Description
HER2 is a cell membrane surface-bound receptor tyrosine kinase and is normally involved in the signal transduction pathways leading to cell growth and differentiation. It is encoded within the genome by HER2/neu, a known proto-oncogene. HER2 is thought to be an orphan receptor, with none of the EGF family of ligands able to activate it. However, ErbB receptors dimerise on ligand binding, and HER2 is the preferential dimerisation partner of other members of the ErbB family. The HER2 gene is a proto-oncogene located at the long arm of human chromosome 17(17q21-q22)