Type II RTKs: Insulin receptor family in GtoPdb v.2025.3

Abstract

The circulating peptide hormones insulin and the related insulin-like growth factors (IGF) activate Class II receptor tyrosine kinases [13], to evoke cellular responses, mediated through multiple intracellular adaptor proteins. Unlike other receptor tyrosine kinases, the functional receptor in the insulin receptor family is derived from a single gene product, cleaved post-translationally into two peptides, which then cross-link via disulphide bridges to form a heterotetramer. Intriguingly, the endogenous peptide ligands are formed in a parallel fashion with post-translational processing producing a heterodimer linked by disulphide bridges. Signalling through the receptors is mediated through a rapid autophosphorylation event at intracellular tyrosine residues, followed by recruitment of multiple adaptor proteins, notably IRS1 (P35568), IRS2 (Q9Y4H2), SHC1 (P29353), GRB2 (P62993) and SOS1 (Q07889).

Serum levels of free IGFs are kept low by the action of IGF binding proteins (IGFBP1-5, P08833, P18065, P17936, P22692, P24593), which sequester the IGFs; overexpression of IGFBPs may induce apoptosis, while IGFBP levels are also altered in some cancers.