Figure 8

Comparison of growth factor receptor signalling: This figure shows a comparison of ERK signalling from the EGF and Insulin receptors. At the top, a schematic of the EGF induced ERK pathway is shown in (A), with receptor degradation highlighted in red as it is the key process in generating a transient response, this is demonstrated in (B). All the lines in (B) represent simulated active ERK levels over 60 minutes. The blue line represents active ERK levels from the normal EGF model, the green line represents active ERK levels when the SOS negative feedback loop is knocked out, whereas the red line represents active ERK levels when receptor degradation is knocked out. At the bottom, a schematic of the Insulin induced ERK pathway is shown in (C), with the SOS feedback loop highlighted in red as it is the key process in generating a transient response, this is demonstrated in (D). All the lines in (D) represent simulated active ERK levels over 60 minutes. The blue line represents active ERK levels from the normal Insulin model, whilst the green line represents active ERK levels when the SOS negative feedback loop is knocked out. It should be noted that although not shown, both the EGF and Insulin receptor models do include the PI3K-Akt pathway.