A new family of receptor tyrosine kinases with a venus flytrap binding domain in insects and other invertebrates activated by aminoacids.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Tyrosine kinase receptors (RTKs) comprise a large family of membrane receptors that regulate various cellular processes in cell biology of diverse organisms. We previously described an atypical RTK in the platyhelminth parasite Schistosoma mansoni, composed of an extracellular Venus flytrap module (VFT) linked through a single transmembrane domain to an intracellular tyrosine kinase domain similar to that of the insulin receptor.

Methods and findings

Here we show that this receptor is a member of a new family of RTKs found in invertebrates, and particularly in insects. Sixteen new members of this family, named Venus Kinase Receptor (VKR), were identified in many insects. Structural and phylogenetic studies performed on VFT and TK domains showed that VKR sequences

SUBMITTER: Ahier A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2680970 | biostudies-literature | 2009 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature