Nuclear and cellular plasticity : Nuclear RAC1 takes center stage

Navarro-Lérida etal. (2015) report in this issue of Developmental Cell that RAC1 nuclear accumulation causes actin-dependent deformation of the nuclear envelope and increases nuclear plasticity. It further leads to depletion of cytoplasmic, active RAC1 with a concomitant increase in RHOA signaling driving actomyosin-mediated cell shape changes. These two properties combine to enhance tumor cells invasiveness. Comment on Rac1 nucleocytoplasmic shuttling drives nuclear shape changes and tumor invasion. [Dev Cell. 2015] 2015 Feb 9;32(3):318-34. Navarro-Lérida, Pellinen, Sanchez SA, Guadamillas MC, Wang Y, Mirtti T, Calvo E, Del Pozo MA.