Modulation of the Plasma Membrane Ca2+ Pump

The plasma membrane calcium pump, which ejects Ca²⁺ from the cell, is regulated by calmodulin. In the absence of calmodulin, the pump is relatively inactive; binding of calmodulin to a specific domain stimulates its activity. Phosphorylation of the pump with protein kinase C or A may modify this regulation. Most of the regulatory functions of the enzyme are concentrated in a region at the carboxyl terminus. This region varies substantially between different isoforms of the pump, causing substantial differences in regulatory properties. The pump shares some motifs of the carboxyl terminus with otherwise unrelated proteins: The calmodulin-binding domain is a modified IQ motif (a motif which is present in myosins) and the last 3 residues of isoform 4b are a PDZ target domain. The pump is ubiquitous, with isoforms 1 and 4 of the pump being more widely distributed than 2 and 3. In some kinds of cells isoform 1 or 4 is missing, and is replaced by another isoform. Received: 26 January 1998/Revised: 6 April 1998