Modeling IP3-dependent calcium dynamics in non-excitable cells

Calcium is critically important for a vast array of cellular functions, as discussed in detail in Chap. 1. There are a number of Ca2+ control mechanisms operating on different levels, all designed to ensure that Ca2+ is present in sufficient quantity to perform its necessary functions, but not in too great a quantity in the wrong places. Prolonged high concentrations of Ca2+ are toxic. For instance, it is known that cellular Ca2+ overload can trigger apoptotic cell death, a process in which the cell kills itself. Indeed, control of Ca2+ homeostasis is so crucial that even just disruptions in the normal Ca2+ fluxes can lead to initiation of active cell death. There are many reviews of Ca2+ physiology in the literature: in 2003 an entire issue of Nature Reviews was devoted to the subject and contains reviews of Ca2+ homeostasis (Berridge et al., 2003), extracellular Ca2+ sensing (Hofer and Brown, 2003), Ca2+ signaling during embryogenesis (Webb and Miller, 2003), the Ca2+-apoptosis link (Orrenius et al., 2003), and the regulation of cardiac contractility by Ca2+ (MacLennan and Kranias, 2003). Other useful reviews are Berridge, (1997) and Carafoli (2002).