Gain of cellular adaptation due to prolonged p53 impairment leads to functional switchover from p53 to p73 during DNA damage in acute myeloid leukemia cells.
Tumor suppressor p53 plays the central role in regulating apoptosis in response to genotoxic stress. From an evolutionary perspective, the activity of p53 has to be backed up by other protein(s) in case of any functional impairment of this protein, to trigger DNA damage-induced apoptosis in cancer cells. We adopted multiple experimental approaches to demonstrate that in p53-impaired cancer cells, DNA damage caused accumulation of p53 paralogue p73 via Chk-1 that strongly impacted Bax expression and p53-independent apoptosis. On the contrary, when p53 function was restored by ectopic expression, Chk-2 induced p53 accumulation that in turn overshadowed p73 activity, suggesting an antagonistic interaction between p53 family members. To understand such interaction better, p53-expressing cells were impaired differentially for p53 activity. In wild-type p53-expressing cancer cells that were silenced for p53 for several generations, p73 was activated, whereas no such trend was observed when p53 was transiently silenced. Prolonged p53 interference, even in functional p53 settings, therefore, leads to the "gain of cellular adaptation" in a way that alters the cellular microenvironment in favor of p73 activation by altering p73-regulatory proteins, e.g. Chk1 activation and dominant negative p73 down-regulation. These findings not only unveil a hitherto unexplained mechanism underlying the functional switchover from p53 to p73, but also validate p73 as a promising and potential target for cancer therapy in the absence of functional p53.
Chakraborty
Juni
J
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Banerjee
Shuvomoy
S
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Ray
Pallab
P
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Hossain
Dewan Md Sakib
DMS
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Bhattacharyya
Sankar
S
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Adhikary
Arghya
A
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Chattopadhyay
Sreya
S
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Das
Tanya
T
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India.
Sa
Gaurisankar
G
From the Division of Molecular Medicine, Bose Institute, P-1/12 CIT Scheme VII M, Kolkata 700 054, India. Electronic address: gauri@bic.boseinst.ernet.in.
D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics; D000071877:Checkpoint Kinase 1; D004249:DNA Damage; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015973:Gene Expression Regulation, Leukemic / Q000235:genetics; D020868:Gene Silencing; D018922:HL-60 Cells; D006801:Humans; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000628:therapy; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics; D013997:Time Factors; D000072160:Tumor Protein p73; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020298:U937 Cells; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics
C494826:BAX protein, human; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; C495901:TP53 protein, human; C000606460:TP73 protein, human; D000072160:Tumor Protein p73; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein; D011494:Protein Kinases; C000605867:CHEK1 protein, human; D000071877:Checkpoint Kinase 1