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Updated: Jul 10, 2026

Applications of Spatio-temporal Mapping and Particle Analysis Techniques to Quantify Intracellular Ca2+ Signaling In Situ
Published on: January 7, 2019
Calcium-associated mechanisms in gut pacemaker activity
Shinsuke Nakayama1, Shunichi Kajioka, Kazunori Goto
1Department of Cell Physiology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan. h44673a@nucc.cc.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Abstract:
A considerable body of evidence has revealed that interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC), identified with c-Kit-immunoreactivity, act as gut pacemaker cells, with spontaneous Ca(2+) activity in ICC as the probable primary mechanism. Namely, intracellular (cytosolic) Ca(2+) oscillations in ICC periodically activate plasmalemmal Ca(2+)-dependent ion channels and thereby generate pacemaker potentials. This review will, thus, focus on Ca(2+)-associated mechanisms in ICC in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, including auxiliary organs.
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