Insight into the structural basis of pro- and antiapoptotic p53 modulation by ASPP proteins

p53-dependent apoptosis is modulated by the ASPP family of proteins (apoptosis-stimulating proteins of p53; also called ankyrin repeat-, Src homology 3 domain-, and Pro-rich region-containing proteins). Its three known members, ASPP1, ASPP2, and iASPP, were previously found to interact with p53, influencing the apoptotic response of cells without affecting p53-induced cell cycle arrest. More specifically, the bona fide tumor suppressors, ASPP1 and ASPP2, bind to the core domain of p53 and stimulate transcription of apoptotic genes, whereas oncogenic iASPP also binds to the p53 core domain but inhibits p53-dependent apoptosis. Although the general interaction regions are known, details of the interfaces for each p53-ASPP complex have not been evaluated. We undertook a comprehensive biophysical characterization of ASPP-p53 complex formation and mapped the binding interfaces by NMR. We found that the interaction interface on p53 for the proapoptotic protein ASPP2 is distinct from that for the antiapoptotic iASPP. ASPP2 primarily binds to the core domain of p53, whereas iASPP predominantly interacts with a linker region adjacent to the core domain. Our detailed structural analyses of the ASPP-p53 interactions provide insight into the structural basis of the differential behavior of pro- and antiapoptotic ASPP family members.