Ca2+ influx is an essential component of the positive-feedback loop that maintains leading-edge structure and activity in macrophages.

ABSTRACT: In migrating eukaryotic cells, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), filamentous actin (F-actin), and monomeric Rho GTPases are key components of a complex positive-feedback system that maintains and amplifies a phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-trisphosphate signal at the leading edge of the cell. This lipid signal is required for cell polarization and movement. In leukocytes and Dictyostelium, activation or inhibition of any one of these components leads to the activation or inhibition, respectively, of the others via undefined feedback interactions. The role of Ca(2+) signals in migrating leukocytes is controversial, and there has been no indication that Ca(2+) participates in positive feedback. Here, we demonstrate that an extracellular Ca(2+) influx is required for positive feedback at the l

SUBMITTER: Evans JH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2042181 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature