, Volume 25, Issue 6, pp 759-769  Chemistry and biology of ras
farnesyltransferase  368 Downloads 200 Citations 9 Comments
Purchase on Springer.com  $39.95 / €34.95 / £29.95*  Rent the
article at a discount  Rent now  * Final gross prices may vary
according to local VAT.  Get Access   Mutated forms of ras are
found in many human tumors and the rate of incidence is
significantly higher in colon and pancreatic cancers. The
protein product from theras oncogene is a small G-protein,
p21ras(Ras) that is known to play a key role in the signal
transduction cascade and cell differentiation and proliferation.
Mutated Ras is unable to regulate itself and remains constantly
activated, leading to uncontrolled cell growth. The function of
Ras in signal transduction requires its location near the growth
factor receptor at the cell membrane. However, Ras does not have
a transmembrane domain. Ras requires farnesylation to increase
its hydrophobicity and subsequent plasma membrane association
for its transforming activity. T