title: Calfacilitin is a calcium channel modulator essential for initiation of neural plate development.
abstract: Calcium fluxes have been implicated in the specification of the vertebrate embryonic nervous system for some time, but how these fluxes are regulated and how they relate to the rest of the neural induction cascade is unknown. Here we describe Calfacilitin, a transmembrane calcium channel facilitator that increases calcium flux by generating a larger window current and slowing inactivation of the L-type CaV1.2 channel. Calfacilitin binds to this channel and is co-expressed with it in the embryo. Regulation of intracellular calcium by Calfacilitin is required for expression of the neural plate specifiers Geminin and Sox2 and for neural plate formation. Loss-of-function of Calfacilitin can be rescued by ionomycin, which increases intracellular calcium. Our results elucidate the role of calcium fluxes in early neural development and uncover a new factor in the modulation of calcium signalling.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, Gower Street (Anatomy Building), London WC1E 6BT, UK. papanayotou.costis@ijm.univ-paris-diderot.fr
authors.forename: Costis
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Papanayotou
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: De Almeida
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.forename: Nidia M M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.forename: Song-Qing
authors.initials: SQ
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Eleni
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kougioumtzidou
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Alex
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.forename: Guojun
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sheng
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Streit
authors.forename: Dejie
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Tuck
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wah Soong
authors.forename: Claudio D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Stern
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019521:Body Patterning / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000378:metabolism*; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type / Q000378:metabolism; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D002642:Chick Embryo; D064248:Geminin / Q000378:metabolism; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000187:drug effects; D005855:Germ Layers / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D057809:HEK293 Cells; D006801:Humans; D042541:Intracellular Space / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D060172:Morpholinos / Q000494:pharmacology; D054258:Neural Plate / Q000187:drug effects / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D011784:Quail
chemical_list: D015220:Calcium Channels; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type; D064248:Geminin; C419385:L-type calcium channel alpha(1C); D008565:Membrane Proteins; D060172:Morpholinos; D002118:Calcium