Added Calcium

Communication between cells is often a bit like Morse code – patterns of chemicals fired out in bursts, with their timing changing the 'message' sent. Calcium ions play an important role in shaping these impulses in our nervous system. Yet here, researchers watch bursts of calcium ions (highlighted in green) in endothelial cells lining blood vessels in a mouse’s skin (each cell’s DNA appears pink). They believe calcium signalling helps to maintain blood pressure while important chemicals move through thin vessels called capillaries in and out of surrounding tissues. Disrupting the gap junctions between the blood vessels and muscle or nervous tissue alters the balance of calcium ion activity, suggesting interesting targets for drugs that might guide calcium signals, treating circulatory disorders common to mice and humans.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

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A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Video from work by Anush Swaminathan and colleagues
• Department of Genetics, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
• Video originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
• Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS), June 2026