Abstract.
Ca2+ signaling plays a crucial role in virtually all cellular processes, from the origin of new life at fertilization to the end of life when cells die. Both the influx of external Ca2+ through Ca2+-permeable channels and its release from intracellular stores are essential to the signaling function. Intracellular Ca2+ is influenced by mitogenic factors which control the entry and progression of the cell cycle; this is a strong indication for a role of Ca2+ in the control of the cycle, but surprisingly, the possibility of such a role has only been paid scant attention in the literature. Substantial progress has nevertheless been made in recent years in relating Ca2+ and the principal decoder of its information, calmodulin, to the modulation of various cycle steps. The aim of this review is to critically discuss the evidence for a role of Ca2+ in the cell cycle and to discuss Ca2+-dependent pathways regulating cell growth and differentiation.
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Received 2 March 2005; received after revision 9 May 2005; accepted 24 May 2005
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Santella, L., Ercolano, E. & Nusco, G.A. The cell cycle: a new entry in the field of Ca2+ signaling. Cell. Mol. Life Sci. 62, 2405–2413 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00018-005-5083-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00018-005-5083-6