Amazing T-type calcium channels: updating functional properties in health and disease.

T-type Ca(2+) channels have gained, 15 years after cloning, an immense interest as novel players in very unexpected cell functions, and its many relations to diseases have been discovered. This special issue provides a state-of-the-art overview on novel functional properties of T-type Ca(2+) channels, unexpected cellular functions, and most importantly will also summarizes and review the involvement of this "tiny, transient" type of Ca(2+) channels in several diseases. It is tried to bridge the gap between molecular biophysical properties of T-type Ca(2+) channels and diseases providing finally a translational view on this amazing ion channel.