The Ras superfamily, derived from "Rat sarcoma virus", is a
protein superfamily
A protein superfamily is the largest grouping (clade) of proteins for which common ancestry can be inferred (see homology (biology), homology). Usually this common ancestry is inferred from structural alignment and mechanistic similarity, even if n ...
of
small GTPases.
Members of the superfamily are divided into
families and subfamilies based on their structure, sequence and function. The five main families are Ras,
Rho
Rho (uppercase Ρ, lowercase ρ or ; el, ρο or el, ρω, label=none) is the 17th letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 100. It is derived from Phoenician letter res . Its uppercase form uses the sa ...
,
Ran,
Rab and
Arf GTPases.
The Ras family itself is further divided into 6 subfamilies:
Ras,
Ral,
Rap,
Rheb,
Rad and Rit. ''Miro'' is a recent contributor to the superfamily. Each subfamily shares the common core G domain, which provides essential GTPase and nucleotide exchange activity.
The surrounding sequence helps determine the functional specificity of the small GTPase, for example the 'Insert Loop', common to the Rho subfamily, specifically contributes to binding to effector proteins such as
WASP.
In general, the Ras family is responsible for cell proliferation: Rho for cell
morphology, Ran for nuclear transport, and Rab and Arf for
vesicle transport.
[
]
Subfamilies and members
The following is a list of human proteins belonging to the Ras superfamily:GRLF1
Glucocorticoid receptor DNA-binding factor 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''GRLF1'' gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meanin ...
* RASEF
See also
* Ras subfamily
Ras, from "Rat sarcoma virus", is a family of related proteins that are expressed in all animal cell lineages and organs. All Ras protein family members belong to a class of protein called small GTPase, and are involved in transmitting signals ...
References
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G proteins
Protein superfamilies