We report that the IIIc transcriptional alternative of Fgfr2 is transcribed in the unfertilized egg and that during early zygotic transcription, messages encoded by both Fgfr2 alternatives (IIIc and IIIb) are present. The Fgfr2 protein was ®rst detected in peripheral blastomeres of compacted morulae. Trophectoderm speci®city of Fgfr2 became obvious in the early blastocyst and with maturation it...

The association between breast cancer risk and genetic variants of fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) has been identified and repeatedly confirmed; however, the mechanism underlying FGFR2 in breast tumorigenesis remains obscure. Given that breast tumorigenesis is particularly related to DNA double-strand-break-repair (DSBR), we examined the hypothesis that FGFR2 is involved in DSBR. Ou...

To the Editor : Craniosynostosis, the premature fusion of one or more cranial sutures, is a common malformation occurring in approximately 1 in 2500 live births (1), and ocular hypertelorism, proptosis, beaking of the nose and midface hypoplasia are the common facial features of the craniosynostosis (2, 3). The syndromic craniosynostosis is the hereditary form of craniosynostosis, which is asso...

PURPOSE Overexpression of fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) may be a causative factor of a number of human tumors, especially gastric tumors of the poorly differentiated type. We investigated whether monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) directed against FGFR2 can inhibit the growth of tumors in xenograft models. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN We generated and characterized 3 mAbs that recognize differ...

We disrupted the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) receptor 2 (FGFR2) gene by introducing a neo cassette into the IIIc ligand binding exon and by deleting a genomic DNA fragment encoding its transmembrane domain and part of its kinase I domain. A recessive embryonic lethal mutation was obtained. Preimplantation development was normal until the blastocyst stage. Homozygous mutant embryos died a few...

The secreted molecule fibroblast growth factor 9 (FGF9) plays a critical role in testis determination in the mouse. In embryonic gonadal somatic cells it is required for maintenance of SOX9 expression, a key determinant of Sertoli cell fate. Conditional gene targeting studies have identified FGFR2 as the main gonadal receptor for FGF9 during sex determination. However, such studies can be compl...

Bent Bone Dysplasia-FGFR2 type is a relatively recently described bent bone phenotype with diagnostic clinical, radiographic, and molecular characteristics. Here we report on 11 individuals, including the original four patients plus seven new individuals with three longer-term survivors. The prenatal phenotype included stillbirth, bending of the femora, and a high incidence of polyhydramnios, p...

Fibroblast growth factor receptors (FGFRs) 1-3 have IIIb and IIIc isoforms, and we reported that FGFR2 IIIb is highly expressed in cervical keratinizing squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). In this study, we determined the expression and roles of FGFR2 IIIc in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical cancer. In CINs 1 and 2, FGFR2 IIIc was found to be localized at the basal to lower two-...

Constitutive receptor tyrosine kinase phosphorylation requires regulation of kinase and phosphatase activity to prevent aberrant signal transduction. A dynamic mechanism is described here in which the adaptor protein, growth factor receptor-bound protein 2 (Grb2), controls fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) signaling by regulating receptor kinase and SH2 domain-containing protein tyros...

Alternate splicing yields two distinct isoforms of the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) receptor FGFR2-IIIb and FGFR2-IIIc varying their extracellular structure in human thyroid cancer, in which FGFR expression is commonly dysregulated. In this study, we characterized the function of these variants in modulating thyroid cancer behavior. Enforced expression of either FGFR2-IIIb or FGFR2-IIIc in th...