Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP 3 ) 1 is a second messenger generated by the phosphatidylinositol signaling cascade response to hormones, neurotransmitters, and growth factors (1) and causes Ca 2ϩ release from intracellular stores by binding to the IP 3 receptor (IP 3 R), which is an IP 3 -gated intracellular Ca 2ϩ release channel. Ca 2ϩ release in the cytoplasm occurs in complex spatial and temporal patterns, such as Ca 2ϩ waves and Ca 2ϩ oscillations, and regulates many cellular responses, including fertilization, muscle contraction, secretion, cell growth, differentiation, apoptosis, and synaptic plasticity (1).The IP 3 R family consists of three isoforms (IP 3 R1, IP 3 R2, and IP 3 R3) (2), and the primary structure of all three IP 3 R types has been determined in rat (3-5) and human (6 -9). Only a single type of IP 3 R was identified in frog (10), fly (11), starfish (12), lobster (13), and nematode (14). Three isoforms have been found to exist in the mouse (15, 16), but the primary structure of mouse IP 3 R2 and IP 3 R3 has not yet been determined.IP 3 -gated Ca 2ϩ release channels are composed of four subunits (17). The expression levels of the three IP 3 R isoforms are different in each tissue, but most tissues contain multiple isoforms (18). Heterotetrameric channels were detected as well as homotetrameric channels (19), indicating that the structural diversity of the IP 3 -gated channels is greater than the number of genes. There is evidence of functional differences among the three types of IP 3 R in terms of their IP 3 sensitivity (20, 21) and the modulatory effects on them from cytoplasmic Ca 2ϩ (22), ATP (22), calmodulin (23), and cAMP-dependent protein kinase (24). Additional diversity of IP 3 -gated channels is produced by alternative splicing, and alternative splicing segments, designated SI, SII, and SIII, have been found in the mouse (25), rat (26), and human (9) IP 3 R1. These findings suggest that the channels composed of different isoforms possess distinctive functions, but little is known about the physiological significance and exact functional differences arising from the heterotetrameric assembly of IP 3 R.In many cells, the Ca 2ϩ increase triggered by IP 3 is propagated throughout the cytoplasm; however, the diffusion of free Ca 2ϩ is spatially restricted because many immobile or slowly diffusing Ca 2ϩ -binding proteins are present in the cytoplasm (27). Propagation of Ca 2ϩ is thought to be mediated by regenerative Ca 2ϩ release through IP 3 Rs, which are regulated by cytoplasmic Ca 2ϩ (28). Positive feedback regulation of IP 3 R by Ca 2ϩ enables the Ca 2ϩ released by one receptor to excite its