title: Ca2+ signaling down-regulation in ageing and Alzheimer's disease: why is Ca2+ so difficult to measure?
abstract: Ca2+ signaling is a central process in brain function, but the direction of its change in ageing and in the presymptomatic stages of Alzheimer's disease has been controversial. A great deal of studies have been interpreted as supportive to the current hypothesis that intracellular Ca2+ levels are steadily increased in ageing. We, however, believe that, although current studies have provided valuable knowledge for the mechanisms of the signal transduction process, they have not furnished relevant information regarding the global Ca2+ changes in the ageing brain, because the cognition-related Ca2+ pulses exist only in the intact brain.
authors.affiliation: Neuroscience Research Laboratory, Bay Pines VA Medical Center, Florida 33744, USA. michen@com1.med.usf.edu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: H L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Fernandez
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000502:physiology*; D015536:Down-Regulation / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D002118:Calcium