Mutations activating the receptor tyrosine kinase c-Kit occur commonly in melanomas arising on mucosal membranes and acral skin. Clinical studies have demonstrated that selective inhibition of c-Kit is effective in treating patients with c-Kit mutant gastrointestinal stromal tumors, but c-Kit inhibitor activity has been disappointing in c-Kit mutant melanoma patients. Activated c-Kit utilises p...

Distinct forms of tyrosine kinase domain (TKD), juxtamembrane domain, exon 8, and internal tandem duplication (ITD) mutations of c-KIT, were observed in about 46% of core binding factor leukemia (CBFL) patients. To evaluate their prognostic significance, 67 adult patients with CBFL were analyzed to ascertain the c-KIT mutation status. In acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with t(8;21), the presence o...

The receptor tyrosine c-Kit and its cognate ligand, c-Kit ligand (KL, stem cell factor, SCF), are involved in ovarian follicular development in several animal species. We studied the expression of KL and c-Kit using in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry in donated human ovarian cortical tissue. The KL transcripts were expressed in granulosa cells of primary follicles, whereas the expre...

The proto-oncogene c-kit plays an important role in the development and survival of mast cells. Gain-of-function mutations in c-kit are one of the most characteristic events in mast cell leukemia (MCL) but as yet there is no clinically approved treatment for the disease. Here we describe growth inhibition of human MCL cell lines by the use of RNAi against c-kit or its mutant form. Retroviral tr...

We investigated the role of c-Kit and the membrane-bound ligand (mbKitL) in endothelial progenitor cell (EPC) recruitment by microvascular endothelial cells (ECs). We demonstrated that inflammatory activation induced the expression of the mbKitL on ECs both in vitro and in vivo, and that recruitment of EPCs depended on c-Kit/mbKitL interaction. Depletion of endogenous c-Kit or inhibition of c-K...

Introduction: The proto-oncogene c-kit is the cellular homologue of the oncogene v-kit of HZ4 feline sarcoma virus. It is located on chromosome 4 (4q11-12) in the human genome. Interaction between the c-kit receptor and its ligand, stem cell factor, is essential in the development of tissues. C-kit expression has been identified in a number of different neoplasms like seminoma/dysgerminoma, and...

The mechanism by which hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) through interaction with their niches maintain and reconstitute adult hematopoietic cells is unknown. To functionally and genetically track localization of HSPCs with their niches, we employed novel mutant loxPs, lox66 and lox71 and Cre-recombinase technology to conditionally delete c-Kit in adult mice, while simultaneously ...

Stem cell factor (SCF) is a hematopoietic growth factor produced by fibroblasts and endothelial cells that stimulates the growth of primitive hematopoietic cells. SCF triggers cell growth by binding to the c-kit receptor. Because endothelial cells can respond to certain hematopoietic growth factors, we tested human umbilical vein endothelial cells for display of the c-kit receptor and examined ...

We have used a c-kit-specific monoclonal antibody, immuno-fluorescence staining and flow fluorocytometry or microscopy analysis to assess the cell surface expression of the c-kit receptor on a panel of non-transformed clones representing different stages of T- and B-lymphocyte development, freshly isolated lymphoid cells from thymus, bone marrow and spleen of young adult C57BL/6 mice and cells ...

The two tyrosine kinase receptors, c-kit and flt3, and their respective ligands KL and FL, have been demonstrated to play key and nonredundant roles in regulating the earliest events in hematopoiesis. However, their precise roles and potential interactions in promoting early lymphoid commitment and development remain unclear. Here we show that most if not all murine Lin(-/lo)Sca1(+)c-kit(+) bon...