ABSTRACT

The vascular endothelium is a broadly distributed and highly specialized organ. The endothelium has a number of functions including the control of blood vessels diameter through the production and release of potent vasoactive substances or direct electrical communication with underlying smooth muscle cells, regulates the permeability of the vascular barrier, stimulates the formation of new blood vessels, and influences inflammatory and thrombotic processes. Endothelial cells that make up the endothelium express a variety of cell‐surface receptors and ion channels on the plasma membrane that are capable of detecting circulating hormones, neurotransmitters, oxygen tension, and shear stress across the vascular wall. Changes in these stimuli activate signaling cascades that initiate an appropriate physiological response. Increases in the global intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration and localized Ca²⁺ signals that occur within specialized subcellular microdomains are fundamentally important components of many signaling pathways in the endothelium. The transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are a superfamily of cation‐permeable ion channels that act as a primary means of increasing cytosolic Ca²⁺ in endothelial cells. Consequently, TRP channels are vitally important for the major functions of the endothelium. In this review, we provide an in‐depth discussion of Ca²⁺‐permeable TRP channels in the endothelium and their role in vascular regulation. © 2019 American Physiological Society. Compr Physiol 9:1249‐1277, 2019.