Abstract

Calcium is involved in a multitude of cellular signal transduction mechanisms ranging from gene expression to regulated secretion. This diversity is also reflected in the temporal and spatial range of action of these processes: regulated secretion can be a submillisecond process operating within a submicrometer compartment, whereas gene expression can take hours within the nucleus. Common to all these mechanisms is the fact that calcium will diffuse and bind to cellular buffers on its way to the appropriate effectors, a process that we refer to as “buffered calcium diffusion.”

© 1997 Optical Society of America