There is communication between all four Ca(2+)-bindings sites of calcineurin B

A cellular atlas of calcineurin signaling

Intracellular Ca2+ signals are temporally controlled and spatially restricted. Signaling occurs adjacent to sites of Ca2+ entry and/or release, where Ca2+-dependent effectors and their substrates co-localize to form signaling microdomains. Here we review signaling by calcineurin, the Ca2+/calmodulin regulated protein phosphatase and target of immunosuppressant drugs, Cyclosporin A and FK506. Although well known for its activation of the adaptive immune response via NFAT dephosphorylation, systematic mapping of human calcineurin substrates and regulators reveals unexpected roles for this versatile phosphatase throughout the cell. We discuss calcineurin function, with an emphasis on where signaling occurs and mechanisms that target calcineurin and its substrates to signaling microdomains, especially binding of cognate short linear peptide motifs (SLiMs). Calcineurin is ubiquitously expressed and regulates events at the plasma membrane, other intracellular membranes, mitochondria, the nuclear pore complex and centrosomes/cilia. Based on our expanding knowledge of localized CN actions, we describe a cellular atlas of Ca2+/calcineurin signaling.

Calcineurin Regulates Synaptic Plasticity and Nociceptive Transmission at the Spinal Cord Level

Calcineurin, the predominant Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent serine/threonine protein phosphatase (also known as protein phosphatase 2B), is highly expressed in immune T cells and the nervous system, including the dorsal root ganglion and spinal cord. It controls synaptic transmission and plasticity by maintaining the appropriate phosphorylation status of many ion channels present at presynaptic and postsynaptic sites. As such, normal calcineurin activity in neurons and synapses is mainly involved in negative feedback regulation in response to increased neuronal activity and intracellular Ca2+ levels. Calcineurin inhibitors (e.g., cyclosporine and tacrolimus) are widely used as immunosuppressants in tissue and organ transplantation recipients and for treating autoimmune diseases but can cause severe pain in some patients. Furthermore, diminished calcineurin activity at the spinal cord level may play a major role in the transition from acute to chronic neuropathic pain after nerve injury. Restoring calcineurin activity at the spinal cord level produces long-lasting pain relief in animal models of neuropathic pain. In this article, we provide an overview of recent studies on the critical roles of calcineurin in regulating glutamate NMDA and AMPA receptors, voltage-gated Ca2+ channels, potassium channels, and transient receptor potential channels expressed in the spinal dorsal horn and primary sensory neurons.

Calcineurin in the heart: New horizons for an old friend

Calcineurin, also known as PP2B or PPP3, is a member of the PPP family of protein phosphatases that also includes PP1 and PP2A. Together these three phosphatases carryout the majority of dephosphorylation events in the heart. Calcineurin is distinct in that it is activated by the binding of calcium/calmodulin (Ca2+/CaM) and therefore acts as a node for integrating Ca2+ signals with changes in phosphorylation, two fundamental intracellular signaling cascades. In the heart, calcineurin is primarily thought of in the context of pathological cardiac remodeling, acting through the Nuclear Factor of Activated T-cell (NFAT) family of transcription factors. However, calcineurin activity is also essential for normal heart development and homeostasis in the adult heart. Furthermore, it is clear that NFAT-driven changes in transcription are not the only relevant processes initiated by calcineurin in the setting of pathological remodeling. There is a growing appreciation for the diversity of calcineurin substrates that can impact cardiac function as well as the diversity of mechanisms for targeting calcineurin to specific sub-cellular domains in cardiomyocytes and other cardiac cell types. Here, we will review the basics of calcineurin structure, regulation, and function in the context of cardiac biology. Particular attention will be given to: the development of improved tools to identify and validate new calcineurin substrates; recent studies identifying new calcineurin isoforms with unique properties and targeting mechanisms; and the role of calcineurin in cardiac development and regeneration.

Calcium-calcineurin signaling pathway in Candida albicans: A potential drug target

Increased morbidity and mortality of candidiasis are a notable threat to the immunocompromised patients. At present, the types of drugs available to treat C. albicans infection are relatively limited. Moreover, the emergence of antifungal drug resistance of C. albicans makes the treatment of C. albicans infection more difficult. The calcium-calcineurin signaling pathway plays a crucial role in the survival and pathogenicity of C. albicans and may act as a potential target against C. albicans. In this review, we summarized functions of the calcium-calcineurin signaling pathway in several biological processes, compared the differences of this signaling pathway between C. albicans and humans, and described anti-C. albicans activity of inhibitors of this signaling pathway. We believe that targeting the calcium-calcineurin signaling pathway is a promising strategy to cope with C. albicans infection.

