Cellular Proliferative Domains: Barriers to Migration

An important aspect of the analysis of the proliferation of cell populations as composed of a set of intercommunicating logistic domains is the nature of the barriers between adjacent domains and the regulation of cellular migration between them. The nature of these inter-domain boundaries is discussed in relation to the central role of L-type calcium channels in the control of cell motility and it is proposed that domain boundaries are determined by proteoglycans which act as calcium chelators and hence regulate the local extracellular Ca ++ concentration. The selective migratory advantage gained by overexpression of calcium channels is briefly alluded to.