Calcium as a Regulator of Intracellular Processes in Actinomycetes: A Review

Data on the effects of calcium ions (Ca²⁺) on processes of morphological and physiological differentiation in cultures of actinomycetes have been reviewed, with emphasis on representatives of the genus Strepomyces. Evidence accumulated thus far regarding the regulatory role of serine-threonine protein kinases in the differentiation and the possible involvement of Ca²⁺-dependent protein kinases in secondary metabolism (including antibiotic biosynthesis) are analyzed. The possibility that regulatory elements of apoptosis (including Ca²⁺-dependent) function in actinomycetes is discussed. A hypothesis is advanced, according to which determinants of antibiotic resistance play a key role in the network of signal transduction systems of actinomycetes.__________Translated from Prikladnaya Biokhimiya i Mikrobiologiya, Vol. 41, No. 4, 2005, pp. 363–375.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Danilenko, Mironov, Elizarov.