Structural biology of the tumour suppressor p53 and its complexes

人体具有对抗癌症的防御机制，涉及一种称为p53的蛋白质。这种蛋白质在许多其他生物过程中也有重要作用，从生育到衰老。当p53接收到细胞正在癌变的信号时，蛋白质会启动一系列事件，最终导致癌细胞被摧毁。为了使癌细胞存活，必须消除p53的活性。大约一半的人类癌症的p53基因突变，最有可能是由环境损害或辐射引起的。在许多癌症中，有升高的蛋白质水平，可以抑制或破坏p53。我们的研究检查了p53和其他蛋白质的形状，以及它们是如何组合在一起的。这些研究将为设计保护p53的新抗癌药物提供基础信息。

The body has defence mechanisms against cancer that involve a protein called p53. This protein also has important roles in many other biological processes, ranging from fertility to ageing. When p53 receives signals that a cell is becoming cancerous, the protein sets into action a train of events that eventually lead to the cancer cell being destroyed. For cancer cells to survive, the activities of p53 have to be eliminated. About half of human cancers have their p53 being disabled by a mutation, most likely caused by environmental damage or radiation. In many cancers, there are raised levels of proteins that inactivate or destroy p53. Our studies examine the shapes of p53 and the other proteins and how they all fit together. These studies will provide fundamental information for designing new anti-cancer drugs that will protect p53.