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Balourdas DI, Markl AM, Krämer A, Settanni G, Joerger AC. Structural basis of p53 inactivation by cavity-creating cancer mutations and its implications for the development of mutant p53 reactivators. Cell Death Dis 2024; 15:408. [PMID: 38862470 PMCID: PMC11166945 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-024-06739-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 05/05/2024] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/13/2024]
Abstract
The cavity-creating p53 cancer mutation Y220C is an ideal paradigm for developing small-molecule drugs based on protein stabilization. Here, we have systematically analyzed the structural and stability effects of all oncogenic Tyr-to-Cys mutations (Y126C, Y163C, Y205C, Y220C, Y234C, and Y236C) in the p53 DNA-binding domain (DBD). They were all highly destabilizing, drastically lowering the melting temperature of the protein by 8-17 °C. In contrast, two non-cancerous mutations, Y103C and Y107C, had only a moderate effect on protein stability. Differential stabilization of the mutants upon treatment with the anticancer agent arsenic trioxide and stibogluconate revealed an interesting proximity effect. Crystallographic studies complemented by MD simulations showed that two of the mutations, Y234C and Y236C, create internal cavities of different size and shape, whereas the others induce unique surface lesions. The mutation-induced pockets in the Y126C and Y205C mutant were, however, relatively small compared with that of the already druggable Y220C mutant. Intriguingly, our structural studies suggest a pronounced plasticity of the mutation-induced pocket in the frequently occurring Y163C mutant, which may be exploited for the development of small-molecule stabilizers. We point out general principles for reactivating thermolabile cancer mutants and highlight special cases where mutant-specific drugs are needed for the pharmacological rescue of p53 function in tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitrios-Ilias Balourdas
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), Buchmann Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, Max-von-Laue-Str. 15, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Anja M Markl
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Andreas Krämer
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), Buchmann Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, Max-von-Laue-Str. 15, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Giovanni Settanni
- Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstr. 150, 44801, Bochum, Germany
- Physics Department, University of Mainz, Staudingerweg 7, 55099, Mainz, Germany
| | - Andreas C Joerger
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
- Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), Buchmann Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, Max-von-Laue-Str. 15, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
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Tuval A, Strandgren C, Heldin A, Palomar-Siles M, Wiman KG. Pharmacological reactivation of p53 in the era of precision anticancer medicine. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 2024; 21:106-120. [PMID: 38102383 DOI: 10.1038/s41571-023-00842-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
p53, which is encoded by the most frequently mutated gene in cancer, TP53, is an attractive target for novel cancer therapies. Despite major challenges associated with this approach, several compounds that either augment the activity of wild-type p53 or restore all, or some, of the wild-type functions to p53 mutants are currently being explored. In wild-type TP53 cancer cells, p53 function is often abrogated by overexpression of the negative regulator MDM2, and agents that disrupt p53-MDM2 binding can trigger a robust p53 response, albeit potentially with induction of p53 activity in non-malignant cells. In TP53-mutant cancer cells, compounds that promote the refolding of missense mutant p53 or the translational readthrough of nonsense mutant TP53 might elicit potent cell death. Some of these compounds have been, or are being, tested in clinical trials involving patients with various types of cancer. Nonetheless, no p53-targeting drug has so far been approved for clinical use. Advances in our understanding of p53 biology provide some clues as to the underlying reasons for the variable clinical activity of p53-restoring therapies seen thus far. In this Review, we discuss the intricate interactions between p53 and its cellular and microenvironmental contexts and factors that can influence p53's activity. We also propose several strategies for improving the clinical efficacy of these agents through the complex perspective of p53 functionality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amos Tuval
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Oncology-Pathology, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Angelos Heldin
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Oncology-Pathology, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Klas G Wiman
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Oncology-Pathology, Stockholm, Sweden.
