Coordinated control of renal Ca2+ handling

Ca2+ homeostasis is an important factor, which is underlined by the numerous clinical symptoms that involve Ca2+ deficiencies. The overall Ca2+ balance is maintained by the concerted action of Ca2+ absorption in the intestine, reabsorption in the kidney, and exchange from bone, which are all under the control of the calciotropic hormones that are released upon a demand for Ca2+. In the kidney, these calciotropic hormones affect active Ca2+ reabsorption, which consists of TRPV5 as the apical entry gate for Ca2+ influx, calbindin-D28K as an intracellular ferry for Ca2+ and, NCX1 and PMCA1b for extrusion of Ca2+ across the basolateral membrane. This review highlights the action of hormones on renal Ca2+ handling and focuses on the coordinated control of the renal Ca2+ transport proteins. Parathyroid hormone stimulates renal Ca2+ handling by regulating active Ca2+ reabsorption on both the genomic and non-genomic level. Estrogens harbor calciotropic hormone characteristics positively regulating the expression of TRPV5, independently of vitamin D. Besides having a strong regulatory effect on the expression of the intestinal Ca2+ transport proteins, vitamin D contributes to the overall Ca2+ balance by enhancing the expression of the Ca2+ transport machinery in the kidney. Dietary Ca2+ is involved in regulating its own handling by controlling the expression of the renal Ca2+ transport proteins. Thus, the magnitude of Ca2+ entry via TRPV5 controls the expression of the other Ca2+ transport proteins underlining the gatekeeper function of this Ca2+ channel in the renal Ca2+ handling.