title: Calcium-permeable channels in plant cells.
abstract: Calcium signal transduction is a central mechanism by which plants sense and respond to endogenous and environmental stimuli. Cytosolic Ca(2+)  elevation is achieved via two cellular pathways, Ca(2+)  influx through Ca(2+)  channels in the plasma membrane and Ca(2+)  release from intracellular Ca(2+)  stores. Because of the significance of Ca(2+)  channels in cellular signaling, interaction with the environment and developmental processes in plants, a great deal of effort has been invested in recent years with regard to these important membrane proteins. Because of limited space, in this review we focus on recent findings giving insight into both the molecular identity and physiological function of channels that have been suggested to be responsible for the elevation in cytosolic Ca(2+)  level, including cyclic nucleotide gated channels, glutamate receptor homologs, two-pore channels and mechanosensitive Ca(2+) -permeable channels. We provide an overview of the regulation of these Ca(2+)  channels and their physiological roles and discuss remaining questions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, USA. fjammes@umd.edu
authors.forename: Fabien
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jammes
authors.forename: Heng-Cheng
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Florent
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Villiers
authors.forename: Roxane
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bouten
authors.forename: June M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kwak
mesh_terms: D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000378:metabolism*; D020013:Calcium Signaling; D059828:Plant Cells / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D015220:Calcium Channels; D002118:Calcium