title: Calcium and retinal function.
abstract: We survey the primary roles of calcium in retinal function, including photoreceptor transduction, transmitter release by different classes of retinal neuron, calcium-mediated regulation of gap-junctional conductance, activation of certain voltage-gated channels for K+ and Cl-, and modulation of postsynaptic potentials in retinal ganglion cells. We discuss three mechanisms for changing [Ca2+]i, which include flux through voltage-gated calcium channels, through ligand-gated channels, and by release from stores. The neuromodulatory pathways affecting each of these routes of entry are considered. The many neuromodulatory mechanisms in which calcium is a player are described and their effects upon retinal function discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, New York University School of Medicine, New York University Medical Center, New York 10016, USA. aa3@nyu.edu
authors.forename: Abram
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Akopian
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Witkovsky
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000502:physiology*; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D012160:Retina / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D002118:Calcium