Gene regulation by voltage-dependent calcium channels

Ca2+ is the most widely used second messenger in cell biology and fulfills a plethora of essential cell functions. One of the most exciting findings of the last decades was the involvement of Ca2+ in the regulation of long-term cell adaptation through its ability to control gene expression. This finding provided a link between cell excitation and gene expression. In this review, we chose to focus on the role of voltage-dependent calcium channels in mediating gene expression in response to membrane depolarization. We illustrate the different pathways by which these channels are involved in excitation-transcription coupling, including the most recent Ca2+ ion-independent strategies that highlight the transcription factor role of calcium channels. (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier B.V.