title: Biology of the TAM receptors.
abstract: The TAM receptors--Tyro3, Axl, and Mer--comprise a unique family of receptor tyrosine kinases, in that as a group they play no essential role in embryonic development. Instead, they function as homeostatic regulators in adult tissues and organ systems that are subject to continuous challenge and renewal throughout life. Their regulatory roles are prominent in the mature immune, reproductive, hematopoietic, vascular, and nervous systems. The TAMs and their ligands--Gas6 and Protein S--are essential for the efficient phagocytosis of apoptotic cells and membranes in these tissues; and in the immune system, they act as pleiotropic inhibitors of the innate inflammatory response to pathogens. Deficiencies in TAM signaling are thought to contribute to chronic inflammatory and autoimmune disease in humans, and aberrantly elevated TAM signaling is strongly associated with cancer progression, metastasis, and resistance to targeted therapies.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, Immunobiology and Microbial Pathogenesis Laboratory, The Salk Institute, La Jolla, California 92037.
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lemke
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000378:metabolism; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism; D010587:Phagocytosis; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000502:physiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000378:metabolism; D000076202:c-Mer Tyrosine Kinase; D000094963:Axl Receptor Tyrosine Kinase
chemical_list: D008024:Ligands; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; C097072:MERTK protein, human; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; C084944:TYRO3 protein, human; D000076202:c-Mer Tyrosine Kinase; D000094963:Axl Receptor Tyrosine Kinase; C000722289:AXL protein, human