The effects of epidermal growth factor on gene expression in human fibroblasts

A better understanding of the molecular effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF) on target cell can help to reveal important aspects of cellular proliferation, transformation, and apoptosis, as well as embryonic and fetal development. In this study, we examined the differences in gene expression of cultured fibroblasts with EGF stimulation for 48 h by using high-density complementary deoxyribonucleic acid (cDNA) arrays. We found that EGF could cause widespread alteration in gene expression. Eight hundred and fifty-five genes, more than 20% of those assayed, showed changed expression, which are involved in various cellular processes, such as energetic metabolism, biosynthesis, the progress of cell cycle, and the signaling pathways of receptor tyrosine kinase (RTKs) and G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). The most striking finding is that long-term EGF treatment on cultured fibroblasts resulted in down-regulation of the genes encoding membrane receptors and ion channels and desensitized RTKs and GPCRs to their physiological and nonphysiological stimuli, which seems to be a slow-acting, but permanent, effect of EGF on RTK and GPCR signaling pathways and to play important roles in embryonic and fetal development.