title: Neurotrophins and cell death.
abstract: The neurotrophins - NGF, BDNF, NT-3 - are secreted proteins that play a major role in neuron survival, differentiation and axon wiring toward target territories. They do so by interacting with their main tyrosine kinase receptors TrkA, TrkB, TrkC and p75(NTR). Even though there is a general consensus on the view that neurotrophins are survival factors, there are two fundamentally different views on how they achieve this survival activity. One prevailing view is that all neurons and more generally all normal cells are naturally committed to die unless a survival factor blocks this death. This death results from the engagement of a "default" apoptotic cell program. The minority report supports, on the opposite, that neurotrophin withdrawal is associated with an active signal of cell death induced by unbound dependence receptors. We will discuss here how neurotrophins regulate cell death and survival and how this has implications not only during nervous system development but also during cancer progression.
authors.affiliation: Apoptosis, Cancer and Development Laboratory, Equipe labellisée La Ligue, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Lyon, INSERM U1052-CNRS UMR5286, Université de Lyon, Centre Léon Bérard, Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Gabriel
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ichim
authors.forename: Servane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tauszig-Delamasure
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mehlen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D016923:Cell Death; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors / Q000502:physiology*; D009420:Nervous System / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D009414:Nerve Growth Factors