intracellular calcium (effects)
Last reviewed 01/2018
Intracellular calcium may have a role in:
- intracellular secondary messenger
- exocrine and endocrine secretion
- cell division
- cell locomotion and shape change
- stimulation of energy production
- stimulation of muscular contraction
Many of these roles are due to the principle of calcium binding to regulatory or structural proteins e.g. tubulin, troponin C and calmodulin, in order to modulate their activity. Further, the binding of calcium to protein kinase enzymes can trigger the latter into phosphorylating other proteins. This is a means of initiating an amplified cascade.