The glutamatergic system may be involved in the effects of neuroprotectant therapies. Echinacoside, a phenylethanoid glycoside extracted from the medicinal Chinese herb Herba Cistanche, has neuroprotective effects. This study investigated the effects...
Proper skeletal muscle function is controlled by intracellular Ca2+ concentration and by efficient production of energy (ATP), which, in turn, depend on: (a) the release and re-uptake of Ca2+ from sarcoplasmic-reticulum (SR) during excitation–contrac...
TRPC proteins form cation conducting channels regulated by different stimuli and are regulators of the cellular calcium homeostasis. TRPC are expressed in cardiac cells including cardiac fibroblasts (CFs) and have been implicated in the development o...
α-Latrotoxin (αLTX) causes exhaustive release of neurotransmitters from nerve terminals in the absence of extracellular Ca2+ (Ca2+e). To investigate the mechanisms underlying this effect, we loaded mouse neuromuscular junctions with BAPTA...
Rat dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons express 5-hydroxytryptamine receptors (5-HT3Rs). To elucidate their physiological role in the modulation of sensory signaling, we aimed to quantify their functional expression in newborn and adult rat DRG neuron...
Type III taste cells are the only taste bud cells which express voltage-gated (VG) Ca2+ channels and employ Ca2+-dependent exocytosis to release neurotransmitters, particularly serotonin. The taste bud is a tightly packed cell population, wherein ext...
Tumor microenvironment is particularly enriched with extracellular ATP (eATP), but conflicting evidence has been provided on its functional effects on tumor growth and vascular remodeling. We have previously shown that high eATP concentrations exert...
Ca2+ is pivotal intracellular messenger that coordinates multiple cell functions such as fertilization, growth, differentiation, and viability. Intracellular Ca2+ signaling is regulated by both extracellular Ca2+ entry and Ca2+ release from intracell...
Presynaptic Ca2+ entry occurs through voltage-gated Ca2+ (CaV) channels which are activated by membrane depolarization. Depolarization accompanies neuronal firing and elevation of Ca2+ triggers neurotransmitter release from synaptic vesicles. For syn...
Microdomains formed by proteins of endoplasmic reticulum and plasma membrane play a key role in store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE). Ca2+ release through inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP3R) and subsequent Ca2+ store depletion activate STIM (str...
Globally, the swine industry suffers significant economic losses due to the presence of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV). Unfortunately, existing vaccines fail to offer adequate protection against the various strains of PRR...
Ca2+ ions function as second messengers regulating many intracellular events, including neurotransmitter release, exocytosis, muscle contraction, metabolism and gene transcription. Cells of a multicellular organism express a variety of cell-surface r...
In pancreatic β-cells of the line INS-1, glucose uptake and metabolism induce the openings of Ca2+-permeable TRPM3 channels that contribute to the elevation of the intracellular Ca2+ concentration and the fusion of insulin granules with the plas...
Viruses utilize host cell signaling to facilitate productive infection. Equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) has been shown to activate Ca2+ release and phospholipase C upon contact with α4β1 integrins on the cell surface. Signaling molecules...
Many essential biological processes are triggered by the proximity of molecules. Meanwhile, diverse approaches in synthetic biology, such as new biological parts or engineered cells, have opened up avenues to precisely control the proximity of molecu...
Store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) is a key regulator of cytosolic Ca2+ (Ca2+cyt). Presynaptic SOCE can be activated by ligands like α-latrotoxin, which acts through the presynaptic G-protein-coupled receptor latrophilin-1 (LPHN1), inducing Ca2+...
Calcium is a crucial mediator of cell signaling in skeletal muscles for basic cellular functions and specific functions, including contraction, fiber-type differentiation and energy production. The sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) is an organelle that pro...
Being the largest the Ca2+ store in mammalian cells, endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-mediated Ca2+ signalling often involves both Ca2+ release via inositol 1, 4, 5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3R) and store operated Ca2+ entries (SOCE) through Ca2+ release...
The ability of P2X7 receptors to potentiate rhythmically evoked acetylcholine (ACh) release through Ca2+ entry via P2X7 receptors and via L-type voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels (VDCCs) was compared by loading Ca2+ chelators into motor nerve terminals...
Plasma membrane protein channels provide a passageway for ions to access the intracellular milieu. Rapid entry of calcium ions into cells is controlled mostly by ion channels, while Ca2+-ATPases and Ca2+ exchangers ensure that cytosolic Ca2+ levels (...
The overexpression of the Orai1 channel inhibits SOCE when using the Ca2+ readdition protocol. However, we found that HeLa cells overexpressing the Orai1 channel displayed enhanced Ca2+ entry and a limited ER depletion in response to the combination...
Exposure to hypoxia results in the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). An increase in the intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) is a major trigger for pulmonary vasoconstriction...
Glaucoma is one of the most common causes of treatable visual impairment in the developed world, affecting approximately 64 million people worldwide, some of whom will be bilaterally blind from irreversible optic nerve damage. The optic nerve head is...
Colorectal cancer (CRC) cells undergo the remodeling of intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis, which contributes to cancer hallmarks such as enhanced proliferation, invasion and survival. Ca2+ remodeling includes critical changes in store-operated Ca2+ entr...
Intracellular organelles are common to eukaryotic cells and provide physical support for the assembly of specialized compartments. In skeletal muscle fibers, the largest intracellular organelle is the sarcoplasmic reticulum, a specialized form of the...
