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Updated: Aug 23, 2026

Isolation and Culture of Primary Mouse Keratinocytes from Neonatal and Adult Mouse Skin
Published on: July 14, 2017
The role of the calcium-sensing receptor in epidermal differentiation
Chia-Ling Tu1, Yuko Oda, Laszlo Komuves
1Department of Medicine, Veteran Affairs Medical Center, University of California and Endocrine Unit, San Francisco, CA 94121, USA. ctu@itsa.ucsf.edu
Abstract:
Calcium regulates the proliferation and differentiation of keratinocytes both in vivo and in vitro. Elevated extracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]o) raises the intracellular free calcium ([Ca2+]i) and activates differentiation-related genes. Cells lacking the calcium-sensing receptor (CaR) fail to respond to [Ca2+]o and to differentiate, indicating a role for CaR in keratinocyte differentiation. These concepts derived from in vitro experiments have been tested and confirmed in two mouse models.
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