Ca2+ imaging in interstitial cells of Cajal during rhythmic activity.

Spontaneous contraction of intestinal smooth muscles is required for bowel movement and its failure results in disorders including irritable bowel syndrome. Rhythmic spontaneous depolarizations in intestinal smooth muscle cells, often referred to as slow waves, are essential for the movement of the gastrointestinal tract. Interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) lie adjacent to smooth muscle layers and are implicated to be the pacemaker cells generating slow waves, because mutant mice lacking this cell type show gut rhythm disorders. However, the pace-making mechanism remains unclear. Here we review intracellular Ca(2+) signals of both ICC and smooth muscle cells during rhythmic activity in the gastrointestinal tract.