Calcium
hideCalcium (pronounced /ˈkælsiəm/) is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft grey alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth most abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust. Calcium is also the fifth most abundant dissolved ion in seawater by both molarity and mass, after sodium, chloride, magnesium, and sulfate.
Calcium is essential for living organisms, particularly in cell physiology, where movement of the calcium ion Ca2+ into and out of the cytoplasm functions as a signal for many cellular processes. As a major material used in mineralization of bones and shells, calcium is the most abundant metal by mass in many animals.
For more information about Calcium, read the full article at
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News tagged with calcium
Scientists: Global warming has already changed oceans
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jun 10, 2009 |
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In Washington state, oysters in some areas haven't reproduced for four years, and preliminary evidence suggests that the increasing acidity of the ocean could be the cause. In the Gulf of Mexico, falling oxygen levels in ...
Mars Lander Sees Falling Snow, Soil Data Suggest Liquid Past
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Sep 29, 2008 |
4.5 / 5 (32) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has detected snow falling from Martian clouds. Spacecraft soil tests experiments also have provided evidence of past interaction between minerals and liquid water, ...
Biologists find new environmental threat in North American lakes
Biology /
Nov 27, 2008 |
4.2 / 5 (33) |
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A new and insidious environmental threat has been detected in North American lakes by researchers from Queen's and York universities.
Tiny delivery system with a big impact on cancer cells
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Dec 15, 2008 |
4.7 / 5 (18) |
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Researchers in Pennsylvania are reporting for the first time that nanoparticles 1/5,000 the diameter of a human hair encapsulating an experimental anticancer agent, kill human melanoma and drug-resistant breast ...
Climate Change Alters Ocean Chemistry
Dec 11, 2008 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers have discovered that the ocean's chemical makeup is less stable and more greatly affected by climate change than previously believed. The researchers report in the December 12, 2008 issue of Science that d ...
Sea urchin yields a key secret of biomineralization
Oct 27, 2008 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The teeth and bones of mammals, the protective shells of mollusks, and the needle-sharp spines of sea urchins and other marine creatures are made-from-scratch wonders of nature.
That tastes -- sweet? Sour? No, it's definitely calcium!
Aug 20, 2008 |
3.9 / 5 (13) |
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Chemists in Philadelphia are reporting a discovery that could expand the palate of human tastes — sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and savory — to include a new taste sensation that they term "calcium."
Nanoparticles Deliver Their Cargo, Then Disappear
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Nov 15, 2008 |
3.9 / 5 (13) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Medical researchers are looking at any number of new methods to get drugs to specific locations in the body. Some methods are efficient but less safe, while others are safe but often fail ...
High-normal phosphate levels linked to early atherosclerosis
Nov 13, 2008 |
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Healthy adults with higher levels of phosphate in the blood are more likely to have increased levels of calcium in the coronary arteries—a key indicator of atherosclerosis and future cardiovascular disease risk, reports a ...
Acid test: Study reveals both losers and winners of CO2-induced ocean acidification
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 01, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (11) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- As the world’s seawater becomes more acidic due to rising atmospheric carbon dioxide, some shelled marine creatures may actually become bigger and stronger, according to a new study.
Calcium channels optimize learning
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Sep 18, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (10) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Switzerland, have shown how calcium channels in the brain have a positive impact on learning. Their results have been ...
German scientists produce first Bose-Einstein condensate with calcium atoms
Sep 22, 2009 |
4.9 / 5 (9) |
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Physicists at the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (Germany) have succeeded in producing a Bose-Einstein condensate from the alkaline earth element calcium. The use of alkaline earth atoms creates new ...
Calcium may only protect against colorectal cancer in presence of magnesium
Nov 16, 2008 |
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High magnesium intake has been associated with low risk of colorectal cancer. Americans have similar average magnesium intake as East Asian populations. If that were all that were involved, observers might expect both groups ...
Calcium and vitamin D may not be the only protection against bone loss
Dec 03, 2008 |
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Diets that are high in protein and cereal grains produce an excess of acid in the body which may increase calcium excretion and weaken bones, according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of ...
Fish guts explain marine carbon cycle mystery
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jan 15, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (9) |
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Research published today reveals the major influence of fish on maintaining the delicate pH balance of our oceans, vital for the health of coral reefs and other marine life.
