Role of regucalcin in maintaining cell homeostasis and function (review)

Regucalcin was discovered in 1978 as a Ca(2+)-binding protein that does not contain EF-hand motif of Ca(2+)-binding domain. The name regucalcin was proposed for this Ca2(2+)binding protein, which can regulate liver cell functions related to Ca(2+). The regucalcin gene is localized on chromosome X, and the organization of the regucalcin gene consists of seven exons and six introns. AP-1 and NFI-A1 can bind to the promoter region of the rat regucalcin gene to mediate the Ca(2+) response for transcriptional activation. Regucalcin plays a pivotal role in maintaining intracellular Ca(2+) homeostasis due to activating Ca(2+) pump enzymes in the plasma membrane (basolateral membrane), microsomes (endoplasmic reticulum) and mitochondria of many cell types. Regucalcin has a suppressive effect on Ca(2+) signaling from the cytoplasm to the nucleus in the proliferative cells. Also, regucalcin has been demonstrated to transport to nucleus, and it can inhibit nuclear protein kinase, protein phosphatase, and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) synthesis. Regucalcin can control enhancement of cell proliferation due to hormonal stimulation. Moreover, overexpression of regucalcin suppresses cell death and apoptosis in the cloned rat hepatoma cells induced by various signaling factors. Regucalcin plays a multifunctional role in the regulation of cellular function in liver, kidney cortex, heart and brain. Moreover, regucalcin-overexpressing rat has been shown to induce bone loss and hyperlipidemia with increasing age, indicating a pathophysiologic role. Regucalcin transgenic rat may be useful as an animal model in osteoporosis and hyperlipidemia. Thus, regucalcin plays a pivotal role in maintaining cell homeostasis and function. Regucalcin gene expression-related diseases may be found in human.