ERAS, a Member of the Ras Superfamily, Acts as an Oncoprotein in the Mammary Gland

ERAS is a relatively uncharacterized gene of the Ras superfamily. It is expressed in ES cells and in the first stages of embryonic development; later on, it is silenced in the majority of cell types and tissues. Although there are several reports showing ERAS expression in tumoral cell lines and human tumor samples, it is unknown if ERAS deregulated expression is enough to drive tumor development. In this report, we have generated transgenic mice expressing ERAS in myoepithelial basal cells of the mammary gland and in basal cells of stratified epithelia. In spite of the low level of ERAS expression, these transgenic mice showed phenotypic alterations resembling overgrowth syndromes caused by the activation of the AKT-PI3K pathway. In addition, their mammary glands present developmental and functional disabilities accompanied by morphological and biochemical alterations in the myoepithelial cells. These mice suffer from tumoral transformation in the mammary glands with high incidence. These mammary tumors resemble, both histologically and by the expression of differentiation markers, malignant adenomyoepitheliomas. In sum, our results highlight the importance of ERAS silencing in adult tissues and define a truly oncogenic role for ERAS in mammary gland cells when inappropriately expressed.

Divergent Mechanisms Activating RAS and Small GTPases Through Post-translational Modification

RAS is a founding member of the RAS superfamily of GTPases. These small 21 kDa proteins function as molecular switches to initialize signaling cascades involved in various cellular processes, including gene expression, cell growth, and differentiation. RAS is activated by GTP loading and deactivated upon GTP hydrolysis to GDP. Guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) and GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs) accelerate GTP loading and hydrolysis, respectively. These accessory proteins play a fundamental role in regulating activities of RAS superfamily small GTPase via a conserved guanine binding (G)-domain, which consists of five G motifs. The Switch regions lie within or proximal to the G2 and G3 motifs, and undergo dynamic conformational changes between the GDP-bound “OFF” state and GTP-bound “ON” state. They play an important role in the recognition of regulatory factors (GEFs and GAPs) and effectors. The G4 and G5 motifs are the focus of the present work and lie outside Switch regions. These motifs are responsible for the recognition of the guanine moiety in GTP and GDP, and contain residues that undergo post-translational modifications that underlie new mechanisms of RAS regulation. Post-translational modification within the G4 and G5 motifs activates RAS by populating the GTP-bound “ON” state, either through enhancement of intrinsic guanine nucleotide exchange or impairing GAP-mediated down-regulation. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of post-translational modifications in the RAS G4 and G5 motifs, and describe the role of these modifications in RAS activation as well as potential applications for cancer therapy.

RAP, a member of the Ras superfamily of small GTPases and its putative GTPase activating proteins and guanine nucleotide exchange factors in raw 264.7 macrophages

The Fcγ receptor is a cell surface protein essential in the immune response that binds IgG-opsonized particles resulting in phagocytosis. Phagocytosis is a process used to remove pathogens and confine them in a vacuole that will enable their breakdown. The members of the Ras superfamily of small G proteins have been identified in samples where the activated Fcγ receptor complex was captured and analyzed using tandem mass spectrometry. The protein Rap. beloning to the Ras superfamily, guanosine triphosphatases (GTPase) activating proteins (GAPs), which promote the dissociation of GTP, and guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), that permits the exchange of GDP for GTP, were detected by SEQUEST in RAW 264.7 macrophages and futher analyzed using various methods. In this study, Raps, RasGAPs, and RapGEFs, were observed by tandem mass spectrometry and sequence correlation analysis. The selected isoforms were confirmed by Western blots, live cell confocal microscopy with fluorescent fusion constructs and antibody staining to verify the localization of Ras proetins, specifically Rap1, p120RasGAP and C3G, a RapGEF, to activated Fc reeceptor [sic].

RAP, a member of the Ras superfamily of small GTPases and its putative GTPase activating proteins and guanine nucleotide exchange factors in raw 264.7 macrophages

The Fcγ receptor is a cell surface protein essential in the immune response that binds IgG-opsonized particles resulting in phagocytosis. Phagocytosis is a process used to remove pathogens and confine them in a vacuole that will enable their breakdown. The members of the Ras superfamily of small G proteins have been identified in samples where the activated Fcγ receptor complex was captured and analyzed using tandem mass spectrometry. The protein Rap. beloning to the Ras superfamily, guanosine triphosphatases (GTPase) activating proteins (GAPs), which promote the dissociation of GTP, and guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), that permits the exchange of GDP for GTP, were detected by SEQUEST in RAW 264.7 macrophages and futher analyzed using various methods. In this study, Raps, RasGAPs, and RapGEFs, were observed by tandem mass spectrometry and sequence correlation analysis. The selected isoforms were confirmed by Western blots, live cell confocal microscopy with fluorescent fusion constructs and antibody staining to verify the localization of Ras proetins, specifically Rap1, p120RasGAP and C3G, a RapGEF, to activated Fc reeceptor [sic].

