Growth factors are a class of polypeptides that stimulate cell proliferation, differentiation, maturation, and viability. They are crucial for tissue repair, embryonic development, and maintaining homeostasis. By binding to specific receptors on the target cell membrane, they activate intricate intracellular signal transduction pathways (e.g., MAPK, PI3K-Akt), ultimately regulating the expression of genes related to the cell cycle. Dysregulation of growth factor activity is closely associated with various diseases, such as aberrant proliferation and angiogenesis in cancer, and excessive tissue repair in fibrotic diseases.