Oncogenes related to growth factor receptors

Recent progress on analysis of functions of proto-oncogenes was discussed with the protein-tyrosine kinase group as an example. Many proto-oncogenes encode proteins related to regulation of cell growth and differentiation. Among those, the largest group is the protein kinase super family which includes growth factor receptors, non-receptor type protein-tyrosine kinases and serine-threonine kinases. They can be divided into subgroups according to their polypeptide and genomic structures. Members of each subgroup appeared to be originated from each single ancestral gene during evolutionary process even within the protein kinase super family.