Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor (HB-EGF)-like growth factor (EGF) is found in cerebral neurons. Human HB-EGF- shares 76% and 73% aa sequence identity with rat and mouse HB-EGF. Its expression is increased after hypoxic or ischemic injury, which also stimulates neurogenesis. HB-EGF has been implicated as a participant in a variety of normal physiological processes such as blastocyst implantation and wound healing, and in pathological processes such as tumor growth, SMC hyperplasia and atherosclerosis. The protein is an 86 amino acid mitogenic and chemotactic glycoprotein containing an EGF-like domain with six conserved cysteine residues.