Calcium pump Calcium pump Calcium pumps are a family of ion transporters found in the cell membrane of all animal cells. They are responsible for the active transport of calcium out of the cell for the maintenance of the steep Ca electrochemical gradient across the cell membrane. Calcium pumps play a crucial role in proper cell signalling by keeping the intracellular calcium concentration roughly 10,000 times lower than the extracellular concentration. Failure to do so is one cause of muscle cramps. The plasma membrane Ca ATPase and the sodium-calcium exchanger are together the main regulators of intracellular Ca concentrations. Ca has many
Urinary calcium Urinary calcium Urinary calcium is calcium in the urine. It is termed -calcuria or -calciuria as a suffix. In a urinalysis, the normal amount of urinary calcium can be measured in amount per time (commonly per 24 hours). It can also be measured in amount per mass of creatinine, which avails for estimating the urinary calcium excretion in a spot urine sample, because urinary creatinine clearance is relatively unaffected by differences in free water clearance which occurs, for example, in dehydration and which would distort the interpretation of the urinary calcium in a spot urine sample. Normally, in an average