Calcium signaling in intracellular protist parasites.

Calcium ion (Ca2+) signaling is one of the most frequently employed mechanisms of signal transduction by eukaryotic cells, and starts with either Ca2+ release from intracellular stores or Ca2+ entry through the plasma membrane. In intracellular protist parasites Ca2+ signaling initiates a sequence of events that may facilitate their invasion of host cells, respond to environmental changes within the host, or regulate the function of their intracellular organelles. In this review we examine recent findings in Ca2+ signaling in two groups of intracellular protist parasites that have been studied in more detail, the apicomplexan and the trypanosomatid parasites.