ReviewThe Journal of biological chemistry2016
Why Calcium? How Calcium Became the Best Communicator.
Review in The Journal of biological chemistry, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 172 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
172 citing papers in PubMed.
- Calpains as Potential Regulators of Microtubule-Associated Cytokinesis: A Cross-Eukaryotic Unifying Hypothesis.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Coriander Honey Accelerates Human Osteoblast Differentiation and Matrix Mineralization via Intracellular CaPharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- MICU proteins facilitate calcium-dependent mitochondrial metabolon formation to regulate cellular energetics independently of MCU.Nature metabolism · 2026Article
- Dynamic-Structure Redesign of Calmodulin Reveals Mechanistic Constraints on Ryr2 Regulation.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Spectrum and functions of ion channels and transporters in osteoclasts.Bone research · 2026Review
- An RNA interference biopesticide reduces reproduction of the honey bee parasite Varroa destructor by down-regulating embryo development pathways.Pest management science · 2026Article
- Calcium activation mechanism of a noncanonical aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase from psilocybin mushroom Psilocybe cubensis.Communications biology · 2026Article
- MAcro Plant Projection Imaging (MAPPI): An open, scalable platform for whole-plant fluorescence real-time imaging.Science advances · 2026Article
- The SERCA Pump: A Key Molecular Target in Calcium Handling of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells in Metabolic Syndrome.Handbook of experimental pharmacology · 2026Review
- Functional analysis of CaParasitology · 2026Article
- Visualizing intracellular milieu and electric field-induced cell responses by fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Rules of life at the interface of calcium signaling and mechanobiology.APL bioengineering · 2025Review
- Pathological Mechanisms in Sjögren's Disease Likely Involve the ADP-Ribosyl Cyclase Family Members: CD38 and CD157.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Plasma membrane calcium ATPases and cerebellar pathology: what's the role in the ataxia?Biology direct · 2025Review
- Calcium Homeostasis Machinery in the Human Uterus-A Potential Therapeutic Target in Endometrial Cancer.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Conformational ligand-directed targeting of calcium-dependent receptors in acute trauma.Med (New York, N.Y.) · 2025Article
- Review
- MICU proteins facilitate CaResearch square · 2025Article
- Calcium modulates growth and biofilm formation of Lactobacillus acidophilus ATCC 4356 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum ATCC 14917.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Direct observation and quantitative characterization of chemotactic behaviors in Caribbean coral larvae exposed to organic and inorganic settlement cues.Scientific reports · 2025Article
112 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Calcium carries messages to virtually all important functions of cells. Although it was already active in unicellular organisms, its role became universally important after the transition to multicellular life. In this Minireview, we explore how calcium ended up in this privileged position. Most likely its unique coordination chemistry was a decisive factor as it makes its binding by complex molecules particularly easy even in the presence of large excesses of other cations, e.g. magnesium. Its free concentration within cells can thus be maintained at the very low levels demanded by the signaling function. A large cadre of proteins has evolved to bind or transport calcium. They all contribute to buffer it within cells, but a number of them also decode its message for the benefit of the target. The most important of these "calcium sensors" are the EF-hand proteins. Calcium is an ambivalent messenger. Although essential to the correct functioning of cell processes, if not carefully controlled spatially and temporally within cells, it generates variously severe cell dysfunctions, and even cell death.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.