Tie-1/Tie (tyrosine kinase with Ig and EGF homology domains 1) and Tie-2/Tek comprise a receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) subfamily with unique structural characteristics: two immunoglobulin-like domains flanking three epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like domains and followed by three fibronectin type III-like repeats in the extracellular region and a split tyrosine kinase domain in the cytoplasmic region. These receptors are expressed primarily on endothelial and hematopoietic progenitor cells and play critical roles in angiogenesis, vasculogenesis and hematopoiesis.
Human Tie-2 cDNA encodes a 1124 amino acid (aa) residue precursor protein with an 18 residue putative signal peptide, a 727 residue extracellular domain and a 354 residue cytoplasmic domain. Two ligands, angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1) and angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2), which bind Tie-2 with high-affinity have been identified. Ang-2 has been reported to act as an antagonist for Ang-1. Mice engineered to overexpress Ang-2 or to lack Ang-1 or Tie-2 display similar angiogenesis defects.
