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Insights into Receptor Function and New Drug Development Targets pp 167–178Cite as

Receptor Tyrosine Kinases as Targets for Cancer Therapy Development

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Part of the book series: Research and Perspectives in Endocrine Interactions ((RPEI))

Summary

Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are membrane-spanning proteins that possess a ligand-controlled intracellular kinase activity. They regulate a wide variety of cellular processess as diverse as cell proliferation, apoptosis or cell migration. Consequently, dysregulation of RTKs due to overexpression, mutation or autocrine stimulation has been causally linked to cancer development and progression. The advent of molecular cloning allowed the elucidationof the primary structure of the first RTK, the EGFR. Subsequent research in this field led to tremendous advances in understanding molecular signalling processes governing both physiological and pathophysiological behaviour of cells. These discoveries paved the way for the development of target-specific cancer therapeutics and opened up a new era of molecular targeted approaches in the treatment of human cancer. The approval of monoclonal antibodies such as Herceptin© for the treatment of breast cancer or small molecule inhibitors such as Gleevec© for gastrointestinal stromal tumors underlines both the power and success of this novel strategy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Max-Planck-Institute of Biochemistry Department of Molecular Biology, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152, Martinsried, Germany

    Andreas Gschwind, Oliver M. Fischer & Axel Ullrich

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  1. Andreas Gschwind
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  2. Oliver M. Fischer
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  3. Axel Ullrich
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Divisions of Neuroscience and Reproductive Biology, Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology and Cell and Developmental Biology, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University, 505 NW 185th Avenue, Beaverton, Oregon, 97006, USA

    Michael Conn Ph.D.

  2. Institut Necker, 156, rue de Vaugirard, 75015, Paris, France

    Claude Kordon Ph.D.

  3. Pour la Recherche Thérapeutique, Fondation IPSEN, 24, rue Erlanger, 75781, Paris Cedex 16, France

    Yves Christen Ph.D.

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© 2006 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Gschwind, A., Fischer, O.M., Ullrich, A. (2006). Receptor Tyrosine Kinases as Targets for Cancer Therapy Development. In: Conn, M., Kordon, C., Christen, Y. (eds) Insights into Receptor Function and New Drug Development Targets. Research and Perspectives in Endocrine Interactions. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg . https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-34447-0_11

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