title: Ca(2+) signaling, genes and the cell cycle.
abstract: Changes in the concentration and spatial distribution of Ca(2+) ions in the cytoplasm constitute a ubiquitous intracellular signaling module in cellular physiology. With the advent of Ca(2+) dyes that allow direct visualization of Ca(2+) transients, combined with powerful experimental tools such as electrophysiological recordings, intracellular Ca(2+) transients have been implicated in practically every aspect of cellular physiology, including cellular proliferation. Ca(2+) signals are associated with different phases of the cell cycle and interfering with Ca(2+) signaling or downstream pathways often disrupts progression of the cell cycle. Although there exists a dependence between Ca(2+) signals and the cell cycle the mechanisms involved are not well defined and given the cross-talk between Ca(2+) and other signaling modules, it is difficult to assess the exact role of Ca(2+) signals in cell cycle progression. Two exceptions however, include fertilization and T-cell activation, where well-defined roles for Ca(2+) signals in mediating progression through specific stages of the cell cycle have been clearly established. In the case of T-cell activation Ca(2+) regulates entry into the cell cycle through the induction of gene transcription.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, PO Box 24144, Education City – Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar. Khm2002@qatar-med.cornell.edu
authors.forename: Khaled
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Machaca
mesh_terms: D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000378:metabolism; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000502:physiology*; D002453:Cell Cycle; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005306:Fertilization; D008540:Meiosis; D017231:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mos / Q000378:metabolism; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D015220:Calcium Channels; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D017231:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mos