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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America logoLink to Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
. 1993 Aug 15;90(16):7533–7537. doi: 10.1073/pnas.90.16.7533

Fetal liver kinase 1 is a receptor for vascular endothelial growth factor and is selectively expressed in vascular endothelium.

T P Quinn 1, K G Peters 1, C De Vries 1, N Ferrara 1, L T Williams 1
PMCID: PMC47176  PMID: 8356051

Abstract

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), also known as vascular permeability factor, induces endothelial proliferation in vitro and vascular permeability in vivo. The human transmembrane c-fms-like tyrosine kinase Flt-1 has recently been identified as a VEGF receptor. Flt-1 kinase has seven immunoglobulin-like extracellular domains and a kinase insert sequence, features shared by two other human gene-encoded proteins, kinase insert domain-containing receptor (KDR) and FLT-4. In this study we show that the mouse homologue of KDR, Flk-1, is a second functional VEGF receptor. Flk-1 binds VEGF with high affinity, undergoes autophosphorylation, and mediates VEGF-dependent Ca2+ efflux in Xenopus oocytes injected with Flk-1 mRNA. We also demonstrate by in situ hybridization that Flk-1 protein expression in the mouse embryo is restricted to the vascular endothelium and the umbilical cord stroma. VEGF and its receptors Flk-1/KDR and Flt-1 may play a role in vascular development and regulation of vascular permeability.

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Selected References

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