Fol. Biol. 2006, 52, 81-101
Protein Kinases, Their Function and Implication in Cancer and Other Diseases
Protein phosphorylation is known to play an important role in various cellular processes such as cell division, metabolism, survival and apoptosis. It is driven by specific enzymes, tyrosine and serine-threonine protein kinases. Human protein kinases constitute a complicated system with intricate internal and external interactions. The complexity and sophistication of the system implies its vulnerability. Alterations in functions of these enzymes may launch series of pathological changes within the cell and as a result cause diseases. Protein kinases have been shown to be involved in various pathological processes, first of all malignancies. Deregulation of different protein kinases has been found in chronic myelogenous leukaemia, gastrointestinal stromal tumours, various other sarcomas and cancers as well as non-malignant disorders. Therefore, they are regarded as important effectors in human pathology and represent prospective therapeutic targets.
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Funding
This work was supported by the research project 305/04/1528 granted by the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic, and by projects MSM 0021620806 and LC06044 granted by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic.
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Copyright
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.