Voltage-gated calcium channels are found in all excitable cells, in which they regulate many important physiological functions, including excitability, gene transcription, muscle contraction, and neurotransmitter and hormone release. The differential modulation of calcium channels by intracellular second messengers constitutes a key mechanism for controlling calcium influx. Recent advances have...

Rad, Gem/Kir, Rem, and Rem2 are members of the Ras-related RGK (Rad, Gem, and Kir) family of small GTP-binding proteins. Heterologous expression of RGK proteins interferes with de novo calcium channel assembly/trafficking and dramatically decreases the amplitude of currents arising from preexisting high-voltage-activated calcium channels. These effects probably result from the direct interactio...

T-type calcium channels are important for a variety of physiological processes such as brain and heart function. Proper regulation of these channels by second messengers is fundamental; however, our knowledge of the molecular pathways that regulate T-type calcium channels is limited in comparison with other voltage-dependent calcium channels. In this issue of Molecular Pharmacology, Tao et al. ...

Calcium entry into the dendritic spines of excitatory neurons is important for many forms of synaptic plasticity. In this issue, Hoogland and Saggau continue efforts to inventory the calcium channels that function in dendritic spines. They evoked backpropagating action potentials at the soma of CA1 neurons in rat hippocampal slices and recorded calcium transients in basal dendrites and spines u...

Calcium channel blockers are widely used for treatment of hypertension, because they decrease peripheral vascular resistance through inhibition of voltage-gated calcium channels. Animal studies of renal vasculature have shown expression of several types of calcium channels that are involved in kidney function. It was hypothesized that human renal vascular excitation-contraction coupling involve...

Low voltage-activated T-type calcium channels were originally cloned in the 1990s and much research has since focused on identifying the physiological roles of these channels in health and disease states. T-type calcium channels are expressed widely throughout the brain and peripheral tissues, and thus have been proposed as therapeutic targets for a variety of diseases such as epilepsy, insomni...

N-type calcium channels are modulated by acute and chronic ethanol exposure in vitro at concentrations known to affect humans, but it is not known whether N-type channels are important for behavioral responses to ethanol in vivo. Here, we show that in mice lacking functional N-type calcium channels, voluntary ethanol consumption is reduced and place preference is developed only at a low dose of...

Calcium channel blockers are widely used for treatment of hypertension, because they decrease peripheral vascular resistance through inhibition of voltage-gated calcium channels. Animal studies of renal vasculature have shown expression of several types of calcium channels that are involved in kidney function. It was hypothesized that human renal vascular excitation-contraction coupling involve...

The alpha1I T-type calcium channel inactivates almost 10-fold more slowly than the other family members (alpha1G and alpha1H) or most native T-channels. We have examined the underlying mechanisms using whole-cell recordings from rat alpha1I stably expressed in HEK293 cells. We found several kinetic differences between alpha1G and alpha1I, including some properties that at first appear qualitati...

objective: the apoptosis of motor neurons is a critical phenomenon in spinal cord injuries. adult spinal cord slices were used to investigate whether voltage sensitive calcium channels and na+/ca2+ exchangers play a role in the apoptosis of motor neurons. materials and methods: in this experimental research, the thoracic region of the adult mouse spinal cord was sliced using a tissue chopper an...