Regulation of dual leucine zipper kinase activity through its interaction with calcineurin

Hyperglycemia enhancing the intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) contributes to dysfunction and progressive loss of beta cells and thereby to diabetes mellitus. The oxidation sensitive calcium/calmodulin dependent phosphatase calcineurin promotes pancreatic beta cell function and survival whereas the dual leucine zipper kinase (DLK) induces apoptosis. Therefore, it was studied whether calcineurin interferes with DLK action. In a beta cell line similar concentrations of H₂O₂ decreased calcineurin activity and activated DLK. DLK interacted via its φLxVP motif (aa 362-365) with the interface of the calcineurin subunits A and B. Mutation of the Val prevented this protein protein interaction, hinting at a distinct φLxVP motif. Indeed, mutational analysis revealed an ordered structure of DLK's φLxVP motif whereby Val mediates the interaction with calcineurin and Leu maintains an enzymatically active conformation. Overexpression of DLK wild-type but not the DLK mutant unable to bind calcineurin diminished calcineurin-induced nuclear localisation of the nuclear factor of activated T-cells (NFAT), suggesting that both, DLK and NFAT compete for the substrate binding site of calcineurin. The calcineurin binding-deficient DLK mutant exhibited increased DLK activity measured as phosphorylation of the downstream c-Jun N-terminal kinase, inhibition of CRE-dependent gene transcription and induction of apoptosis. These findings show that calcineurin interacts with DLK; and inhibition of calcineurin increases DLK activity. Hence, this study demonstrates a novel mechanism regulating DLK action. These findings suggest that ROS through inhibition of calcineurin enhance DLK activity and thereby lead to beta cell dysfunction and loss and ultimately diabetes mellitus.

Calcineurin

The serine/threonine phosphatase calcineurin acts as a crucial connection between calcium signaling the phosphorylation states of numerous important substrates. These substrates include, but are not limited to, transcription factors, receptors and channels, proteins associated with mitochondria, and proteins associated with microtubules. Calcineurin is activated by increases in intracellular calcium concentrations, a process that requires the calcium sensing protein calmodulin binding to an intrinsically disordered regulatory domain in the phosphatase. Despite having been studied for around four decades, the activation of calcineurin is not fully understood. This review largely focuses on what is known about the activation process and highlights aspects that are currently not understood. Video abstract.

The small Ca2+-binding protein CSE links Ca2+ signalling with nitrogen metabolism and filament integrity in Anabaena sp. PCC 7120

Background

Filamentous cyanobacteria represent model organisms for investigating multicellularity. For many species, nitrogen-fixing heterocysts are formed from photosynthetic vegetative cells under nitrogen limitation. Intracellular Ca²⁺ has been implicated in the highly regulated process of heterocyst differentiation but its role remains unclear. Ca²⁺ is known to operate more broadly in metabolic signalling in cyanobacteria, although the signalling mechanisms are virtually unknown. A Ca²⁺-binding protein called the Ca²⁺ Sensor EF-hand (CSE) is found almost exclusively in filamentous cyanobacteria. Expression of asr1131 encoding the CSE protein in Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 was strongly induced by low CO₂ conditions, and rapidly downregulated during nitrogen step-down. A previous study suggests a role for CSE and Ca²⁺ in regulation of photosynthetic activity in response to changes in carbon and nitrogen availability.

Results

In the current study, a mutant Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 strain lacking asr1131 (Δcse) was highly prone to filament fragmentation, leading to a striking phenotype of very short filaments and poor growth under nitrogen-depleted conditions. Transcriptomics analysis under nitrogen-replete conditions revealed that genes involved in heterocyst differentiation and function were downregulated in Δcse, while heterocyst inhibitors were upregulated, compared to the wild-type.

Conclusions

These results indicate that CSE is required for filament integrity and for proper differentiation and function of heterocysts upon changes in the cellular carbon/nitrogen balance. A role for CSE in transmitting Ca²⁺ signals during the first response to changes in metabolic homeostasis is discussed.

