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Updated: May 3, 2026

Visualization of DNA Repair Proteins Interaction by Immunofluorescence
Published on: June 26, 2020
VRK1 interacts with p53 forming a basal complex that is activated by UV-induced DNA damage
Inmaculada López-Sánchez1, Alberto Valbuena1, Marta Vázquez-Cedeira2
1Experimental Therapeutics and Translational Oncology Program, Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular del Cáncer, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain.
Abstract:
DNA damage immediate cellular response requires the activation of p53 by kinases. We found that p53 forms a basal stable complex with VRK1, a Ser-Thr kinase that responds to UV-induced DNA damage by specifically phosphorylating p53. This interaction takes place through the p53 DNA binding domain, and frequent DNA-contact mutants of p53, such as R273H, R248H or R280K, do not disrupt the complex. UV-induced DNA damage activates VRK1, and is accompanied by phosphorylation of p53 at Thr-18 before it accumulates. We propose that the VRK1-p53 basal complex is an early-warning system for immediate cellular responses to DNA damage.
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