Shuffling the cards in signal transduction: Calcium, arachidonic acid and mechanosensitivity

• 作者: Luca Munaron
• 来源期刊: 世界生物化学杂志：英文版（电子版）
• 学科: 生物学
• 关键词: Arachidonic acid CALCIUM signaling Evolution MECHANOSENSITIVITY PHOSPHOLIPASE A2
• 年，卷（期）: 2011,（4）
• 页码范围: 59-66
• 页数: 8页
• 分类号: Q26

摘要

Cell signaling is a very complex network of biochemical reactions triggered by a huge number of stimuli coming from the external medium. The function of any single signaling component depends not only on its own structure but also on its connections with other biomolecules. During prokaryotic-eukaryotic transition, the rearrangement of cell organization in terms of diffusional compartmentalization exerts a deep change in cell signaling functional potentiality. In this review I briefly introduce an intriguing ancient relationship between pathways involved in cell responses to chemical agonists (growth factors, nutrients, hormones) as well as to mechanical forces (stretch, osmotic changes). Some biomolecules (ion channels and enzymes) act as 'hubs', thanks to their ability to be directly or indirectly chemically/mechanically co-regulated. In particular calcium signaling machinery and arachidonic acid metabolism are very ancient networks, already present before eukaryotic appearance. A number of molecular 'hubs', including phospholipase A2 and some calcium channels, appear tightly interconnected in a cross regulation leading to the cellular response to chemical and mechanical stimulations.