEWS

Study Title:

Calcium and cell function.

Study Abstract

From the birth of cells to their death, elevations in intracellular Ca2+ concentrations mediate diverse biological functions from gene expression and neurotransmitter release to cell proliferation and apoptosis (Clapham, 2007). Ca2+ signals drive these functions by binding to numerous Ca2+-sensitive effector proteins which translate the signals into specific cellular responses depending on the spatiotemporal dynamics of the Ca2+ signals. Further upstream, the Ca2+ signals themselves are generated by a large repertoire of ion channels, both plasma membrane and intracellular, and sculpted by a variety of pumps, transporters, and Ca2+ buffers. With so many different players involved, it is only natural that dysfunction of Ca2+ signalling pathways is implicated in numerous human diseases and syndromes ranging from immune deficiencies to cancer, and autism to neurodegenerative diseases (Feske, 2009; Supnet & Bezprozvanny, 2010; Surmeier et al. 2010; Berridge, 2012, 2017). These and related topics were the focus of the FASEB conference on calcium and cell function that was sponsored by The Journal of Physiology and held in beautiful Lake Tahoe, California, in 2018. The collection of reviews and articles in this symposium issue of the Journal illustrates a sampling of these advances.