Calcium Channels in Retinal Function and Disease

Abstract

Voltage-gated Ca2+ (Cav) channels play pivotal roles in regulating gene transcription, neuronal excitability, and neurotransmitter release. In order to meet the spatial and temporal demands of visual signaling, Cav channels exhibit unusual properties in the retina compared to their counterparts in other areas of the nervous system. Here, we review current concepts regarding the specific subtypes of Cav channels expressed in the retina, their intrinsic properties and forms of modulation, and how their dysregulation could lead to retinal disease.

A non-conducting role of the Cav1.4 Ca2+channel drives homeostatic plasticity at the cone photoreceptor synapse

“…Clusters 8 and 16 were identified as cones based on the expression of cone marker genes (e.g., Opn1sw, Opn1mw, Arr3, Gnat2). Consistent with previous studies 21,23 , Cacna1h encoding the Cav3.2 subtype was the major Cav3 transcript expressed in WT mouse cones. There was no significant difference in Cacna1h expression between WT and G369i KI cones according to this analysis (Supp.…”

“…While it is well-established that Cav1.4 is the main Cav subtype in mouse cones, Cav3 channels, in particular Cav3.2, have been reported to be expressed in mouse cones by electrophysiology 21 and single cell RNA-seq studies 21,43,44 . By pharmacological and other criteria, we found no evidence for a functional contribution of Cav3 in our recordings of cones in WT mice (Figs.…”

“…Our drop-seq analysis aligns with previous studies indicating that Cacna1h is expressed at extremely low levels compared to Cacna1f in WT mouse cones (Supp.Fig. S3) 23,44 . However, in contrast to recordings of WT mouse cone pedicles in a previous study 21 , we found no evidence for Cav3-mediated currents in somatic recordings of cones in WT mice (Figs.…”