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World J Gastroenterol. Nov 28, 2019; 25(44): 6483-6494
Published online Nov 28, 2019. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v25.i44.6483
Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor in the liver: Expression and function
M Fatima Leite, Marcone Loiola dos Santos, Antônio Carlos Melo Lima Filho, Rodrigo M Florentino, Fernanda de Oliveira Lemos
Fernanda de Oliveira Lemos, Rodrigo M Florentino, Antônio Carlos Melo Lima Filho, M Fatima Leite, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
Marcone Loiola dos Santos, Department of Cell Biology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
Author contributions: All authors contributed to this paper with literature review and analysis, drafting and critical revision and editing, and approval of the final version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: No potential conflicts of interest. No financial support.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: M Fatima Leite, PhD, Full Professor, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos 6627, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil. leitemd@ufmg.br
Telephone: +55-31-34092518 Fax: +55-31-34092947
Received: August 18, 2019
Peer-review started: August 18, 2019
First decision: October 14, 2019
Revised: October 22, 2019
Accepted: November 13, 2019
Article in press: November 13, 2019
Published online: November 28, 2019
Processing time: 101 Days and 20.3 Hours
Abstract

The liver is a complex organ that performs several functions to maintain homeostasis. These functions are modulated by calcium, a second messenger that regulates several intracellular events. In hepatocytes and cholangiocytes, which are the epithelial cell types in the liver, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP3) receptors (ITPR) are the only intracellular calcium release channels. Three isoforms of the ITPR have been described, named type 1, type 2 and type 3. These ITPR isoforms are differentially expressed in liver cells where they regulate distinct physiological functions. Changes in the expression level of these receptors correlate with several liver diseases and hepatic dysfunctions. In this review, we highlight how the expression level, modulation, and localization of ITPR isoforms in hepatocytes and cholangiocytes play a role in hepatic homeostasis and liver pathology.

Keywords: Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor; Liver; Calcium signaling; Hepatocytes and cholangiocytes

Core tip: Calcium regulates a variety of functions in our body. In the liver, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors (ITPR) are the only expressed intracellular calcium release channels. ITPR regulates liver functions under healthy situation, but they can also be involved in liver diseases, depending for instance, in which isoform is expressed in a specific cell type, level of expression and where inside the cell each isoform is expressed. In this review, we discuss about ITPR roles in hepatic cells in physiological and pathological conditions.