Clustering of Ca 1.3 L-type calcium channels by Shank3.

Clustering of L-type voltage-gated Ca channels (LTCCs) in the plasma membrane is increasingly implicated in creating highly localized Ca signaling nanodomains. For example, neuronal LTCC activation can increase phosphorylation of the nuclear CREB transcription factor by increasing Ca concentrations within a nanodomain close to the channel, without requiring bulk Ca increases in the cytosol or nucleus. However, the molecular basis for LTCC clustering is poorly understood.