Calcineurin-AKAP interactions: therapeutic targeting of a pleiotropic enzyme with a little help from its friends

The ubiquitous Ca²⁺ /calmodulin-dependent phosphatase calcineurin is a key regulator of pathological cardiac hypertrophy whose therapeutic targeting in heart disease has been elusive due to its role in other essential biological processes. Calcineurin is targeted to diverse intracellular compartments by association with scaffold proteins, including by multivalent A-kinase anchoring proteins (AKAPs) that bind protein kinase A and other important signalling enzymes determining cardiac myocyte function and phenotype. Calcineurin anchoring by AKAPs confers specificity to calcineurin function in the cardiac myocyte. Targeting of calcineurin 'signalosomes' may provide a rationale for inhibiting the phosphatase in disease.

STIM1 and Orai1 regulate Ca2+ microdomains for activation of transcription

Since calcium (Ca²⁺) regulates a large variety of cellular signaling processes in a cell's life, precise control of Ca²⁺ concentrations within the cell is essential. This enables the transduction of information via Ca²⁺ changes in a time-dependent and spatially defined manner. Here, we review molecular and functional aspects of how the store-operated Ca²⁺ channel Orai1 creates spatiotemporal Ca²⁺ microdomains. The architecture of this channel is unique, with a long helical pore and a six-fold symmetry. Energetic barriers within the Ca²⁺ channel pathway limit permeation to allow an extensive local Ca²⁺ increase in close proximity to the channel. The precise timing of the Orai1 channel function is controlled by direct binding to STIM proteins upon Ca²⁺ depletion in the endoplasmic reticulum. These induced Ca²⁺ microdomains are tailored to, and sufficient for, triggering long-term activation processes, such as transcription factor activation and subsequent gene regulation. We describe the principles of spatiotemporal activation of the transcription factor NFAT and compare its signaling characteristics to those of the autophagy regulating transcription factors, MITF and TFEB.

A Friend or Foe: Calcineurin across the Gamut of Neurological Disorders

The serine/threonine phosphatase calcineurin (CaN) is a unique but confounding calcium/calmodulin-mediated enzyme. CaN has shown to play essential roles from regulating calcium homeostasis to being an intricate part of learning and memory formation. Neurological disorders, despite differing in their etiology, share similar pathological outcomes, such as mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptotic signaling brought about by excitotoxic elements. CaN, being deeply integrated in vital neuronal functions, may be implicated in various neurological disorders. Understanding the enzyme and its physiological niche in the nervous system is vital in uncovering its roles in the spectrum of brain disorders. By reviewing the crosstalk in different neurological pathologies, a possible grasp of CaN's complex signaling may lead to forming better neurotherapy. This Outlook attempts to explore the various neuronal functions of CaN and investigate its pervasive role through the gamut of neurological disorders.

Calcineurin Regulatory Subunit Calcium-Binding Domains Differentially Contribute to Calcineurin Signaling in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The protein phosphatase calcineurin is central to Ca²⁺ signaling pathways from yeast to humans. Full activation of calcineurin requires Ca²⁺ binding to the regulatory subunit CNB, comprised of four Ca²⁺-binding EF hand domains, and recruitment of Ca²⁺-calmodulin. Here we report the consequences of disrupting Ca²⁺ binding to individual Cnb1 EF hand domains on calcineurin function in Saccharomyces cerevisiae Calcineurin activity was monitored via quantitation of the calcineurin-dependent reporter gene, CDRE-lacZ, and calcineurin-dependent growth under conditions of environmental stress. Mutation of EF2 dramatically reduced CDRE-lacZ expression and failed to support calcineurin-dependent growth. In contrast, Ca²⁺ binding to EF4 was largely dispensable for calcineurin function. Mutation of EF1 and EF3 exerted intermediate phenotypes. Reduced activity of EF1, EF2, or EF3 mutant calcineurin was also observed in yeast lacking functional calmodulin and could not be rescued by expression of a truncated catalytic subunit lacking the C-terminal autoinhibitory domain either alone or in conjunction with the calmodulin binding and autoinhibitory segment domains. Ca²⁺ binding to EF1, EF2, and EF3 in response to intracellular Ca²⁺ signals therefore has functions in phosphatase activation beyond calmodulin recruitment and displacement of known autoinhibitory domains. Disruption of Ca²⁺ binding to EF1, EF2, or EF3 reduced Ca²⁺ responsiveness of calcineurin, but increased the sensitivity of calcineurin to immunophilin-immunosuppressant inhibition. Mutation of EF2 also increased the susceptibility of calcineurin to hydrogen peroxide inactivation. Our observations indicate that distinct Cnb1 EF hand domains differentially affect calcineurin function in vivo, and that EF4 is not essential despite conservation across taxa.

