Ras signaling pathway

The Ras signaling pathway is a critical cellular cascade that controls cell proliferation, survival, differentiation, and migration. It involves Ras proteins (HRAS, KRAS, NRAS), which act as molecular switches activated by growth factor signaling and regulated by GEFs and GAPs. Upon activation, Ras-GTP interacts with downstream effectors like RAF, PI3K, and RalGDS to initiate signaling cascades leading to cellular responses. Mutations in RAS genes, particularly KRAS, are common in cancer and lead to constitutive pathway activation.

Other names

RAS pathwayMAPK/ERK pathwayPI3K-AKT-mTOR pathwayRal signaling

Drugs targeting the Ras pathway aim to inhibit key proteins within the cascade, such as directly inhibiting mutant RAS proteins (e.g., KRAS G12C inhibitors), or inhibiting downstream effectors like MEK, PI3K, mTOR or RAF kinases, thereby blocking proliferative and survival signals.