The Nerve Growth Factor Signaling and Its Potential as Therapeutic Target for Glaucoma

Figure 1

Signaling of NGF receptors. NGF is formed by cleavage from Pro-NGF, which is the precursor protein form of NGF. TrkA receptor is the high affinity receptor for NGF; NGF binding to TrkA causes the phosphorylation of TrkA and activation of multiple signaling pathways such as the PI3K/Akt, Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK1/2, or PLCγ/PKC signaling pathways. Activation of these pathways eventually leads to different biological functions including the prevention of apoptosis. The other NGF receptor, p75NTR, is a low affinity receptor. The precise role of p75NTR depends upon the cellular context; it can enhance cell survival through NF-κB pathway or promote cell death through JNK/c-Jun signal pathway.