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Abstract
Non-bilaterian animals consist of four phyla; Porifera, Cnidaria, Ctenophora, and Placozoa. These early-diverging animals are crucial for understanding the evolution of the entire animal lineage. The Rho family of proteins make up a major branch of the Ras superfamily of small GTPases, which function as key molecular switches that play important roles in converting and amplifying external signals into cellular responses. This review represents a compilation of the current knowledge on Rho-family GTPases in non-bilaterian animals, the available experimental data about their biochemical characteristics and functions, as well as original bioinformatics analysis, in order to gain a general insight into the evolutionary history of Rho-family GTPases in simple animals.
Highlights
The development of multicellular organisms depends on the ability of cells to detect and respond adequately to external signals, expressed by other cells
Members of the RhoBTB subfamily of Rho GTPases were not found in genomes of sponges, placozoans, and ctenophores
We have identified only one RhoBTB homolog in genomes of cnidarians H. vulgaris (HvRhoBTB) and N. vectensis (NvRhoBTB)
Summary
The development of multicellular organisms depends on the ability of cells to detect and respond adequately to external signals, expressed by other cells. Small GTPases are low-molecular-weight (Mr of 20–25 kDa) monomeric guanine nucleotide-binding proteins. The Ras-related small GTPases are divided into five subfamilies: Ras, Rho, Arf, Rab, and Ran. Ras family members are activated by diverse extracellular stimuli that trigger a series of intracellular signaling events. Ras family members are activated by diverse extracellular stimuli that trigger a series of intracellular signaling events This cascade of events eventually controls gene transcription, which leads to activation of fundamental cellular processes, including cell growth and differentiation. The first small GTPases discovered [4], regulate cell growth, proliferation, and differentiation [5,6]. Ran is the last discovered GTPase and has a central role in the translocation of RNA and proteins through the nuclear pore complex [10]. Target proteins to which the Ras-related small GTPases bind [12,13]
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