Calcineurin signaling in the heart: The importance of time and place

The calcium-activated protein phosphatase, calcineurin, lies at the intersection of protein phosphorylation and calcium signaling cascades, where it provides an essential nodal point for coordination between these two fundamental modes of intracellular communication. In excitatory cells, such as neurons and cardiomyocytes, that experience rapid and frequent changes in cytoplasmic calcium, calcineurin protein levels are exceptionally high, suggesting that these cells require high levels of calcineurin activity. Yet, it is widely recognized that excessive activation of calcineurin in the heart contributes to pathological hypertrophic remodeling and the progression to failure. How does a calcium activated enzyme function in the calcium-rich environment of the continuously contracting heart without pathological consequences? This review will discuss the wide range of calcineurin substrates relevant to cardiovascular health and the mechanisms calcineurin uses to find and act on appropriate substrates in the appropriate location while potentially avoiding others. Fundamental differences in calcineurin signaling in neonatal verses adult cardiomyocytes will be addressed as well as the importance of maintaining heterogeneity in calcineurin activity across the myocardium. Finally, we will discuss how circadian oscillations in calcineurin activity may facilitate integration with other essential but conflicting processes, allowing a healthy heart to reap the benefits of calcineurin signaling while avoiding the detrimental consequences of sustained calcineurin activity that can culminate in heart failure.

Effect of calcium-binding peptide from Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) bone on calcium bioavailability in rats

Bone collagen peptide with high affinity to Ca was extracted from Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) bone. FTIR spectra of calcium-binding bone collagen peptide showed that band at 3381cm^-1 shifted to 3361cm^-1, 1455cm^-1 moved to 1411cm^-1, and amide II became deeper valley, compared with that of bone collagen peptide. This peptide was sequenced by Q-TOF-MS and sequences of Gly-Pro-Glu-Gly, Gly-Glu-Lys, Gly-Pro-Leu-Gly and Gly-Leu-Pro-Gly appeared repeatedly in some peptides. From SEM, after chelated with calcium, the loose and porous structure turned into granular structure. From the animal experiment, Ca apparent absorption rate, Ca retention rate and femur Ca content of calcium-binding bone collagen peptide group were significantly higher than those of model and CaCO₃ groups (P<0.05), while serum ALP was significantly lower than model group (P<0.05) and similar to control group. The results suggested that calcium-binding bone collagen peptide could improve bioavailability of Ca and thus prevented Ca deficiency.

The best and the brightest: exploiting tryptophan-sensitized Tb(3+) luminescence to engineer lanthanide-binding tags

Consider the lanthanide metals, comprising lanthanum through lutetium. Lanthanides form stable cations with a +3 charge, and these ions exhibit a variety of useful physical properties (long-lifetime luminescence, paramagnetism, anomalous X-ray scattering) that are amenable to studies of biomolecules. The absence of lanthanide ions in living systems means that background signals are generally a nonissue; however, to exploit the advantageous properties it is necessary to engineer a robust lanthanide-binding sequence that can be appended to any macromolecules of interest. To this end, the luminescence produced by tryptophan-sensitized Tb(3+) has been used as a selection marker for peptide sequences that avidly chelate these ions. A combinatorial split-and-pool library that uses two orthogonal linkers-one that is cleaved for selection and one that is cleaved for sequencing and characterization-has been used to develop lanthanide-binding tags (LBTs): peptides of 15-20 amino acids with low-nM affinity for Tb(3+). Further validating the success of this screen, knowledge about LBTs has enabled the introduction of a lanthanide-binding loop in place of one of the four native calcium-binding loops within the protein calcineurin B.

