Chp (GTPase) explained

RhoV (or Chp or Wrch2) is a small (~21 kDa) signaling G protein (more specifically a GTPase), and is a member of the Rho family of GTPases.Chp was identified in 1998 as a GTPase interacting with the p21 activated kinase PAK2.^[1] RhoV/Chp delineates with RhoU/Wrch a Rho subclass related to Rac and Cdc42, which emerged in early multicellular organisms during evolution.^[2] RhoV/Chp depends on palmitoylation rather than prenylation for association with plasma and intracellular membranes.^[3] In Xenopus embryos, RhoV is encoded by a canonical Wnt response gene and is induced in the developing neural crest at specification. RhoV activity cooperates with the Snai1 (Snail) transcription factor for the subsequent induction of the pro-invasive transcription factors Snai2 (Slug), Sox9 or Twist.^[4]

Further reading: Rho family of GTPases

Notes and References

1. Aronheim A, Broder YC, Cohen A, Fritsch A, Belisle B, Abo A . 1998 . Chp, a homologue of the GTPase Cdc42Hs, activates the JNK pathway and is implicated in reorganizing the actin cytoskeleton . Curr Biol . 8 . 20 . 1125–8 . 0960-9822 . 10.1016/S0960-9822(98)70468-3 . 9778532. free .
2. Boureux A, Vignal E, Faure S, Fort P . 2007 . 17035353 . 10.1093/molbev/msl145 . 2665304 . 24 . 1 . Evolution of the Rho family of ras-like GTPases in eukaryotes . Mol. Biol. Evol. . 203–16.
3. Chenette EJ, Mitin NY, Der CJ . 2006 . Multiple Sequence Elements Facilitate Chp Rho GTPase Subcellular Location, Membrane Association, and Transforming Activity . Mol Biol Cell . 17 . 7. 3108–21 . 1059-1524 . 10.1091/mbc.E05-09-0896 . 16641371 . 1483044.
4. Guemar L, de Santa Barbara P, Vignal E,Maurel B, Fort P, Faure S . 2007 . The small GTPase RhoV is an essential regulator of neural crest induction in Xenopus . Dev Biol . 310 . 1. 113–28 . 0012-1606. 10.1016/j.ydbio.2007.07.031 . 17761159.