Clusters of calcium release channels harness the Ising phase transition to confine their elementary intracellular signals.

ABSTRACT: Intracellular Ca signals represent a universal mechanism of cell function. Messages carried by Ca are local, rapid, and powerful enough to be delivered over the thermal noise. A higher signal-to-noise ratio is achieved by a cooperative action of Ca release channels such as IP3 receptors or ryanodine receptors arranged in clusters (release units) containing a few to several hundred release channels. The channels synchronize their openings via Ca-induced Ca release, generating high-amplitude local Ca signals known as puffs in neurons and sparks in muscle cells. Despite the positive feedback nature of the activation, Ca signals are strictly confined in time and space by an unexplained termination mechanism. Here we show that the collective transition of release channels from an open to a clos

SUBMITTER: Maltsev AV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5530665 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature