Insulin and Insulin-Like Growth Factors in Mammalian Development

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Abstract
This chapter reviews studies showing that the early mammalian embryo expresses receptors that bind insulin and insulin-like growth factors (IGFs), discuss the evidence that there is autocrine production of these factors during early postimplantation developmental stages, and speculate on the role that these peptides may play in mammalian development. Studies in a variety of systems have indicated that growth factors activate the production of proteins that are required for cell proliferation as well as for maintenance. Insulin is one of the most important hormones influencing fetal growth and has classically been considered one of the most significant factors in the regulation of fetal metabolism. The biological effects of insulin and the IGFs are initiated by the interaction of the ligand with specific cell surface receptors. The mammalian insulin receptor is a complex integral membrane glycoprotein with intrinsic enzymatic activity. Recent discoveries in cellular and molecular biology, as well as immunology, have had profound effects on developmental biology.

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