TGFa-PE38 Immunotoxin

**Semantic type:** Amino Acid, Peptide, or Protein|Pharmacologic Substance

**Definition:** A recombinant, chimeric toxin composed of human transforming growth factor alpha (TGF-alpha) fused to a fragment of Pseudomonas exotoxin (PE38) without its cell-binding domain. The TGF-alpha moiety of the agent attaches to tumor cells expressing the epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR); the exotoxin induces caspase-mediated apoptosis of tumor cells via a mechanism involving mitochondrial damage; it also catalyzes the transfer of ADP ribose from nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) to elongation factor-2 in eukaryotic cells, thereby inactivating elongation factor 2 and inhibiting protein synthesis. (NCI04)

**Synonyms:** - Cervene - TP-38 - TP-38 immunotoxin