KRAS

Cilia effects upon perturbation of KRAS

Cilia number / % ciliated:

Decreased cilia number

Loss-of-function effect:

Incrased cilia number

Ciliogenesis screen results (3 screens)

• Wheway et al. 2015 (siRNA) [siRNA]: Ciliogenesis Defect (z=-6.08) PMID:26167766
• Breslow et al. 2018 (CRISPR) [CRISPR]: Positive Regulator (Hh signaling, casTLE effect=-1.02) PMID:29459680
• Elliott et al. 2025 (CRISPRa) [CRISPRa]: Disassembly Trigger (casTLE Effect=-2.90) PMID:41160700

Subcellular localization

lysosomes

References: PMID:19147554, PMID:32571902

Functional category

• Ciliary assembly/disassembly
• Trafficking (BBSome, small GTPases, vesicular transport, ATPases)
• Actin & cytoskeleton regulation
• Neurogenesis & migration
• Signaling (Hedgehog, GPCRs, ion channels)
• Cardiac & muscle development
• Transcription regulation

Function

Inhibition of Kras effector pathways restored ciliogenesis in a mouse pancreatic cancer cell line, raising the possibility that ciliogenesis may be actively repressed by oncogenic Kras ( 19147554). Constitutive activation of KRAS promotes acinar-to-ductal metaplasia (ADM) but is associated with fewer primary cilia, and KRAS knockdown significantly increased cilia formation, suggesting that KRAS signalling suppresses ciliogenesis during ADM. (32571902)