%0 Journal Article
%T Understanding the physiological roles of the neuronal calcium sensor proteins
%A Robert D Burgoyne
%A Lee P Haynes
%J Molecular Brain
%D 2012
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1756-6606-5-2
%X Calcium has a major role in neurons as the trigger for neurotransmitter release [1,2]. In addition many other aspects of neuronal function are regulated by changes in intracellular free Ca2+ concentration. Rapid exocytosis of neurotransmitter-containing synaptic vesicles is activated by a local increase in Ca2+ concentration at the presynaptic active zone within 10 s of microseconds [3] through the action of the Ca2+ sensor synaptotagmin [4]. Other Ca2+-regulated events require more global changes in neuronal Ca2+ concentration, are activated over longer time scales and the changes can persist for minutes to days [5]. In part the specificity of the effects of Ca2+ on neuronal physiology is determined by the magnitude, kinetics and spatial localisation of the Ca2+ signal [6]. The transduction of changes in Ca2+ concentration requires Ca2+-binding proteins and these can contribute to the overall specificity of Ca2+ signalling. One well-characterised Ca2+-binding protein with neuronal functions is the ubiquitous protein calmodulin which binds Ca2+ through its four EF-hand domains [7]. Other EF-hand containing proteins have been found to be expressed in neurons and these contribute to the diversity of the neuronal Ca2+ signalling repertoire. These include two families known as the CaBPs/calneurons [8-13] and the neuronal calcium sensor (NCS) family. The latter family are the subject of this review. The NCS proteins have a wide range of physiological functions in neurons and in the photoreceptor cells in the retina. An emerging area is the recognition of the importance of NCS protein signalling in neuronal disease [14-20].A key issue regarding the NCS proteins is how they can differentially affect specific aspects of neuronal function. NCS protein function is established by several factors determined by their intrinsic properties including their ability to interact with and regulate different target proteins. Several reviews on the NCS proteins have been published [21-25
%K Calcium
%K Calcium-sensor
%K EF-hand
%K neuronal signalling
%K protein complex
%K protein structure
%U http://www.molecularbrain.com/content/5/1/2