Oxidation-induced conformational changes in calcineurin determined by covalent labeling and tandem mass spectrometry

The Ca²⁺/calmodulin activated phosphatase, calcineurin, is inactivated by H₂O₂ or superoxide-induced oxidation, both in vivo and in vitro. However, the potential for global and/or local conformation changes occurring within calcineurin as a function of oxidative modification, that may play a role in the inactivation process, has not been examined. Here, the susceptibility of calcineurin methionine residues toward H₂O₂-induced oxidation were determined using a multienzyme digestion strategy coupled with capillary HPLC–electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and tandem mass spectrometry analysis. Then, regions within the protein complex that underwent significant conformational perturbation upon oxidative modification were identified by monitoring changes in the modification rates of accessible lysine residues between native and oxidized forms of calcineurin, using an amine-specific covalent labeling reagent, S,S′-dimethylthiobutanoylhydroxysuccinimide ester (DMBNHS), and tandem mass spectrometry. Importantly, methionine residues found to be highly susceptible toward oxidation, and the lysine residues exhibiting large increases in accessibility upon oxidation, were all located in calcineurin functional domains involved in Ca²⁺/CaM binding regulated calcineurin stimulation. These findings therefore provide initial support for the novel mechanistic hypothesis that oxidation-induced global and/or local conformational changes within calcineurin contribute to inactivation via (i) impairing the interaction between calcineurin A and calcineurin B, (ii) altering the low-affinity Ca²⁺ binding site in calcineurin B, (iii) inhibiting calmodulin binding to calcineurin A, and/or (iv) by altering the affinity between the calcineurin A autoinhibitory domain and the catalytic center.

Transient disorder: Calcineurin as an example

How intrinsically disordered proteins and regions evade degradation by cellular machinery evolved to recognize unfolded and misfolded chains remains a vexing question. One potential means by which this can occur is the disorder is transient in nature. That is, the disorder exists just long enough for it to be bound by a partner biomolecule and fold. A review of 30 y of studies of calmodulin’s activation of calcineurin suggests that the regulatory domain of this vital phosphatase is a transiently disordered region. During activation, the regulatory domain progresses from a folded state, to disordered, followed by folding upon being bound by calmodulin. The transient disordered state of this domain is part of a critical intermediate state that facilitates the rapid binding of calmodulin. Building upon “fly-casting” as a means of facilitating partner binding, the mechanism by which calcineurin undergoes activation and subsequent deactivation could be considered “catch and release.”

Interaction of calcineurin with substrates and targeting proteins

Calcineurin is a calcium activated protein phosphatase with a major role in calcium signaling in diverse cells and organs and clinical importance as the target of the immunosuppressive drugs cyclosporin A and tacrolimus (FK506). Cell biology studies have focused mainly on the role of calcineurin in transcriptional signaling. Calcium entry in response to extracellular stimuli results in calcineurin activation, and signal transmission from the cytosol into the nucleus through dephosphorylation and nuclear translocation of the transcription factor nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT). This initiates a cascade of transcriptional events involved in physiological and developmental processes. Molecular analyses of the calcineurin-NFAT interaction have been extended recently to encompass the interaction of calcineurin with other substrates, targeting proteins and regulators of calcineurin activity. These studies have increased our understanding of how this essential calcium activated enzyme orchestrates intracellular events in cooperation with other signaling pathways, and have suggested a link between altered calcineurin signaling and the developmental anomalies of Down syndrome.

Infrared spectroscopic study of the metal-coordination structures of calcium-binding proteins

Carboxylate (COO(-)) groups can coordinate to metal ions in of the following four modes: 'unidentate', 'bidentate', 'bridging' and 'pseudo-bridging' modes. COO(-) stretching frequencies provide information about the coordination modes of COO(-) groups to metal ions. We review the Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) of side-chain COO(-) groups of Ca(2+)-binding proteins: pike parvalbumin pI 4.10, bovine calmodulin and Akazara scallop troponin C. FTIR spectroscopy of Akazara scallop troponin C has demonstrated that the coordination structure of Mg(2+) is distinctly different from that of Ca(2+) in the Ca(2+)-binding site. The assignments of the COO(-) antisymmetric stretch have been ensured on the basis of the spectra of calcium-binding peptide analogues. The downshift of the COO(-) antisymmetric stretching mode from 1565 cm(-1) to 1555-1540 cm(-1) upon Ca(2+) binding is a commonly observed feature of FTIR spectra for EF-hand proteins.

