| Type: | Family | Name: | Erythropoietin receptor |
| Description: | A number of receptors for lymphokines, hematopoietic growth factors and growth hormone-related molecules have been found to share a common binding domain. These receptors are designated as hematopoietin receptors [] and the corresponding ligands as hematopoietins. Further, hematopoietins have been subdivided into two major structural groups: Large/long and small/short hematopoietins.Several receptor chains for large hematopoietins are structurally related such that their extracellular parts strictly contain the 200 amino-acids hematopoietin domain, duplicated in the thrombopoietin receptor and in avian prolactin receptors. This subgroup of receptor chains contains: Growth hormone receptor (GHR), Prolactin receptor (PRLR), Erythropoietin receptor (EPOR), Thrombopoietin receptor (TPOR).A schematic representation of the structure of these receptors is shown below:+----------------------------------------xxxxxxx-------------------------+ | C C C C Extracellular XXXXXXX Cytoplasmic |+-|-|-------|--|-------------------------xxxxxxx-------------------------+ | | | | Transmembrane+-+ +--+ These receptor chains are single components of receptors that homodimerise upon binding of the cognate cytokine, following the structural model described for the growth hormone-receptor complex [].This entry describes receptors for erythropoietin (EPO), a plasma glycoprotein, which is the primary physiological mediator of erythrocite production []. They are expressed in relatively mature erythroid progenitor cells and in EPO-responsive erythroleukemia cells, and their physiological role is to mediate erythropoietin- induced erythroblast proliferation and differentiation. The receptors dimerise upon stimulation, triggering the JAK2/STAT5 signalling cascade [, ]. | Short Name: | Erythropoietin_rcpt |