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Fischer NW, Ma YHV, Gariépy J. Emerging insights into ethnic-specific TP53 germline variants. J Natl Cancer Inst 2023; 115:1145-1156. [PMID: 37352403 PMCID: PMC10560603 DOI: 10.1093/jnci/djad106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2023] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The recent expansion of human genomics repositories has facilitated the discovery of novel TP53 variants in populations of different ethnic origins. Interpreting TP53 variants is a major clinical challenge because they are functionally diverse, confer highly variable predisposition to cancer (including elusive low-penetrance alleles), and interact with genetic modifiers that alter tumor susceptibility. Here, we discuss how a cancer risk continuum may relate to germline TP53 mutations on the basis of our current review of genotype-phenotype studies and an integrative analysis combining functional and sequencing datasets. Our study reveals that each ancestry contains a distinct TP53 variant landscape defined by enriched ethnic-specific alleles. In particular, the discovery and characterization of suspected low-penetrance ethnic-specific variants with unique functional consequences, including P47S (African), G334R (Ashkenazi Jewish), and rs78378222 (Icelandic), may provide new insights in terms of managing cancer risk and the efficacy of therapy. Additionally, our analysis highlights infrequent variants linked to milder cancer phenotypes in various published reports that may be underdiagnosed and require further investigation, including D49H in East Asians and R181H in Europeans. Overall, the sequencing and projected functions of TP53 variants arising within ethnic populations and their interplay with modifiers, as well as the emergence of CRISPR screens and AI tools, are now rapidly improving our understanding of the cancer susceptibility spectrum, leading toward more accurate and personalized cancer risk assessments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas W Fischer
- Physical Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yu-Heng Vivian Ma
- Physical Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jean Gariépy
- Physical Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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Indeglia A, Leung JC, Miller SA, Leu JIJ, Dougherty JF, Clarke NL, Kirven NA, Shao C, Ke L, Lovell S, Barnoud T, Lu DY, Lin C, Kannan T, Battaile KP, Yang THL, Batista Oliva I, Claiborne DT, Vogel P, Liu L, Liu Q, Nefedova Y, Cassel J, Auslander N, Kossenkov AV, Karanicolas J, Murphy ME. An African-Specific Variant of TP53 Reveals PADI4 as a Regulator of p53-Mediated Tumor Suppression. Cancer Discov 2023; 13:1696-1719. [PMID: 37140445 PMCID: PMC10326602 DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.cd-22-1315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2022] [Revised: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
TP53 is the most frequently mutated gene in cancer, yet key target genes for p53-mediated tumor suppression remain unidentified. Here, we characterize a rare, African-specific germline variant of TP53 in the DNA-binding domain Tyr107His (Y107H). Nuclear magnetic resonance and crystal structures reveal that Y107H is structurally similar to wild-type p53. Consistent with this, we find that Y107H can suppress tumor colony formation and is impaired for the transactivation of only a small subset of p53 target genes; this includes the epigenetic modifier PADI4, which deiminates arginine to the nonnatural amino acid citrulline. Surprisingly, we show that Y107H mice develop spontaneous cancers and metastases and that Y107H shows impaired tumor suppression in two other models. We show that PADI4 is itself tumor suppressive and that it requires an intact immune system for tumor suppression. We identify a p53-PADI4 gene signature that is predictive of survival and the efficacy of immune-checkpoint inhibitors. SIGNIFICANCE We analyze the African-centric Y107H hypomorphic variant and show that it confers increased cancer risk; we use Y107H in order to identify PADI4 as a key tumor-suppressive p53 target gene that contributes to an immune modulation signature and that is predictive of cancer survival and the success of immunotherapy. See related commentary by Bhatta and Cooks, p. 1518. This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 1501.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Indeglia
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Jessica C. Leung
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Sven A. Miller
- Program in Molecular Therapeutics, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Julia I-Ju Leu
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - James F. Dougherty
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Nicole L. Clarke
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Nicole A. Kirven
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Chunlei Shao
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Lei Ke
- Program in Molecular Therapeutics, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Scott Lovell
- Del Shankel Structural Biology Center, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
| | - Thibaut Barnoud
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - David Y. Lu
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Cindy Lin
- Program in Immunology, Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Toshitha Kannan
- Program in Gene Expression and Regulation, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | | | - Tyler Hong Loong Yang
- Program in Immunology, Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Isabela Batista Oliva
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Daniel T. Claiborne
- Program in Immunology, Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Peter Vogel
- Department of Pathology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee
| | - Lijun Liu
- Del Shankel Structural Biology Center, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
| | - Qin Liu
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Yulia Nefedova
- Program in Immunology, Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Joel Cassel
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Noam Auslander
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Andrew V. Kossenkov
- Program in Gene Expression and Regulation, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - John Karanicolas
- Program in Molecular Therapeutics, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Maureen E. Murphy
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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