Epidermal growth factor


Three dimensional structure of EGF PDB 1EGF
Epidermal growth factor
Identifiers
Symbol	EGF URG
HUGO	3229
Entrez	1950
OMIM	131530
RefSeq	NM_001963
UniProt	P01133
Other data
Locus	Chr. 4 q25

Epidermal growth factor or EGF is a growth factor that plays an important role in the regulation of cell growth, proliferation and differentiation. Human EGF is a 6045 Da protein with 53 amino acid residues and three intramolecular disulfide bonds^[1]

EGF acts by binding with high affinity to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) on the cell surface and stimulating the intrinsic protein-tyrosine kinase activity of the receptor. The tyrosine kinase activity in turn initiates a signal transduction cascade which results in a variety of biochemical changes within the cell - a rise in intracellular calcium levels, increased glycolysis and protein synthesis, and increases in the expression of certain genes including the gene for EGFR - that ultimately lead to DNA synthesis and cell proliferation. ^[1]

[edit] See also

^a ^b Epidermal growth factor. J Biol Chem. 1990 May 15; 265(14): 7709-12. PMID 2186024 Free text (PDF - 581K)
Epidermal growth factor immunoreactive material in the central nervous system: Location and development. Science 1984 Jun 8; 224(4653): 1107-9. PMID 6144184