Insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and their binding proteins play an
essential role in regulating animal growth and metabolism. The initial
portion of the current review focuses on the physiological effects of
the IGFs and delineates their role as regulators of animal growth and
metabolism. The role of IGFs as mediators of growth hormone effects,
as insulin-like metabolic regulators and as foetal growth regulators i
s discussed. The remainder of the review is devoted to the IGF binding
proteins, their modulation of IGF action and their rule in foetal and
postnatal regulation of growth.