Trks: signal transduction and intracellular pathways

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 19, 2026

Tracking Drug-induced Changes in Receptor Post-internalization Trafficking by Colocalizational Analysis
07:48

Tracking Drug-induced Changes in Receptor Post-internalization Trafficking by Colocalizational Analysis

Published on: July 3, 2015

L J Klesse1, L F Parada

  • 1Center for Developmental Biology, University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas 75235-9133, USA.

Microscopy Research and Technique
|June 26, 1999
PubMed

Insights

Neurotrophins like nerve growth factor (NGF) promote neuron survival and differentiation by activating Trk receptors. This review details how specific intracellular signaling cascades, such as ras/extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) and PI 3-kinase, mediate NGF

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Signaling

Background:

  • Neurotrophins are crucial growth factors for neuronal development.
  • They signal through Trk receptor tyrosine kinases.
  • Trk activation initiates intracellular cascades like ras/ERK and PI 3-kinase.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the roles of specific intracellular signaling cascades in neurotrophin-mediated cellular responses.
  • To focus on the effects of nerve growth factor (NGF) activating TrkA.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on neurotrophin signaling.
  • Analysis of evidence implicating specific signaling pathways.

Main Results:

  • Neurotrophins, particularly NGF, exert diverse cellular effects through distinct signaling pathways.
  • The ras/ERK and PI 3-kinase cascades are key mediators of neurotrophin actions.

Conclusions:

  • Specific intracellular signaling cascades are essential for mediating the cellular responses to neurotrophins.
  • Understanding these pathways is vital for comprehending neuronal development and function.

More Related Videos

Light-mediated Reversible Modulation of the Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase Pathway during Cell Differentiation and Xenopus Embryonic Development09:32

Light-mediated Reversible Modulation of the Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase Pathway during Cell Differentiation and Xenopus Embryonic Development

Published on: June 15, 2017

Assessment of Resistance to Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors by an Interrogation of Signal Transduction Pathways by Antibody Arrays07:42

Assessment of Resistance to Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors by an Interrogation of Signal Transduction Pathways by Antibody Arrays

Published on: September 19, 2018

Related Concept Videos

Intracellular Signaling Cascades01:24

Intracellular Signaling Cascades

Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
Intracellular Signaling Cascades01:24

Intracellular Signaling Cascades

Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
Interactions Between Signaling Pathways01:19

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

Signaling cascades usually lack linearity. Multiple pathways interact and regulate one another, allowing cells to integrate and respond to diverse environmental stimuli.
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...
Amplifying Signals via Second Messengers01:15

Amplifying Signals via Second Messengers

Many receptor binding ligands are hydrophilic; they do not cross the cell membrane but bind to cell-surface receptors. Thus, their message must be relayed by second messengers present in the cell cytoplasm. There are several second messenger pathways, each with its own way of relaying information. For example, the G protein-coupled receptors can activate both phosphoinositol and cyclic AMP (cAMP) second messenger pathways. The phosphoinositol pathway is active when the receptor induces...
Amplifying Signals via Enzymatic Cascade01:22

Amplifying Signals via Enzymatic Cascade

When a ligand binds to a cell-surface receptor, the receptor's intracellular domain changes shape, which may either activate its enzyme function or allow its binding to other molecules. The initial signal is amplified by most signal transduction pathways. This means that a single ligand molecule can activate multiple molecules of a downstream target. Proteins that relay a signal are most commonly phosphorylated at one or more sites, activating or inactivating the protein. Kinases catalyze the...
Signal Transduction: Overview01:26

Signal Transduction: Overview

Cells respond to many types of information, often through receptor proteins positioned on the membrane. They respond to chemical signals, such as hormones, neurotransmitters, and other signaling molecules, initiating a series of molecular reactions to produce an appropriate response. This is called signal transduction. Cells also coordinate different responses elicited by the same signaling molecule via mediators, allowing molecular cross-talk.
Typically, signal transduction involves three...