title: Identification of full-length and truncated forms of Ehk-3, a novel member of the Eph receptor tyrosine kinase family.
abstract: Factors that bind and activate receptor tyrosine kinases are known to play key roles during development and in the adult. The Eph-related receptors constitute the largest known family of receptor tyrosine kinases. Members of the Eph family exhibit intriguing patterns of expression in the embryo, implicating them in a variety of developmental processes, and their expression is often restricted to particular subpopulations of postmitotic neurons in the adult. We describe the identification and characterization of a novel member of the Eph receptor family, which we have termed Ehk-3 for Eph Homologous Kinase 3. Ehk-3 displays all the major structural features shared by other members of the Eph family, including a cysteine-rich region and tandem fibronectin type-III domains in its extracellular portion. Ehk-3 is expressed in two forms in a developmentally-regulated fashion: a conventional full-length version containing the intracellular tyrosine kinase domain, as well as a truncated form that lacks this domain. Both forms of Ehk-3 are quite restricted to the nervous system in the adult, but Ehk-3 is more widely expressed in the embryo, suggesting that Ehk-3 mediates different functions during development and in the adult.
authors.affiliation: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc., Tarrytown, New York 10591, USA.
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Valenzuela
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rojas
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Griffiths
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Compton
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gisser
authors.forename: N Y
authors.initials: NY
authors.lastname: Ip
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Goldfarb
authors.forename: G D
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Yancopoulos
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D036141:Receptor, EphA7
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; C093291:EPHA7 protein, rat; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D036141:Receptor, EphA7