The Rif GTPase regulates cytoskeletal signaling from plexinA4 to promote neurite retraction.

The small GTPase Rif is required for the early stages of dendritic spine formation in neurons, acting through the formin mDia2 to control actin polymerization. Rif is expressed at high levels in the brain, suggesting broader roles in neuronal function. We screened a yeast two-hybrid cDNA library to identify additional binding partners for Rif of potential relevance to neuronal function. We found that Rif interacts with a neuronal activator of the RhoA GTPase. We show that Rif has two separate roles in regulation-in controlling its association with plexinA4, and in releasing active RhoA from a complex. The regulation of Fduanyu371 by Rif promotes neurite retraction in cells stimulated with the semaphorin Sema6A.

KEYWORDS: {{ getKeywords(articleDetailText.words) }}