Ras Homolog Gene Family, Member F (RHOF)

Small GTPases of the Rho family have a critical role in controlling cell morphology, motility and adhesion through dynamic regulation of the actin cytoskeleton. Individual Rho GTPases have been shown to regulate distinct components of the cytoskeletal architecture; RhoA stimulates the bundling of actin filaments into stress fibres, Rac reorganises actin to produce membrane sheets or lamellipodia and Cdc42 causes the formation of thin, actin-rich surface projections called filopodia. Rif represents an alternative signalling route to the generation of filopodial structures. Coordinated regulation of Rho-family GTPases can be used to generate more complicated actin rearrangements, such as those underlying cell migration. In addition to inducing filopodia, Rif functions cooperatively with Cdc42 and Rac to generate additional structures, increasing the diversity of actin-based morphology.