The SH2 domain-containing SHP-1 tyrosine phosphatase has been shown to negatively regulate a broad spectrum of growth factor-and cytokine-driven mitogenic signaling pathways. Included among these is the cascade of intracellular events evoked by stem cell factor binding to c-Kit, a tyrosine kinase receptor which associates with and is dephosphorylated by SHP-1. Using a series of glutathione S-transferase ( The pivotal role of the SH2 domain-containing SHP-1 (PTP1C, HCP, or SHPTP1) tyrosine phosphatase in the regulation of hemopoietic cell growth and development is now well recognized (1). In contrast to the structurally similar, ubiquitously expressed SHP-2 (Syp or PTP1D) tyrosine phosphatase and its Drosophila csw homolog (10, 37), SHP-1 appears to exert primarily inhibitory effects on the signaling cascades in which it participates (34). SHP-1 has been shown, for example, to suppress the growth-promoting properties of the activated interleukin 3 (IL-3), erythropoietin, and colony-stimulating factor 1 receptors, an effect mediated either directly by receptor dephosphorylation or indirectly by dephosphorylation of receptor-associated protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) (4,19,55,56). SHP-1 has also been implicated in downregulation of the signaling pathways evoked by engagement of the B-and Tlymphocyte antigen receptors (5, 32, 33), antigen receptor comodulators such as CD22, Fc␥RIIB, and CD5, and cytosolic signaling molecules such as Vav and Grb2/Sos1 which are involved in Ras activation (6,8,20). The capacity of SHP-1 to negatively modulate this broad spectrum of signaling effectors is consistent with the enormous overexpansion of multiple hemopoietic cell populations manifested by motheaten (me) and viable motheaten (me v ) mice, animals now known to be homozygous for loss-of-function mutations in the SHP-1 gene (21,46). The presence of two SH2 domains in SHP-1, as well as the possibility for altering its C-terminal SH2 domain by alternative splicing of a 39-amino-acid segment (46), provides a structural explanation for the diverse range of molecular interactions in which this phosphotyrosine phosphatase (PTP) appears to participate. Thus, while the precise structural basis for and physiologic effects of SHP-1 interactions with the molecules with which it has been shown to associate require further investigation, the current data concerning SHP-1 functions identify this PTP as a critical player in the modulation of hemopoietic cell growth and function.In addition to the regulation of cell proliferation, SHP-1 has also been implicated in the control of signaling cascades coupling growth factor receptors to hemopoietic cell differentiation. This role for SHP-1 has become particularly well appreciated in the context of data derived from studies of SHP-1 interactions with the transmembrane PTK receptor encoded by the c-Kit proto-oncogene. The latter receptor subserves pivotal functions in promoting the development, survival, and proliferation of hemopoietic stem cells, neural crest-derived cells, and germ cells, a role...