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Calcium (Ca2+) plays a central role in mediating both contractile function and hypertrophic signalling in ventricular cardiomyocytes. L-type Ca2+ channels trigger release of Ca2+ from ryanodine receptors (RyRs) for cellular contraction,…
Neuronal calcium (Ca2+) signaling represents a molecular trigger for diverse central nervous system adaptations and maladaptions. The altered function of dorsal spinal inhibitory interneurons is strongly implicated in the mechanisms…
We have developed a quantitative model for the creation of cytoplasmic Ca2+ gradients near the inner surface of the plasma membrane (PM). In particular we simulated the refilling of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) via PM-SR junctions during…
Glutamate and glycine are important neurotransmitters in the brain. An action potential prop- agating in the terminal of a presynatic neuron causes the release of glutamate and glycine in the synapse by vesicles fusing with the cell…
Calcium (Ca2+) signalling is one of the most important mechanisms of information propagation in the body. In embryogenesis the interplay between Ca2+ signalling and mechanical forces is critical to the healthy development of an embryo but…
Living cells sense noisy biochemical signals crucial for survival, yet models incorporating intracellular signaling are limited. This study examines how cells sense chemotactic concentrations through phosphorylation readouts in Ca2+…
The calcium (Ca$^{2+}$) signalling system is important for many cellular processes within the human body. Signals are transmitted within the cell by releasing Ca$^{2+}$ from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) into the cytosol via clusters of…
Many cells use calcium signalling to carry information from the extracellular side of the plasma membrane to targets in their interior. Since virtually all cells employ a network of biochemical reactions for Ca2+ signalling, much effort has…
Hyperamylinemia, a condition characterized by above-normal blood levels of the pancreas-derived peptide amylin, accompanies obesity and precedes type II diabetes. Human amylin oligomerizes easily and can deposit in the pancreas, brain, and…
Sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles and purified Ca$^{2+}$-ATPase hydrolyze acetyl phosphate both in the presence and absence of Ca$^{2+}$. The Ca$^{2+}$-independent activity was fully sensitive to vanadate, insensitive to thapsigargin, and…
This study reveals the essence of ligand recognition mechanisms by which calmodulin (CaM) controls a variety of Ca2+ signaling processes. We study eight forms of calcium-loaded CaM each with distinct conformational states. Reducing the…
Muscle uses Ca2+ as a messenger to control contraction and relies on ATP to maintain the intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis. Mitochondria are the major sub-cellular organelle of ATP production. With a negative inner membrane potential,…
Isolated sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles in the presence of Mg(2+) and absence of Ca(2+) retain significant ATP hydrolytic activity that can be attributed to the Ca(2+)-ATPase protein. At neutral pH and the presence of 5 mM Mg(2+), the…
Deciphering the complex interactions between neurotransmission and astrocytic $Ca^{2+}$ elevations is a target promising a comprehensive understanding of brain function. While the astrocytic response to excitatory synaptic activity has been…
We develop a spatially explicit biophysical model of the hippocampal CA3-CA1 presynaptic bouton to study local calcium dynamics leading to vesicle fusion. A kinetic model with two calcium sensors is formulated specifically for the CA3-CA1…
Cortical neurons are subject to sustained and irregular synaptic activity which causes important fluctuations of the membrane potential (Vm). We review here different methods to characterize this activity and its impact on spike generation.…
Synaptic connections are known to change dynamically. High-frequency presynaptic inputs induce decrease of synaptic weights. This process is known as short-term synaptic depression. The synaptic depression controls a gain for presynaptic…
The ATP-driven Plasma Membrane Calcium pump or Ca(2+)-ATPase (PMCA) is characterized by a high affinity to calcium and a low transport rate compared to other transmembrane calcium transport proteins. It plays a crucial role for calcium…
Aptamer-based sensing of small molecules such as dopamine and serotonin in the brain, requires characterization of the specific aptamer sequences in solutions mimicking the in vivo environment with physiological ionic concentrations. In…
Connectomics aims to recover a complete set of synaptic connections within a dataset imaged by volume electron microscopy. Many systems have been proposed for locating synapses, and recent research has included a way to identify the…