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FLASH GENE
Symbol ALK contributors: mct/shn - updated : 14-11-2013
HGNC name anaplastic lymphoma receptor tyrosine kinase
HGNC id 427
EXPRESSION
Type widely
   expressed in (based on citations)
organ(s)
SystemOrgan level 1Organ level 2Organ level 3Organ level 4LevelPubmedSpeciesStageRna symbol
Digestiveintestinesmall intestine   
 mouthtongue  moderately
Nervousbrain    
Reproductivefemale systemovary  predominantly
 male systemtestis   
Respiratoryrespiratory tractlarynx  highly
tissue
SystemTissueTissue level 1Tissue level 2LevelPubmedSpeciesStageRna symbol
Nervouscentral   
cell lineage
cell lines
fluid/secretion blood
at STAGE
Text essentially and transiently expressed during development of the central and peripheral nervous system
PROTEIN
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
STRUCTURE
motifs/domains
  • two MAM domain
  • one tyrosine kinase catalytic domain
  • one LDL receptor class A domain
  • nine phosphotyrosine
  • conjugated GlycoP
    mono polymer homomer , dimer
    HOMOLOGY
    interspecies ortholog to Alk, Rattus norvegicus
    ortholog to Alk, Mus musculus
    ortholog to alk, Danio rerio
    ortholog to ALK, pan troglodytes
    intraspecies homolog to LTK
    Homologene
    FAMILY
  • TYR protein kinases family
  • insulin receptor subfamily
  • CATEGORY protooncogene , receptor membrane
    SUBCELLULAR LOCALIZATION     plasma membrane
    text single-pass type I membrane protein
    basic FUNCTION
  • acting as an orphan receptor with a tyrosine-protein kinase activity
  • involved in the normal development and function of the nervous system
  • involved in activation of RAP1GDS1 that may contribute to cell proliferation and oncogenesis of neuroblastoma driven by gain-of-function mutant ALK receptors
  • critical player in neuroblastoma development
  • CELLULAR PROCESS
    PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESS development
    text important role in brain development
    PATHWAY
    metabolism
    signaling signal transduction
    a component
  • N-glycosylated
  • homodimer, when bound to ligand
  • INTERACTION
    DNA
    RNA
    small molecule nucleotide,
  • ATP
  • zinc could constitute an endogenous ligand of ALK in vertebrates
  • interacting with PHOX2B (PHOX2B drives ALK gene transcription by directly binding its promoter, which therefore represents a novel PHOX2B target)
  • protein
  • CD30
  • Pleiotrophin, PTN
  • Jak3
  • Midkine, MK
  • ShcC
  • NIPA
  • Grb2, SOCS1, SOCS5, IRS4, Rho-GTPase-activating protein, RAB35, MAP kinase 1, MEK kinase 1,4 and 5, PKC, MLCK, EphA1, ephrinB, JNK kinase 2, cyclin G-associated kinase, meprin, PTPK, protein phosphatase 2 subunit, Hsp60 precursor, PLCitalic gamma1, Jak2, Jak3, Stat3, and IRS, lamin B1RAD17 homolog
  • ALK stimulates initiation of transcription of the MYCN gene
  • cell & other
    REGULATION
    activated by zinc (activation is dependent of ALK tyrosine kinase activity and dimerization of the receptor but is independent of Src family kinase activity)
    ShcC
    Phosphorylated by PTN/RPTPbeta/zeta signaling pathway
    ASSOCIATED DISORDERS
    corresponding disease(s) IMT , ALCL , NBL2
    Other morbid association(s)
    TypeGene ModificationChromosome rearrangementProtein expressionProtein Function
    tumoral fusion translocation    
    fused with SEC31L1, in a translocation t(2;4)(p23;q21), in an intraabdominal inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor
    tumoral   translocation    
    translocation t(2;5)(p23;q35),(see NPM1) in anaplastic nodal non Hodgkin lymphoma and B cell lymphoma
    tumoral   inversion    
    inv(2)(p23;q35)in anaplastic large-cell lymphoma
    tumoral fusion      
    with EML4 in non-small-cell lung cancer
    tumoral germinal mutation      
    in most hereditary neuroblastomas
    tumoral somatic mutation     gain of function
    activating mutations can be somatically acquired in neuroblastoma
    tumoral       gain of function
    in neuroblastoma
    Susceptibility
    Variant & Polymorphism
    Candidate gene
    Marker
    Therapy target
  • represent a very attractive therapeutic target in this disease that is still frequently fatal with current treatments (ALK-specific kinase inhibitors might improve its clinical outcome)
  • SystemTypeDisorderPubmed
    cancerlung 
    ALK inhibitors may provide a means to control NSCLC in the latter population of patients
    cancer  
    identification of the downstream effector pathways controlled by ALK should pave the way for the rational design of ALK-inhibition therapies for the treatment of a subset of human cancers that harbor ALK aberrations
    cancerbrainglioma/neuroblstoma
    germline or acquired activation of this cell-surface kinase is a tractable therapeutic target for the neuroblastoma, lethal paediatric malignancy
    cancer  
    inhibition of ALK kinase activity results in anti-tumoural efficacy
    ANIMAL & CELL MODELS
  • Forced expression of wild-type ALK and Neuroblastoma-related constitutively active ALK mutants in cultures of proliferating immature sympathetic neurons results in a strong proliferation increase, whereas Alk knockdown and pharmacological inhibition of Alk activity decrease proliferation
  • in vivo inhibition of Alk signaling by virus-mediated shRNA knockdown of Alk and Midkine leads to strongly reduced sympathetic neuron proliferation