THE EFFECT OF RHO FAMILY PROTEINS ON HGF TO ARF6 SIGNALING
Open Access
Author:
Allegrezza, Michael John
Area of Honors:
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Lorraine C Santy, Thesis Supervisor Dr. Lorraine C Santy, Thesis Supervisor Ming Tien, Thesis Honors Advisor Scott Brian Selleck, Faculty Reader
Keywords:
cell migration Arf Rho GTPases
Abstract:
Epithelial cell migration is a coordinated process that requires precise polarization in order to result in productive movement. GTPases are among the proteins that regulate motility. This thesis looks at the interaction between signaling processes of two families of GTPases involved in cellular motility, Rho and Arf. We use co-immunoprecipitation experiments to show that RhoA-GTP, but not other members of the Rho family, interacts with an intermediate in the signaling events leading to Arf6 activation. We then investigate the effects of RhoA interaction with the amount of Arf6 activation using GGA3 pulldown assays. Lastly, one potential molecular mechanism through which RhoA could exert an influence on the signaling pathway is tested with co-immunoprecipitation experiments.
