Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53

Abstract Missense mutations in the TP53 (p53) gene have been linked to malignant progression. However, our in-silico analyses reveal that hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients with mutant p53 (mutp53) have better overall survival compared to those with p53-null (p53null) HCC, unlike other cancer t...

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Main Authors: Elizabeth Thoenen, Atul Ranjan, Alejandro Parrales, Shigeto Nishikawa, Dan A. Dixon, Sugako Oka, Tomoo Iwakuma
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-03-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-57539-6
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author Elizabeth Thoenen
Atul Ranjan
Alejandro Parrales
Shigeto Nishikawa
Dan A. Dixon
Sugako Oka
Tomoo Iwakuma
author_facet Elizabeth Thoenen
Atul Ranjan
Alejandro Parrales
Shigeto Nishikawa
Dan A. Dixon
Sugako Oka
Tomoo Iwakuma
author_sort Elizabeth Thoenen
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Missense mutations in the TP53 (p53) gene have been linked to malignant progression. However, our in-silico analyses reveal that hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients with mutant p53 (mutp53) have better overall survival compared to those with p53-null (p53null) HCC, unlike other cancer types. Given the historical use of sorafenib (SOR) monotherapy for advanced HCC, we hypothesize that mutp53 increases sensitivity to SOR, a multikinase inhibitor that induces endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. Here we show that mutp53 inhibits stress granule (SG) formation by binding to an ER stress sensor, PKR-like ER kinase (PERK), and a key SG component, GAP SH3 domain-binding protein 1 (G3BP1), contributing to increased sensitivity of SG-competent cells and xenografts to ER stress inducers including SOR. Our study identifies a unique vulnerability imposed by mutp53, suggesting mutp53 as a biomarker for ER stress-inducing agents and highlighting the importance of SG inhibition for cancer treatment.
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spelling doaj-art-4d327c8add6349e986d7775d0a39c5db2025-08-20T02:56:20ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-03-0116111710.1038/s41467-025-57539-6Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53Elizabeth Thoenen0Atul Ranjan1Alejandro Parrales2Shigeto Nishikawa3Dan A. Dixon4Sugako Oka5Tomoo Iwakuma6Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology & Oncology, Children’s Mercy Research InstituteDepartment of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology & Oncology, Children’s Mercy Research InstituteDepartment of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology & Oncology, Children’s Mercy Research InstituteDepartment of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology & Oncology, Children’s Mercy Research InstituteDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, University of Arkansas for Medical SciencesFaculty of Medical Science, Kyushu UniversityDepartment of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology & Oncology, Children’s Mercy Research InstituteAbstract Missense mutations in the TP53 (p53) gene have been linked to malignant progression. However, our in-silico analyses reveal that hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients with mutant p53 (mutp53) have better overall survival compared to those with p53-null (p53null) HCC, unlike other cancer types. Given the historical use of sorafenib (SOR) monotherapy for advanced HCC, we hypothesize that mutp53 increases sensitivity to SOR, a multikinase inhibitor that induces endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. Here we show that mutp53 inhibits stress granule (SG) formation by binding to an ER stress sensor, PKR-like ER kinase (PERK), and a key SG component, GAP SH3 domain-binding protein 1 (G3BP1), contributing to increased sensitivity of SG-competent cells and xenografts to ER stress inducers including SOR. Our study identifies a unique vulnerability imposed by mutp53, suggesting mutp53 as a biomarker for ER stress-inducing agents and highlighting the importance of SG inhibition for cancer treatment.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-57539-6
spellingShingle Elizabeth Thoenen
Atul Ranjan
Alejandro Parrales
Shigeto Nishikawa
Dan A. Dixon
Sugako Oka
Tomoo Iwakuma
Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53
Nature Communications
title Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53
title_full Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53
title_fullStr Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53
title_full_unstemmed Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53
title_short Suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53
title_sort suppression of stress granule formation is a vulnerability imposed by mutant p53
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-57539-6
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