Immediate Early proto-Oncoproteins and membranes: not just an innocent liaison

GRACIELA ADRIANA BORIOLI

BENTHAM SCIENCE PUBL LTD

Año: 2011 vol. 12 p. 685 - 685

roto-oncoproteins are a heterogeneous group of proteins that induce cellular differentiation, proliferation and growth, acting at different points of signaling cascades and in different cell compartments, through many different mechanisms. If the proto-oncogenes that give raise to proto-oncoproteins undergo genetic damage, they become oncogenes and their products are the oncoproteins responsible for cellular transformation in cancer. Some proto-oncoproteins are related to membranes and they exert their function at this level. Among these are receptors and receptor-like growth factors, membrane associated tyrosine kinases, and small GTPases. Other proto-oncoproteins are transcription factors and as such, their best known functional context is promoter DNA regions. Consequently, DNA is widely viewed as their most relevant non protein partner. Any interaction of these proteins with membranes is generally overlooked and, when considered, the membrane is regarded as a reservoir for