Calcium signalling in platelets through store operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) or receptor-operated Ca2+ entry (ROCE) mechanisms is crucial for platelet activation and function. Orai1 proteins have been implicated in platelet’s SOCE. In this study we...
It has long been known that endothelial Ca2+ signals drive angiogenesis by recruiting multiple Ca2+-sensitive decoders in response to pro-angiogenic cues, such as vascular endothelial growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, stromal derived fac...
Since Biblical times, honey has been utilized in “folk medicine”, and in recent decades the positive qualities of honey have been re-discovered and are gaining acceptance. Scientific literature states that honey has been successfully util...
The principal bioeffect of the nanosecond pulsed electric field (nsPEF) is a lasting cell membrane permeabilization, which is often attributed to the formation of nanometer-sized pores. Such pores may be too small for detection by the uptake of fluor...
Calcium (Ca2+) is a universal signaling ion that is essential for the life and death processes of all eukaryotes. In humans, numerous cell stimulation pathways lead to the mobilization of sarco/endoplasmic reticulum (S/ER) stored Ca2+, resulting in t...
Upon depolarization of chromaffin cells (CCs), a prompt release of catecholamines occurs. This event is triggered by a subplasmalemmal high-Ca2+ microdomain (HCMD) generated by Ca2+ entry through nearby voltage-activated calcium channels. HCMD is eff...
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether and how albiflorin, a natural monoterpene glycoside, affects the release of glutamate, one of the most important neurotransmitters involved in neurotoxicity, from cerebrocortical nerve terminals (s...
Ca2+ release-activated Ca2+ channels, composed of Orai1 and STIM1 (stromal interaction molecule 1) proteins, are the main Ca2+ entry mechanism in lymphocytes. Their role in cell migration and metastasis is demonstrated in solid cancers but it remains...
Aging is often associated with a cognitive decline and a susceptibility to neuronal damage. It is also the most important risk factor for neurodegenerative disorders, particularly Alzheimer’s disease (AD). AD is related to an excess of neurotox...
The systemic effects of physical activity are mediated by the release of IL-6 and other myokines from contracting muscle. Although the release of IL-6 from muscle has been extensively studied, the information on the cellular mechanisms is fragmentary...
Curcumin, one of the major constituents of Curcuma longa, has been shown to inhibit depolarization-evoked glutamate release from rat prefrontocortical nerve terminals by reducing voltage-dependent Ca2+ entry. This study showed that curcumin inhibited...
Pesticides of different chemical classes exert their toxic effects on the nervous system by acting on the different regulatory mechanisms of calcium (Ca2+) homeostasis. Pesticides have been shown to alter Ca2+ homeostasis, mainly by increasing its in...
VGF gene encodes for a neuropeptide precursor of 68 kDa composed by 615 (human) and 617 (rat, mice) residues, expressed prevalently in the central nervous system (CNS), but also in the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and in various endocrine cells. T...
Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease from the histological and molecular expression point of view, and this heterogeneity determines cancer aggressiveness. Store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE), a major mechanism for Ca2+ entry in non-excitable cells,...
Ca2+ is essential for virus entry, viral gene replication, virion maturation, and release. The alteration of host cells Ca2+ homeostasis is one of the strategies that viruses use to modulate host cells signal transduction mechanisms in their favor. H...
Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) has mitogenic and chemotactic effects on fibroblasts. An increase in intracellular Ca2+ is one of the first events that occurs following the stimulation of PDGF receptors (PDGFRs). PDGF activates Ca2+ elevation b...
Cell migration and invasion in glioblastoma (GBM), the most lethal form of primary brain tumors, are critically dependent on Ca2+ signaling. Increases of [Ca2+]i in GBM cells often result from Ca2+ release from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), promote...
The cholesterol synthesis inhibitor Triparanol has been shown to trigger apoptosis in several malignancies. Similar to the apoptosis of nucleated cells, erythrocytes may enter eryptosis, the suicidal death characterized by cell shrinkage and cell mem...
Xerostomia, the subjective feeling of a dry mouth associated with dysfunction of the salivary glands, is mainly caused by radiation and chemotherapy, various systemic and autoimmune diseases, and drugs. As saliva plays numerous essential roles in ora...
Highly neurotoxic A1-reactive astrocytes have been associated with several human neurodegenerative diseases. Complement protein C3 expression is strongly upregulated in A1 astrocytes, and this protein has been shown to be a specific biomarker of thes...
Thrombo-occlusive diseases such as myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke and deep vein thrombosis with subsequent pulmonary embolism still represent a major health burden worldwide. Besides the cells of the vasculature or other hematopoietic cells,...
From a series of (1R, 1S)-1[β-(phenylalkoxy)-(phenetyl)]-1H-pyrazolium hydrochloride as new analogues of SKF-96365, one has an interesting effect for endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+ release and store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) (IC50 25 μM) on the PLP...
Background: Platelets can support cancer progression via the release of microparticles and microvesicles that enhance the migratory behaviour of recipient cancer cells. We recently showed that platelet-derived extracellular vesicles (PEVs) stimulate...
Excessive release of glutamate induces excitotoxicity and causes neuronal damage in several neurodegenerative diseases. Natural products have emerged as potential neuroprotective agents for preventing and treating neurological disorders. Dehydrocoryd...
Skeletal muscle contraction relies on both high-fidelity calcium (Ca2+) signals and robust capacity for adenosine triphosphate (ATP) generation. Ca2+ release units (CRUs) are highly organized junctions between the terminal cisternae of the sarcoplasm...
of 3