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Salt and osmosensing: role of cytoplasmic hydrogel

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Abstract

Osmotic perturbations, occurring frequently under physiological and pathological conditions, alter cell size/volume and function. To protect cellular homeostasis, cell osmo- and volume-sensing mechanisms activate volume compensatory processes. The plasma membrane plays a prominent role in cell volume regulation by mediating the selective transport of extra- and intracellular osmolytes. The function of the membrane-enclosed cytoplasm in osmosensing and cell volume homeostasis is much less appreciated. We present current concepts and discuss evidence of cell volume sensors with emphasis on the hydrogel nature of the mammalian cytoplasm and its intrinsic osmosensitivity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre de Recherche, Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CRCHUM)—Tour Viger, 900, rue St-Denis, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H2X 0A9

    Ryszard Grygorczyk, Francis Boudreault, Aleksandra Platonova & Sergei N. Orlov

  2. Department of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

    Ryszard Grygorczyk & Sergei N. Orlov

  3. Faculty of Biology, M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Vorob’evy Gory 1/12, Moscow, Russia

    Aleksandra Platonova & Sergei N. Orlov

  4. Tomsk State University, Tomsk, Russia

    Sergei N. Orlov

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  1. Ryszard Grygorczyk
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  2. Francis Boudreault
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  3. Aleksandra Platonova
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  4. Sergei N. Orlov
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Correspondence to Ryszard Grygorczyk or Sergei N. Orlov.

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This article is published as part of a Special Issue on Salt and Osmosensing.

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Grygorczyk, R., Boudreault, F., Platonova, A. et al. Salt and osmosensing: role of cytoplasmic hydrogel. Pflugers Arch - Eur J Physiol 467, 475–487 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-014-1680-2

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