Effects of metal ions on activities and solution conformations of calcineurin A subunit have been examined.The ability of several metal ions to activate calcineurin A has been tested with Ni2+>Mn2+>Mg2+/Ca2+.The corresponding CD spectra and intrinsic fluorescent emission spectra show that calcineurin A exists in different metal ion-dependent conformation states.Effects of the different concentritions of Ni2+ on activities and solution conformations of calcineurin A have been tested too.Results indicate that effects of these metal ions to activate calcineurin are due to their conformational changes.