A genetic screen identifies TCF3/E2A and TRIAP1 as pathway-specific regulators of the cellular response to p53 activation

Cell Rep. 2013 May 30;3(5):1346-54. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2013.04.014. Epub 2013 May 16.

Abstract

The p53 transcription factor participates in diverse cellular responses to stress, including cell-cycle arrest, apoptosis, senescence, and autophagy. The molecular mechanisms defining the ultimate outcome of p53 activation remain poorly characterized. We performed a genome-wide genetic screen in human cells to identify pathway-specific coregulators of the p53 target gene CDKN1A (p21), an inhibitor of cell-cycle progression, versus BBC3 (PUMA), a key mediator of apoptosis. Our screen identified numerous factors whose depletion creates an imbalance in the p21:PUMA ratio upon p53 activation. The transcription factor TCF3, also known as E2A, drives p21 expression while repressing PUMA across cancer cell types of multiple origins. Accordingly, TCF3/E2A depletion impairs the cell-cycle-arrest response and promotes apoptosis upon p53 activation by chemotherapeutic agents. In contrast, TRIAP1 is a specific repressor of p21 whose depletion slows down cell-cycle progression. Our results reveal strategies for driving cells toward specific p53-dependent responses.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Apoptosis
  • Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins / genetics
  • Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins / metabolism
  • Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Transcription Factors / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Transcription Factors / genetics
  • Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Transcription Factors / metabolism*
  • Cell Cycle Checkpoints
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21 / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21 / genetics
  • Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21 / metabolism
  • DNA Damage
  • HCT116 Cells
  • Humans
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / genetics
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / metabolism*
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / genetics
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / metabolism
  • RNA Interference
  • RNA Polymerase II / metabolism
  • RNA, Small Interfering / metabolism
  • Signal Transduction
  • Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / genetics
  • Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / metabolism*

Substances

  • Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins
  • BBC3 protein, human
  • Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Transcription Factors
  • Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins
  • RNA, Small Interfering
  • TFPT protein, human
  • TRIAP1 protein, human
  • Tumor Suppressor Protein p53
  • RNA Polymerase II