Calcium ion is a universal signaling intermediate, which is known to control various biological processes. In excitable cells, voltagegated calcium channels (Cav) are the major route of calcium entry and regulate multiple functions such as contraction, neurotransmitter release, and gene transcription. Here we show that T lymphocytes, which are nonexcitable cells, express both regulatory  and pore-forming Cav1 ␣1 subunits of Cav channels, and we provide genetic evidence for a critical role of the Cav 3 and Cav 4 regulatory subunits in T lymphocyte function. Cav -deficient T lymphocytes fail to acquire normal functions, and they display impairment in the T cell receptor-mediated calcium response, nuclear factor of activated T cells activation, and cytokine production. In addition, unlike in excitable cells, our data suggest a minimal physiological role for depolarization in Cav channel opening in T cells. T cell receptor stimulation induces only a small depolarization of T cells, and artificial depolarization of T cells using KCl does not lead to calcium entry. These observations suggest that the Cav channels expressed by T cells have adopted novel regulation͞gating mechanisms.C alcium ion plays critical and specific roles in various T cell functions, including activation, differentiation, proliferation, and cytokine production (1, 2). In T lymphocytes, ligation of the T cell receptor (TCR) by antigen leads to the release of calcium from intracellular stores, triggering the calcium release-activated calcium current (3), and a potential candidate for calcium release-activated calcium current channel was recently reported (4-6). But the complexity of the calcium response in T cells suggests the expression of more than one plasma membrane calcium channel. Although it is established that, in excitable cells, Cav channels constitute the major route of calcium entry (7), the functional presence of the Cav1 channels in T lymphocytes has been suggested (8-13) but has remained controversial because of the lack of a reliable and specific loss-of-function approach.Cav  subunits are cytoplasmic proteins that strongly regulate Cav channels through direct interaction with pore-forming ␣1 subunits (14-17). The  subunits are also critical for assembly of the channel complex (18), correct plasma membrane targeting (19,20), and stimulation of channel activity (21). A number of potential ␣1- combinations are likely to form a Cav channel complex (22), and, among these, the 4 and 3 subunits are key subunits that associate with Cav1 channels (23-25).A spontaneous mutation named lethargic, which arose in the mouse inbred strain BALB͞cGn in 1962, is recognizable in homozygous mice at 2 weeks of age by the onset of ataxia, seizures, and lethargic behavior (26,27). These mice also exhibit a generalized immunological disorder including defective cell-mediated immune responses (28). It has been reported, using a positional cloning approach, that this syndrome was the result of a mutation of the Cav 4 subunit gene (29). This mutatio...