Insulin is an anabolic hormone with powerful metabolic effects. The events after insulin binds to its receptor are highly regulated and specific. Defining the key steps that lead to the specificity in insulin signaling presents a major challenge to biochemical research, but the outcome should offer new therapeutic approaches for treatment of patients suffering from insulin-resistant states, including type 2 diabetes. The insulin receptor belongs to the large family of growth factor receptors with intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity. Following insulin binding, the receptor undergoes autophosphorylation on multiple tyrosine residues. This results in activation of the receptor kinase and tyrosine phosphorylation of a family of insulin receptor substrate (IRS) proteins. Like other growth factors, insulin uses phosphorylation and the resultant protein-protein interactions as essential tools to transmit and compartmentalize its signal. These intracellular protein-protein interactions are pivotal in transmitting the signal from the receptor to the final cellular effect, such as translocation of vesicles containing GLUT4 glucose transporters from the intracellular pool to the plasma membrane, activation of glycogen or protein synthesis, and initiation of specific gene transcription.
Tyrosine phosphorilarion; Tyrosine kinase; Insulin action; Insulin resistance; Insulin receptor; Insulin receptor substrates
