Special structure of extracellular Ca~(2+) -sensing receptor (CaR) and its clinical application in a new era / 中国药理学通报

The recently successful cloning of extracellular calcium sensing receptor (CaR) has revealed its vital role in adjusting and maintaining the homeostasis calcium or even other mineral ion in the body. CaR belongs to the big family of G-protein coupled receptors, and has 1079 amino acids in its structure. CaR is broadly distributed in a variety of tissues, including parathyroid, thyroid C cells, kidney, intestine and bone. So far, three disorders of extracellular calcium homeostasis have been linked with abnormalities of CaR function. Agonists and antagonists of CaR may be proved useful in the treatment of the diseases due to calcium metabolic disorders.