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Historically, the field of hematopoietic growth factor research began with the work of Carnot and Deflandre-in 1906 they suggested that the rate of erythropoiesis is regulated by a humoral factor found in the blood, namely, erythropoietin. From this comparatively early start, accelerating progress has been made in erythropoietin research, which demon strates the general trends in this field of study. Erythropoietin was purified to homogeneity by 1977 (from enormous quantities of urine from aplastic anemia patients). Subsequently, the gene for erythropoietin has been cloned (1985), and massive quantities of this growth factor have been produced for clinical trials (late 1980s onward). Erythropoietin has become established as a pharmaceutical product of great value in the treatment of a number of diseases, most notably chronic renal failure. Once the ligand had been cloned, interest turned to the erythropoietin receptor, which was cloned in 1989. Since then, structure/ function studies have been performed on receptor mutants, cellular signaling events down stream from the occupied receptor have been identified, and the specific producer cell types and molecular stimuli for erythropoietin production have been thoroughly investigated, as has the regulation of erythropoietin gene transcription. This schedule of events since the 1970s typifies that seen for a number of hematopoietic growth factors. Along the way, the hematopoietic growth factors have been recognized as members of the cytokine family of signaling molecules that are important in a number of different physiological and patholog ical situations (see below).
List of contents
1 The Hematopoietic Cytokine Receptors.- 2 Interleukin 13 and Related Cytokines.- 3 The Tumor-Necrosis-Factor-Related Superfamily of Ligands and Receptors.- 4 Cellular Signaling Events in B Lymphocytes.- 5 Cellular and Molecular Aspects of Myeloid Cell Proliferation and Development.- 6 Myelosuppressive Cytokines and Peptides.- 7 Apoptosis in Hematopoiesis and Leukemogenesis.- 8 Human T-Cell Differentiation and Cytokine Regulation.- 9 Hematopoietic Growth Factors Involved in B-Cell Development.- 10 Regulation of Peripheral B-Cell Growth and Differentiation.- 11 In Vitro Regulation of Dendritic Cell Development and Function.- 12 Responses of Leukemia Cells to Hematopoietic Growth Factors: Involvement of Autocrine Growth Mechanisms, Cytogenetic Abnormalities, and Defective Maturation Signaling.- 13 The Role of Interleukin 5 in the Production and Function of Eosinophils.- 14 Stem Cell Factor.- 15 Clinical Use of Myeloid Growth Factors.
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`Thoroughly recommended as a valuable source of information for a variety of specialists.'
Comparative Haematology International, 1997
