Rho GTPases: Big Players in Breast Cancer Initiation, Metastasis and Therapeutic Responses
1
Center for Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
2
Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology, College of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, USA
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Cells 2020, 9(10), 2167; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9102167
Received: 28 August 2020
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Revised: 21 September 2020
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Accepted: 22 September 2020
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Published: 25 September 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Rho family of GTPases in Model Organisms and Systems)
Rho GTPases, a family of the Ras GTPase superfamily, are key regulators of the actin cytoskeleton. They were originally thought to primarily affect cell migration and invasion; however, recent advances in our understanding of the biology and function of Rho GTPases have demonstrated their diverse roles within the cell, including membrane trafficking, gene transcription, migration, invasion, adhesion, survival and growth. As these processes are critically involved in cancer initiation, metastasis and therapeutic responses, it is not surprising that studies have demonstrated important roles of Rho GTPases in cancer. Although the majority of data indicates an oncogenic role of Rho GTPases, tumor suppressor functions of Rho GTPases have also been revealed, suggesting a context and cell-type specific function for Rho GTPases in cancer. This review aims to summarize recent progresses in our understanding of the regulation and functions of Rho GTPases, specifically in the context of breast cancer. The potential of Rho GTPases as therapeutic targets and prognostic tools for breast cancer patients are also discussed.
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Keywords:
Rho GTPases; Rho; Rac; Cdc42; breast cancer; metastasis
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MDPI and ACS Style
Humphries, B.; Wang, Z.; Yang, C. Rho GTPases: Big Players in Breast Cancer Initiation, Metastasis and Therapeutic Responses. Cells 2020, 9, 2167. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9102167
AMA Style
Humphries B, Wang Z, Yang C. Rho GTPases: Big Players in Breast Cancer Initiation, Metastasis and Therapeutic Responses. Cells. 2020; 9(10):2167. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9102167
Chicago/Turabian StyleHumphries, Brock, Zhishan Wang, and Chengfeng Yang. 2020. "Rho GTPases: Big Players in Breast Cancer Initiation, Metastasis and Therapeutic Responses" Cells 9, no. 10: 2167. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9102167
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