PlumX Metrics
Embed PlumX Metrics

The nerve growth factor family of receptors

Trends in Neurosciences, ISSN: 0166-2236, Vol: 15, Issue: 9, Page: 323-331
1992
  • 627
    Citations
  • 0
    Usage
  • 85
    Captures
  • 0
    Mentions
  • 0
    Social Media
Metric Options:   Counts1 Year3 Year

Metrics Details

Article Description

The neurotrophins, of which nerve growth factor (NGF) is the best known example, support the survival and differentiation of chick embryo sensory neurons at extremely low concentrations, 10 −12 m or less. These same neurons display two different classes of neurotrophin receptors with dissociation constants of 10 −11 m and 10 −9 m, respectively, implying that only low occupancy of the higher affinity receptor is required to mediate the biological actions of the neurotrophins. Two structurally unrelated receptors have now been characterized for NGF, and one of them, p75 NGFR, serves as a receptor for all the known neurotrophins. This is the receptor with a dissociation constant of 10 −9 m. The second NGF receptor is a member of the trk family of tyrosine kinase receptors, p140 trkA. Other members, p145 trkB and p145 trkC, are receptors for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and neurotrophin-4 (NT-4) and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3), respectively, when assayed in fibroblasts. The specificity of neurotrophin binding to these receptors appears to be much higher in neurons than in the non-neuronal cells. The receptor p140 trkA has many of the properties of the higher affinity class of NGF receptors, and is able to mediate survival and differentiation of the PC12 cell line, and cell growth and transformation in fibroblast cells. On the other hand, expression of p75 NGFR in several types of cells displaying p140 trkA induces a component of higher affinity NGF binding not seen in its absence. Since it is unlikely that p75 NGFR and p140 trkA interact at the level of the receptors, the crosstalk between receptors probably occurs through their signal transduction mechanisms. Characterizing the signal transduction mechanism of p75 NGFR and determining how this receptor influences the binding of NGF, especially the specificity of binding, to primary sensory neurons remains a considerable challenge in the field.

Provide Feedback

Have ideas for a new metric? Would you like to see something else here?Let us know