A pervasive role for MIG6 in restraining cell proliferation

Under normal conditions, most adult cells remain in a non-proliferative state unless stimulated by internal or external factors to replace lost cells. Abnormal cell proliferation is a condition in which the cell's growth exceeds and is uncoordinated with normal cells. In such situations, cell division persists in the same excessive manner even after cessation of the stimuli, leading to persistent tumors. The tumor arises from the damaged cells that replicate to pass the damage to the...

Positive regulators allow a cell to advance through cell cycle checkpoints. Negative regulators have an equally important role as they terminate a cell’s progression through the cell cycle—or pause it—until the cell meets specific criteria.

Mitogens and their receptors play a crucial role in controlling the progression of the cell cycle. However, the loss of mitogenic control over cell division leads to tumor formation. Therefore, mitogens and mitogen receptors play an important role in cancer research. For instance, the epidermal growth factor (EGF) - a type of mitogen and its transmembrane receptor (EGFR), decides the fate of the cell's proliferation. When EGF binds to EGFR, a member of the ErbB family of tyrosine kinase...

The orderly progression of the cell cycle depends on the activation of Cdk protein by binding to its cyclin partner. However, the cell cycle must be restricted when undergoing abnormal changes. Most cancers correlate to the deregulated cell cycle, and since Cdks are a central component of the cell cycle, Cdk inhibitors are extensively studied to develop anticancer agents. For instance, cyclin D associates with several Cdks, such as Cdk 4/6, to form an active complex. The cyclin D-Cdk4/6 complex...

Several external and internal factors influence the initiation and inhibition of cell division. For instance, the death of nearby cells or the release of human growth hormone (hGH) promotes cell division. In contrast, lack of hGH or crowding of cells can inhibit cell division.
Several proteins function as internal regulators to ensure each cell cycle stage is completed faithfully before proceeding to the next. Regulator molecules may act directly or influence the activity or production of other...