Description
Relevance: NGF is the first member discovered in the Neurotrophin family, which includes brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), neurotrophin-3 (NT-3), and neurotrophin-4 (NT-4). These proteins belong to the cysteine-knot family of growth factors that assume stable dimeric structures. Mouse beta -NGF is a homodimer of two 120 amino acid polypeptides. It shares approximately 90% homology at the amino acid level with human beta -NGF and 95. 8% with rat beta -NGF. NGF signaling has been shown to play an important role in neuroprotection and repair. beta-NGF acts as a growth and differentiation factor for B lymphocytes, and enhances B-cell survival. It is a potent neurotrophic factor that signals through its receptor beta-NGFR, and plays a crucial role in the development and preservation of the sensory and sympathetic nervous systems.
Function: Nerve growth factor is important for the development and maintenance of the sympathetic and sensory nervous systems. Extracellular ligand for the NTRK1 and NGFR receptors, activates cellular signaling cascades through those receptor tyrosine kinase to regulate neuronal proliferation, differentiation and survival. Inhibits metalloproteinase dependent proteolysis of platelet glycoprotein VI