Calcium channels: unanswered questions.
Despite decades of intensive research, many questions remain unresolved regarding the structure and function of voltage-dependent calcium channels. This review considers some of those questions: Where is the activation gate? Where are the inactivation gates? How are the voltage sensors coupled to the gates? Are bacterial K+ channels good models for the Ca2+ channel pore? Are protein-protein interactions fundamental to Ca2+ channel function? Do voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels regulate basal intracellular Ca2+? Are N and P/Q channels specialized for fast neurotransmitter release?
Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, USA. swj@cwru.edu
Stephen W
SW
Jones
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000502:physiology*; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000502:physiology*; D002463:Cell Membrane Permeability / Q000502:physiology*; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D015640:Ion Channel Gating / Q000502:physiology*; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016062:Porosity; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
D015220:Calcium Channels; D002118:Calcium