Ca 2+ signalling, voltage-gated Ca 2+ channels and praziquantel in flatworm neuromusculature

Ca2+ signalling, voltage-gated Ca2+ channels and praziquantel in flatworm neuromusculature.

Transient changes in calcium (Ca2+) levels regulate a wide variety of cellular processes, and cells employ both intracellular and extracellular sources of Ca2+ for signalling. Praziquantel, the drug of choice against schistosomiasis, disrupts Ca2+ homeostasis in adult worms. This review will focus on voltage-gated Ca2+ channels, which regulate levels of intracellular Ca2+ by coupling membrane d...

The molecular biology of invertebrate voltage-gated Ca(2+) channels.

The importance of voltage-gated Ca(2+) channels in cellular function is illustrated by the many distinct types of Ca(2+) currents found in vertebrate tissues, a variety that is generated in part by numerous genes encoding Ca(2+) channel subunits. The degree to which this genetic diversity is shared by invertebrates has only recently become apparent. Cloning of Ca(2+) channel subunits from vario...

Regulation of the Human Cardiac Mitochondrial Ca Uptake by 2 Different Voltage-Gated Ca Channels

Background—Impairment of intracellular Ca homeostasis and mitochondrial function has been implicated in the development of cardiomyopathy. Mitochondrial Ca uptake is thought to be mediated by the Ca uniporter (MCU) and a thus far speculative non-MCU pathway. However, the identity and properties of these pathways are a matter of intense debate, and possible functional alterations in diseased sta...

A homolog of voltage-gated Ca(2+) channels stimulated by depletion of secretory Ca(2+) in yeast.

In animal cells, capacitative calcium entry (CCE) mechanisms become activated specifically in response to depletion of calcium ions (Ca(2+)) from secretory organelles. CCE serves to replenish those organelles and to enhance signaling pathways that respond to elevated free Ca(2+) concentrations in the cytoplasm. The mechanism of CCE regulation is not understood because few of its essential compo...

[ Frontiers of Ca(2+) signaling~physiological and pathological roles of voltage-independent Ca(2+) channels].