Structures of calcineurin and its complexes with immunophilins-immunosuppressants

Calcineurin (CN) is a Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent serine/threonine protein phosphatase and is involved in many physiological processes such as T-cell activation and cardiac hypertrophy. The crystal structures of CN and its complexes with FKBP12-FK506 and cyclophilin-cyclosporin showed that the two structurally unrelated immunophilins-immunosuppressants bind to a common composite surface made up of the residues from both catalytic subunit and regulatory subunit of CN. The recognition of the immunophilins and immunosuppressive drugs is achieved by common but few distinct CN residues. However, the binding pattern of FKBP12-FK506 such as hydrogen bonding is significantly different from that of CyPA-CsA. This common but distinct recognition may indicate capacity of the composition surface for binding of other inhibitory proteins. The recognition site and the active site are adjacent and form an "L" shaped cleft. This implies that the immunophilin recognition site may also serve as a recognition site to define the narrow substrate specificity of calcineurin.

Effects of CaCl2 and MgCl2 on Fourier transform infrared spectra of lung cancer cells

The cations Ca2+ and Mg2+ are two important factors in the growth and maintenance of living cells. The addition of Ca2+ to living cells can cause a change in the three-dimensional (3D) structure of calcium binding proteins. Therefore, we decided to study whether the addition of CaCl2 and MgCl2 to three in vitro growing lung cancer cell lines could cause changes that could be measured by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. The addition of CaCl2 or MgCl2 to lung cancer cells caused an increase in absorbance of the trough at 1410 cm(-1). This translated into an inversion of the 1410/1395 cm(-1) ratio following the addition of CaCl2 or MgCl2 for all three lung cancer cell lines. Also, the amide I peak shifted from around 1631 cm(-1) to lower wavenumbers when CaCl2 or MgCl2 was added to cancer cells. Furthermore, the addition of these two substances caused a shift of the peak between 3290 and 3395 cm(-1). Finally, while the addition of CaCl2 to lung cancer cells was associated with an increased cell death, this was not the case following the addition of MgCl2. This would confirm that the changes seen in the spectra of all three cell lines are due to metabolic and ionic shifts rather than cell death.

Selective prion protein binding to synaptic components is modulated by oxidative and nitrosative changes induced by copper(II) and peroxynitrite in cholinergic synaptosomes, unveiling a role for calcineurin B and thioredoxin

Choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and choline transport are decreased after nitrosative stress. ChAT activity is altered in scrapie-infected neurons, where oxidative stress develops. Cellular prion protein (PrPc) may play a neuroprotective function in participating in the redox control of neuronal environment and regulation of copper metabolism, a role impaired when PrPc is transformed into PrPSc in prion pathologies. The complex cross-talk between PrPc and cholinergic neurons was analyzed in vitro using peroxynitrite and Cu2+ treatments on nerve endings isolated from Torpedo marmorata, a model of the motoneuron pre-synaptic element. Specific interactions between solubilized synaptic components and recombinant ovine prion protein (PrPrec) could be demonstrated by Biacore technology. Peroxynitrite abolished this interaction in a concentration-dependent way and induced significant alterations of neuronal targets. Interaction was restored by prior addition of peroxynitrite trapping agents. Cu2+ (in the form of CuSO4) treatment of synaptosomes triggered a milder oxidative effect leading to a bell-shaped increase of PrPrec binding to synaptosomal components, counteracted by the natural thiol agents, glutathione and thioredoxin. Copper(II)-induced modifications of thiols in several neuronal proteins. A positive correlation was observed between PrPrec binding and immunoreactive changes for calcineurin B and its partners, suggesting a synergy between calcineurin complex and PrP for copper regulation.

Good fungi gone bad: the corruption of calcineurin

Calcineurin is a Ca(2+)/calmodulin-activated protein phosphatase that is conserved in eukaryotes, from yeast to humans, and is the conserved target of the immunosuppressive drugs cyclosporin A (CsA) and FK506. Genetic studies in yeast and fungi established the molecular basis of calcineurin inhibition by the cyclophilin A-CsA and FKBP12-FK506 complexes. Calcineurin also functions in fungi to control a myriad of physiological processes including cell cycle progression, cation homeostasis, and morphogenesis. Recent investigations into the molecular mechanisms of pathogenesis in Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans, two fungi that cause life-threatening infections in humans, have revealed an essential role for calcineurin in morphogenesis, virulence, and antifungal drug action. Novel non-immunosuppressive analogs of the calcineurin inhibitors CsA and FK506 that retain antifungal activity have been identified and hold promise as candidate antifungal drugs. In addition, comparisons of calcineurin function in both fungi and humans may identify fungal-specific components of calcineurin-signaling pathways that could be targeted for therapy, as well as conserved elements of calcium signaling events.