Intracellular Calcium Signals: Generation, Function and Therapeutic Intervention

Ca²⁺ signaling is an evolutionarily conserved pathway that plays prominent roles in cellular function from primitive eukaryotic uni-cellular organisms all the way to humans. Cytoplasmic Ca²⁺ is a remarkably versatile second messenger - essentially every cell in the body has vital processes controlled by intracellular free Ca²⁺. These processes include neurotransmission, muscle contraction, metabolism, immune cell activation as well as fertilization and cell death. Given its central role in cell physiology, it is no surprise that aberrant Ca²⁺ signaling is increasingly recognized as a crucial mechanism underlying cell damage associated with pathophysiology in numerous diseases such as allergy, pancreatitis, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, cardiac hypertrophy and arrhythmias, and hypertension. In fact, Ca²⁺ signalling has also been linked to major world health issues including malaria and toxoplasmosis. This conference will bring together the world's leaders in Ca²⁺ research together with graduate students and postdocs with the primary goal of enhancing our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of Ca²⁺ signaling and homeostasis, how Ca²⁺ signals can produce physiological and pathological effects and how Ca²⁺ channels can be targeted for therapeutic benefit.