p53 as a Regulator of Lipid Metabolism in Cancer

Enhanced proliferation and survival are common features of cancer cells. Cancer cells are metabolically reprogrammed which aids in their survival in nutrient-poor environments. Indeed, changes in metabolism of glucose and glutamine are essential for tumor progression. Thus, metabolic reprogramming is now well accepted as a hallmark of cancer. Recent findings suggest that reprogramming of lipid metabolism also occurs in cancer cells, since lipids are used for biosynthesis of membranes, post-translational modifications, second messengers for signal transduction, and as a source of energy during nutrient deprivation. The tumor suppressor p53 is a transcription factor that controls the expression of proteins involved in cell cycle arrest, DNA repair, apoptosis, and senescence. p53 also regulates cellular metabolism, which appears to play a key role in its tumor suppressive activities. In this review article, we summarize non-canonical functions of wild-type and mutant p53 on lipid metabolism and discuss their association with cancer progression.