Functions of Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptors in Cancer Defined by Novel Translocations and Mutations

Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) represent important signal transducers in the cell membrane and are comprised of nearly twenty families of homologous proteins in humans, with almost 60 distinct members [1]. In the FGFR family, four homologous human receptors have been identified: FGFR1, FGFR2, FGFR3 and FGFR4. All of the FGFRs exhibit three extracellular immunoglobulin (Ig)-like domains, a membrane-spanning segment and a split tyrosine kinase domain. Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs), a large family of related growth factors, act in concert with heparin sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) as high-affinity FGFR agonists [2,3].

Source: Cytokine and Growth Factor Reviews - April 20, 2015 Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Leandro H. Gallo, Katelyn N. Nelson, April N. Meyer, Daniel J. Donoghue Source Type: research