The FGF family: biology, pathophysiology and therapy

The central roles of members of the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) family in human developmental processes and disease have been well documented. In their Review, Beenken and Mohammadi discuss the more established applications of FGF-related therapies in the treatment of cancer and cardiovascular disease, emphasizing their potential to modulate aspects of the metabolic syndrome and hypophosphataemic diseases. The family of fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) regulates a plethora of developmental processes, including brain patterning, branching morphogenesis and limb development. Several mitogenic, cytoprotective and angiogenic therapeutic applications of FGFs are already being explored, and the recent discovery of the crucial roles of the endocrine-acting FGF19 subfamily in bile acid, glucose and phosphate homeostasis has sparked renewed interest in the pharmacological potential of this family. This Review discusses traditional applications of recombinant FGFs and small-molecule FGF receptor kinase inhibitors in the treatment of cancer and cardiovascular disease and their emerging potential in the treatment of metabolic syndrome and hypophosphataemic diseases.