Spotlight on p63 p63, Cellular Senescence and Tumor Development

Deficiency of p63, a p53-related protein, causes severe defects in epithelial morphogenesis. Studies of p63-compromised mouse models reveal that p63 deficiency induces cellular senescence both in cultured cells and in vivo, through regulation p19Arf/p53 and p16Ink4a/Rb pathways. An extensive tumor study of p63-compromised mice demonstrated that p63 deficiency does not predispose to, but rather protects from, tumor development. These findings further implicate p63 as a negative regulator of the tumor suppressive mechanism of cellular senescence.