Rho GTPase Signaling in Health and Disease: A Complex Signaling Network

Rho GTPases are a family of small G-proteins of the Ras superfamily [...]

RASSF effectors couple diverse RAS subfamily GTPases to the Hippo pathway

Small guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases) of the RAS superfamily signal by directly binding to multiple downstream effector proteins. Effectors are defined by a folded RAS-association (RA) domain that binds exclusively to GTP-loaded (activated) RAS, but the binding specificities of most RA domains toward more than 160 RAS superfamily GTPases have not been characterized. Ten RA domain family (RASSF) proteins comprise the largest group of related effectors and are proposed to couple RAS to the proapoptotic Hippo pathway. Here, we showed that RASSF1-6 formed complexes with the Hippo kinase ortholog MST1, whereas RASSF7-10 formed oligomers with the p53-regulating effectors ASPP1 and ASPP2. Moreover, only RASSF5 bound directly to activated HRAS and KRAS, and RASSFs did not augment apoptotic induction downstream of RAS oncoproteins. Structural modeling revealed that expansion of the RASSF effector family in vertebrates included amino acid substitutions to key residues that direct GTPase-binding specificity. We demonstrated that the tumor suppressor RASSF1A formed complexes with the RAS-related GTPases GEM, REM1, REM2, and the enigmatic RASL12. Furthermore, interactions between RASSFs and RAS GTPases blocked YAP1 nuclear localization. Thus, these simple scaffolds link the activation of diverse RAS family small G proteins to Hippo or p53 regulation.

Small GTPases of the Ras and Rho Families Switch on/off Signaling Pathways in Neurodegenerative Diseases

Small guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases) of the Ras superfamily are key regulators of many key cellular events such as proliferation, differentiation, cell cycle regulation, migration, or apoptosis. To control these biological responses, GTPases activity is regulated by guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), GTPase activating proteins (GAPs), and in some small GTPases also guanine nucleotide dissociation inhibitors (GDIs). Moreover, small GTPases transduce signals by their downstream effector molecules. Many studies demonstrate that small GTPases of the Ras family are involved in neurodegeneration processes. Here, in this review, we focus on the signaling pathways controlled by these small protein superfamilies that culminate in neurodegenerative pathologies, such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Specifically, we concentrate on the two most studied families of the Ras superfamily: the Ras and Rho families. We summarize the latest findings of small GTPases of the Ras and Rho families in neurodegeneration in order to highlight these small proteins as potential therapeutic targets capable of slowing down different neurodegenerative diseases.

Wavelet coherence phases decode the universal switching mechanism of Ras GTPase superfamily

Ras superfamily GTPases are molecular switches which regulate critical cellular processes. Extensive structural and computational studies on these G proteins have established a general framework for their switching mechanism, which involves conformational changes in their two loops, Switch I and Switch II, upon GTP binding and hydrolysis. Since the extent of these conformational changes is not uniform amongst the members of the Ras superfamily, there is no generic modus operandi defining their switching mechanism. Here, we have developed a novel approach employing wavelet coherence analysis to correlate the structural changes with their functional states. Our analysis shows that the structural coupling between the Switch I and Switch II regions is manifested in terms of conserved wavelet coherence phases, which could serve as useful parameters to define functional states of the GTPases. In oncogenic GTPases mutants, this phase coupling gets disentangled, which perhaps provides an alternative explanation for their aberrant function. We have tested the statistical significance of the observed phase angle correlations on multiple switch region conformers, generated through MD simulations.

Crystal structure of the FYCO1 RUN domain suggests possible interfaces with small GTPases

FYCO1 is a multidomain adaptor protein that plays an important role in autophagy by mediating the kinesin-dependent microtubule plus-end-directed transport of autophagosomes. FYCO1 contains a RUN domain, which is hypothesized to function as a specific effector for members of the Ras superfamily of small GTPases, but its role has not been well characterized and its interaction partner(s) have not been identified. Here, the crystal structure of the FYCO1 RUN domain was determined at 1.3 Å resolution. The overall structure of the FYCO1 RUN domain was similar to those of previously reported RUN domains. Detailed structural comparisons with other RUN domains and docking studies suggested a possible interaction interface of the FYCO1 RUN domain with small GTPases of the Ras superfamily.