Annexins—a family of proteins with distinctive tastes for cell signaling and membrane dynamics.

Annexins are cytosolic proteins with conserved three-dimensional structures that bind acidic phospholipids in cellular membranes at elevated Ca²⁺ levels. Through this they act as Ca²⁺-regulated membrane binding modules that organize membrane lipids, facilitating cellular membrane transport but also displaying extracellular activities. Recent discoveries highlight annexins as sensors and regulators of cellular and organismal stress, controlling inflammatory reactions in mammals, environmental stress in plants, and cellular responses to plasma membrane rupture. Here, we describe the role of annexins as Ca²⁺-regulated membrane binding modules that sense and respond to cellular stress and share our view on future research directions in the field. Annexins are calcium-regulated membrane binding proteins with an array of cellular activities. Here, Gerke et al. describe recent research highlighting the many functions of annexins and provide a view on directions for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]