title: The EGF domain: requirements for binding to receptors of the ErbB family.
abstract: Epidermal growth factor (EGF) has been the prototype growth-stimulating peptide for many years. It has a characteristic structure with three disulfide bridges, which is essential for its activity. However, many other proteins, including both growth factors and proteins with unrelated functions, have similar EGF-like domains. This indicates that besides a characteristic conformation provided by the EGF-like domain, specific amino acids are required to provide specificity in protein functioning. Currently, more than 10 different growth factors with an EGF-like domain have been characterized which all exert their action by binding to the four members of the erbB family of receptors. In this review, studies are described on the structure-function relationship of these EGF-like growth factor molecules in an attempt to analyze the individual amino acids that determine their binding specificity to the individual members of the erbB family.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Van Zoelen
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Stortelers
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Lenferink
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Van de Poll
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary / Q000502:physiology*; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000502:physiology*; D020893:Receptor, ErbB-3 / Q000502:physiology*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
chemical_list: D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor; D008024:Ligands; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D020893:Receptor, ErbB-3