Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP 3 R) is a highly controlled calcium (Ca 2؉ ) channel gated by inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP 3 ). Multiple regulators modulate IP 3 -triggered pore opening by binding to discrete allosteric sites within IP 3 R. Accordingly we have postulated that these regulators structurally control ligand gating behavior; however, no structural evidence has been available. Here we show that Ca 2؉ , the most pivotal regulator, induced marked structural changes in the tetrameric IP 3 R purified from mouse cerebella. Electron microscopy of the IP 3 R particles revealed two distinct structures with 4-fold symmetry: a windmill structure and a square structure. Ca 2؉ reversibly promoted a transition from the square to the windmill with relocations of four peripheral IP 3 -binding domains, assigned by binding to heparin-gold. Ca 2؉ -dependent susceptibilities to limited digestion strongly support the notion that these alterations exist. Thus, Ca 2؉ appeared to regulate IP 3 gating activity through the rearrangement of functional domains.Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP 3 R) 1 is a tetrameric ion channel that release Ca 2ϩ from intracellular stores in response to the binding of 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP 3 ), a second messenger generated by various extracellular stimuli, neurotransmitters, neuromodulators, hormones, and lights (1, 2). The IP 3 R is widely distributed in living systems and plays pivotal roles in fundamental processes including fertilization, cellular proliferation and differentiation, cellular signaling, and vesicle secretion (2). Molecular cloning studies have revealed that there are three isoforms of IP 3 R and that alternative splicing results in several variants of the IP 3 R (2). These divergent primary structures of the IP 3 R and their differential distributions have been assumed to award the functional diversity of IP 3 R by nature.The most characterized type 1 IP 3 R (IP 3 R1), a predominant type in rodent cerebellar endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and spine apparatus, plays an integral role in Ca 2ϩ signaling (3-5) and neural plasticity (6, 7). The protomer of IP 3 R1, a 2749-amino acid polypeptide (M r 313,000), contains the IP 3 -binding core (residues 226 -578), membrane-spanning domains (residues 2276 -2589), and widespread allosteric sites for intracellular effector molecules (Ca 2ϩ , calmodulin, and ATP) and for phosphorylation by protein kinases (cAMP-dependent protein kinase, protein kinase C, cGMP-dependent protein kinase, Ca 2ϩ / calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II, and tyrosine kinase) (2). These cumulative allosteric regulations imply a structural paradigm for global conformational changes within the higher ordered structure of IP 3 R1.Because Ca 2ϩ rigorously determines the channel activity of IP 3 R and Ca 2ϩ -dependent behavior of IP 3 R is considered to be crucial for spatiotemporal organizations of Ca 2ϩ signaling (1, 4), the most important regulator for IP 3 R is Ca 2ϩ per se. Previous functional analysis indicates that a low Ca 2ϩ level acts a...