Vladimir Kefalov, Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis will be delivering a seminar on “Calcium Homeostasis in Mammalian Rod and Cone Photoreceptors” on Wednesday, May 11th at 12:00 Noon in the Moran Eye Center auditorium.
Abstract: Calcium plays an important role in the function and health of photoreceptors. Calcium modulates the phototransduction cascade and controls the response sensitivity, response kinetics, and adaptation. Abnormal calcium homeostasis, associated with mutations in multiple phototransduction proteins, has also been suggested to cause retinal degeneration and blindness. This talk will present the results of our recent studies on the mechanisms for extruding calcium from mammalian photoreceptors. We have identified novel mechanisms for regulating calcium in both rods and cones. The implications of our findings for the function and survival of mammalian photoreceptors will also be addressed
