Recombinant Human EGF Protein

EGF is a growth factor that stimulates the growth of various epidermal and epithelial tissues in vivo and in vitro and of some fibroblasts in cell culture. It results in cellular proliferation, differentiation, and survival. EGF acts by binding with high affinity to epidermal growth factor receptor on the cell surface and stimulating the intrinsic protein-tyrosine kinase activity of the receptor. The tyrosine kinase activity, in turn, initiates a signal transduction cascade that results in a variety of biochemical changes within the cell - a rise in intracellular calcium levels, increased glycolysis and protein synthesis, and increases in the expression of certain genes including the gene for EGFR - that ultimately lead to DNA synthesis and cell proliferation. EGF is widely used as a mitogen in the culture of neural stem cells in vitro, and it can be used as an inducer to promote the differentiation of neural stem cells into neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes.