Rac1 regulates the activity of mTORC1 and mTORC2 and controls cellular size

Saci A, Cantley LC, Carpenter CL · 2011 · Molecular cell · Atlas ID SAC2011

What this study shows

Rac1 binds and regulates both mTORC1 and mTORC2, controlling their localization and cell growth.

Abstract

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Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a serine/threonine kinase that exists in two separate complexes, mTORC1 and mTORC2, that function to control cell size and growth in response to growth factors, nutrients, and cellular energy levels. Low molecular weight GTP-binding proteins of the Rheb and Rag families are key regulators of the mTORC1 complex, but regulation of mTORC2 is poorly understood. Here, we report that Rac1, a member of the Rho family of GTPases, is a critical regulator of both mTORC1 and mTORC2 in response to growth-factor stimulation.

Read the full abstract on PubMed →

At a glance

Evidence type	M Molecular — cells, biochemistry, structure Marked M because it is molecular or in-vitro work (model: Mammalian cells) rather than a whole-organism health-outcome study. That is often exactly where causal biology gets established -- the code says which system the finding was shown in, and nothing about how good the work is.
Study type	5 - Mechanistic / In Vitro
Model system	Mammalian cells
Journal	Molecular cell
Year	2011
Peer reviewed	Yes
Record last updated	2026-10-01
Source	DOI 10.1016/j.molcel.2011.03.017 · PMID 21474067 · Free full text (PMC3750737)

Extracted findings

These fields were extracted from the paper with AI assistance and have not been checked against the source. Read them as a pointer into the paper, not as curated claims; where they disagree with the curated summary above, the curated summary stands.

Intervention	Genetic/biochemical (Rac1)
Target	Rac1 / mTORC1 / mTORC2
Model	Mammalian cells
Effect	Rac1 is a critical regulator of both mTORC1 and mTORC2, controlling cell size

In the Atlas

Cite this paper

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Saci, A., Cantley, L. C., & Carpenter, C. L. (2011). Rac1 regulates the activity of mTORC1 and mTORC2 and controls cellular size. Molecular cell. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2011.03.017

@article{SAC2011,
  author       = {Saci, A. and Cantley, L. C. and Carpenter, C. L.},
  title        = {{Rac1 regulates the activity of mTORC1 and mTORC2 and controls cellular size}},
  journal      = {Molecular cell},
  year         = {2011},
  doi          = {10.1016/j.molcel.2011.03.017},
  note         = {PMID: 21474067},
}

Cite this Atlas record

The record is the Atlas's own work — the evidence label, the extracted findings and the links. It is cited as part of the dataset, not as the paper.

Barton, O. (2026). Oliver's mTOR Atlas (record SAC2011) [Data set]. https://mtor-atlas.org/study/SAC2011/ · Dataset DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22059963

@misc{atlas_SAC2011,
  author       = {Barton, Oliver},
  title        = {{Oliver's mTOR Atlas}, record SAC2011},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://mtor-atlas.org/study/SAC2011/},
  doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22059963}
}

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