Therapeutic manipulation of the insulin receptor kinase - a review

Understanding the detailed mechanisms mediating insulin signal transduction has been viewed as a critical step in the development of therapeutic appli cations to ameliorate diabetes and its attendant complications. One critica l element in the insulin-signalling pathway is the insulin receptor. The in sulin receptor is a heterotetrameric transmembrane protein that binds insul in on the surface of cells and transduces insulin signals through the plasm a membrane to the cytoplasm. With the cloning of the gene for the insulin r eceptor it became possible to efficiently manipulate receptor and identify sequences that are crucial to its function. In turn, these analyses have un covered potential therapeutic approaches to enhance receptor function. The patents covered:by this review date from 1988 to 1999.