[Ras proteins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, their partners and their activation]

Ras proteins play the role of molecular switches by conformational change between a GTP and a GDP-bound state. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, they are encoded by two partially redundant genes RAS1 and RAS2 with a different pattern of gene expression. They are essential for growth because they are required for the activation of the adenylate cyclase and thus the protein kinase A pathway. Other possible biological functions remains to be established. To achieve their biological function, they need to be processed after their synthesis, they are modified farnesylated and palmitoylated at their C-terminal end at their CaaX box. Palmitoylation, involved in membrane localization, is not essential for growth but required for glucose signaling whereas farnesylation appears to participate in adenylate cyclase activation. In the GTP-bound state ras proteins interact through their conserved effector domain with the adenylate cyclase, the product of the CYR1/CDC35 gene. They also interact with GTPase activating proteins encoded by IRA1 and IRA2. These proteins are specific for yeast ras. It has been shown that Ira2p recognizes specific residues of yeast ras not shared by mammalian ras. The interaction with the guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) of the CDC25 family is enhanced by dominant negative mutations such as RAS2ala22. Using the two hybrid approach, we have showed the key role of position 80 in Ras2p and confirmed the involvement of the a2 helix, the other switching part of ras, in this interaction and the induced effect. As a counterpart we have identified positions in HGRF55 conserved in other GEF involved in ras interaction. The triggering elements of ras activation: the GEF Cdc25p and Sdc25p are limiting components of the ras system. Cdc25p is part of a multimolecular complex associated with the membrane. We have shown that it can form homodimers and heterodimers with Sdc25p. It is an unstable protein containing a cyclin destruction box. Therefore its activity on ras could be regulated by controlling its cellular content.