Ras superfamily

The Ras superfamily is a protein superfamily of small GTPases.

There are more than a hundred proteins in the Ras superfamily. Based on structure, sequence and function, the Ras superfamily is divided into eight main families, each of which is further divided into subfamilies: Ras, Rad,  Rab, Rap, Ran, Rho, Rheb, Rit, and  Arf. 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 IQGAP and WASP.

The Ras family is generally responsible for cell proliferation, Rho for cell morphology, nuclear transport for Ran and vesicle transport for Rab and Arf:

Subfamilies and members
The following is a list of human proteins belonging to the Ras superfamily:

Unclassified:


 * ARHGAP5
 * DNAJC27
 * GRLF1
 * RASEF