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Yeast As a Chassis for Developing Functional Assays to Study Human P53
14:57

Yeast As a Chassis for Developing Functional Assays to Study Human P53

Published on: August 4, 2019

Expression of the human tumor suppressor p53 induces cell death in Pichia pastoris

Salma Abdelmoula-Souissi1, Imed Mabrouk, Ali Gargouri

  • 1Laboratoire de Valorisation de la Biomasse et Production de Protéines chez les Eucaryotes, Centre de Biotechnologie de Sfax, University of Sfax, Sfax, Tunisia.

FEMS Yeast Research
|November 19, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Human p53, the guardian of the genome, induces cell death in yeast. This study shows p53 triggers apoptosis in Pichia pastoris, offering a new tool for p53 research.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology
  • Microbiology

Background:

  • The human tumor suppressor p53 is a critical regulator of cell fate.
  • Its role in apoptosis is well-established in mammalian systems.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the biological activity of human p53 in a heterologous yeast system.
  • To determine if human p53 can induce cell death in Pichia pastoris.

Main Methods:

  • Expression of human p53 in recombinant Pichia pastoris strains (Mut(s) and Mut(+)).
  • Assessment of growth inhibition and apoptosis markers (DNA fragmentation, phosphatidylserine exposure, ROS generation).

Main Results:

  • Human p53 expression led to growth inhibition and cell death in the Mut(s) Pichia pastoris strain.
  • No effect was observed in the Mut(+) strain.
  • Apoptotic markers were detected in Mut(s) cells expressing p53.

Conclusions:

  • Human p53 is biologically active in the heterologous yeast Pichia pastoris.
  • Pichia pastoris serves as a viable model for studying human p53 function.
  • This system can aid in understanding the complex roles of the guardian of the genome.

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