Epidermal growth factor (EGF) is a small 53 amino acid residue long protein that contains three disulfide bridges. It is a small mitogenic protein that is thought to be involved in mechanisms such as normal cell growth, oncogenesis, and wound healing. EGF stimulates the growth of various epidermal and epithelial tissues in vivo and in vitro and of some fibroblasts in cell culture. This protein shows both strong sequential and functional homology with human type-alpha transforming growth factor (hTGF alpha), which is a competitor for EGF receptor sites.
