Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 27, 2025

Identification of EGFR and RAS Inhibitors using Caenorhabditis elegans
08:12

Identification of EGFR and RAS Inhibitors using Caenorhabditis elegans

Published on: October 5, 2020

3.1K

The role of RAS oncogenes in controlling epithelial mechanics

Agata Nyga1, Sushila Ganguli2, Helen K Matthews3

  • 1Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, CB2 0QH, UK.

Trends in Cell Biology
|September 29, 2022
PubMed

Insights

RAS oncogenes alter cell mechanics, affecting actin organization and contractility. These mechanical changes drive cell proliferation and tissue deformation in cancer development.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Cell Biology
  • Biophysics

Background:

  • RAS mutations are central drivers of cancer and targets for therapy.
  • Oncogenic Ras proteins activate signaling pathways like ERK and PI3K, promoting cell growth and survival.
  • Emerging evidence links RAS oncogenes to altered mechanical properties of cancer cells and tissues.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the role of oncogenic RAS in regulating cellular mechanical phenotypes.
  • To understand how RAS-induced mechanical changes contribute to oncogenic transformation in single cells and tissues.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of RAS activation effects on actin organization and actomyosin contractility.
  • Investigation of changes in cell rheology, substrate adhesion, and mechanosensing pathways (YAP/TAZ).
  • Examination of how these mechanical alterations influence collective cell behavior and tissue-level deformations.

Main Results:

  • RAS activation modifies actin cytoskeleton organization and actomyosin contractility.
  • Altered cell mechanics impact cell rheology and mechanosensing.
  • These changes facilitate tissue deformation and malignant cell expansion in collective settings.

Conclusions:

  • Understanding RAS-mediated mechanical alterations is crucial for comprehending tumor formation in RAS-mutant cancers.
  • Investigating cell mechanics provides insights into the morphogenetic processes underlying cancer progression.
  • Targeting mechanical pathways may offer novel therapeutic strategies for RAS-driven cancers.
Keywords:
RASYAP/TAZ signallingactinepitheliamechanobiologymechanotransductionmyosinoncogenetissue mechanics

More Related Videos

Author Spotlight: Optogenetic Inhibition of Rho1-Mediated Actomyosin Contractility Coupled with Measurement of Epithelial Tension in Drosophila Embryos12:35

Author Spotlight: Optogenetic Inhibition of Rho1-Mediated Actomyosin Contractility Coupled with Measurement of Epithelial Tension in Drosophila Embryos

Published on: April 14, 2023

1.4K
Examining the Dynamics of Cellular Adhesion and Spreading of Epithelial Cells on Fibronectin During Oxidative Stress10:57

Examining the Dynamics of Cellular Adhesion and Spreading of Epithelial Cells on Fibronectin During Oxidative Stress

Published on: October 13, 2019

7.5K

Related Concept Videos

The Ras Gene02:38

The Ras Gene

The Ras-gene-encoded proteins are regulators of signaling pathways controlling cell proliferation, differentiation, or cell survival. The Ras-gene family in humans constitutes three primary members—the HRas, NRas, and KRas. These genes code for four functionally distinct yet closely related proteins—the HRas, NRas, KRas4A, and KRas4B. The involvement of mutant Ras genes in human cancer was first discovered in 1982 and is among the most common causes of human tumorigenesis.
Ras is a...
6.4K
Small GTPases - Ras and Rho01:24

Small GTPases - Ras and Rho

Ras and Rho are small monomeric GTPases that act downstream of receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) and regulate various cellular processes. These GTPases switch between active and inactive states by binding to guanine nucleotides.
Three regulatory proteins control their activity:
4.1K
Cell-matrix's Response to Mechanical Forces01:13

Cell-matrix's Response to Mechanical Forces

In animal cells, the extracellular matrix allows cells within tissues to withstand external stresses and transmits signals from the outside of the cell to the inside. The extracellular matrix is extensive, and its composition varies between different types of tissues. For example, the reticular fibers and ground substance make up the ECM in loose connective tissue, while collagen and bone minerals make up the ECM of bone tissue. 
Anchoring junctions mechanically attach a cell to the...
2.7K
Tension Response at Adherens Junctions01:26

Tension Response at Adherens Junctions

The adherens junctions that anchor cells together are multi-protein complexes that dynamically adapt to mechanical stimuli such as tensile forces and shear stress. Mechanosensory proteins in these junctions can sense such mechanical stimuli and undergo a shift in their conformation, resulting in an altered function — a process called mechanotransduction.
α-Catenin as a Mechanosensory Protein
The α-catenin of adherens junctions is an allosteric protein with three VH (vinculin...
2.8K
Mitogens and the Cell Cycle02:38

Mitogens and the Cell Cycle

Mitogens and their receptors play a crucial role in controlling the progression of the cell cycle. However, the loss of mitogenic control over cell division leads to tumor formation. Therefore, mitogens and mitogen receptors play an important role in cancer research. For instance, the epidermal growth factor (EGF) - a type of mitogen and its transmembrane receptor (EGFR), decides the fate of the cell's proliferation. When EGF binds to EGFR, a member of the ErbB family of tyrosine kinase...
6.6K
MAPK Signaling Cascades01:07

MAPK Signaling Cascades

Mitogen-activated protein kinase, or MAPK pathway, activates three sequential kinases to regulate cellular responses such as proliferation, differentiation, survival, and apoptosis. The canonical MAPK pathway starts with a mitogen or growth factor binding to an RTK. The activated RTKs stimulate Ras, which recruits Raf or MAP3 Kinase (MAPKKK), the first kinase of the MAPK signaling cascade. Raf further phosphorylates and activates MEK or MAP2 Kinases (MAPKK), which in turn phosphorylates MAP...
5.9K