Mechanisms Underlying Calcium Homeostasis Regulation in Cancer and Neurodegenerative Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

Intracellular calcium (Ca2+) signalling regulates a variety of cellular functions in mammalian cells, such as differentiation, proliferation, growth, gene transcription, membrane excitability, metabolism, and apoptosis. Intracellular Ca2+ concentrations ([Ca2+]i) are tightly controlled by a complex machinery composed of both intracellular and extracellular components. Among those components located on plasma membrane, ion channels, exchangers and pumps represent the most important and promising druggable targets for the cure of several pathologies in which Ca2+ signalling becomes dysfunctional. In fact, alteration of ion channels expression and/or function leads to a group of disorders called “channelopathies”. Recent studies show that ion channels are promising new targets for anticancer therapies. Accordingly, pharmacological modulation of ion channels or gene silencing strongly affects cell proliferation, migration or invasion. Growing evidence indicates that Ca2+ signalling is not only critical for neuronal and glial physiology, but also, when deregulated, is involved in the pathogenesis of several neurodegenerative processes. Importantly, diverse groups of molecular and cellular components involved in Ca2+ handling have been identified as potential targets of neuroprotective molecules. Relevantly, intracellular organelles such as mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, lysosomes and nucleus as well as their tight interplay emerged as major components of Ca2+ signalling in physiological and pathological conditions. Moreover, the exact chain of events leading to Ca2+ dysfunction in cancer and in the neurodegenerative process has not yet clarified. Therefore, many efforts should be done to characterize these events together with the related Ca2+-signalling cascades in order to identify new effective therapeutic targets.

This Special Issue of Biomolecules is focused on the role of imbalanced Ca2+ signalling in cancer and Neurodegenerative diseases. Contributions in the form of original experimental articles, up-to-date reviews, or short communications are welcome. We hope that this collection of papers will help the scientific community to improve the knowledge about the mechanistic role of Ca2+ and highlight its therapeutic potential in different pathophysiological conditions such as cancer and neurodegeneration.

Dr. Agnese Secondo
Dr. Ilaria Piccialli
Guest Editors

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• Central Nervous System
• Ca2+ signalling
• Ca2+ homeostasis
• Endoplasmic Reticulum
• Mitochondria
• Lysosomes
• Nucleus
• MAM
• Plasma membrane