EPIDERMAL GROWTH-FACTOR, TRANSFORMING GROWTH-FACTOR-ALPHA, AND THEIR COMMON RECEPTOR - THEIR POTENTIAL RELEVANCE IN NORMAL HUMAN ENDOMETRIAL DEVELOPMENT AND PREGNANCY

Since the serendipitous discovery of epidermal growth factor (EGF) by Dr. Stanley Cohen in 1961,(1) the literature on epidermal growth factor and a rapidly growing number of other growth factors and their receptors continues to increase at a tremendous pace. With the identification of the epidermal growth factor receptor and later the homology between epidermal growth factor and transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha), this growth factor/receptor system has received a great deal of attention from students of biology. The purpose of this review is to describe the current state of knowledge regarding the role of EGF, TGF-alpha, and their common receptor (EGF-R) in the physiology of normal, nonneoplastic human endometrium. Specifically, it will review the biochemistry of the growth factor/receptor system, describe the current evidence that implicates this system in the autocrine/paracrine/juxtacrine physiology of the endometrium, decidua, and trophoblast, and finally summarize the available evidence regarding the physiological functions of this system in endometrial development and implantation.