Overview:

EPHB4 is a member of the Eph family of receptor tyrosine kinases which play a role in regulating cell adhesion and cell movement during embryonic development (1). Furthermore, because tissue disorganization and abnormal cell adhesion, movement, and survival characterize the more advanced stages of cancer, the inappropriate functioning of Eph receptor could play a causal role in malignancy (2). EPHB4 is uniquely expressed in the vascular endothelial and endocardial cells and animal knockout studies with EPHB4 reveal a phenotype that is similar to Ephrin B2 gene knockdown. Furthermore, EPHB4 has been shown to be the major essential interaction partner of Ephrin B2 in angiogenesis.

Gene Aliases:

HTK, MYK1, TYRO11, Mdk2

Genbank Number:

NM_004444

References:

1. Andres, A.C. et al: Expression of two novel eph-related receptor protein tyrosine kinases in mammary gland development and carcinogenesis. Oncogene, 1994;9(8):2431.

2. Kumar, S.R. et al: The receptor tyrosine kinase EphB4 is overexpressed in ovarian cancer, provides survival signals and predicts poor outcome. Br. J. Cancer. 2007, 96(7):1083-91.