retrotransposons tagged posts

Cancer-fighting Gene Restrains ‘Jumping Genes’

Retrotransposons are “handcuffed” by the tumor suppressor gene
This illustration depicts how retrotransposons are “handcuffed” by the tumor suppressor gene p53. But when p53 is lost, these mobile elements can erupt. Credit: Study authors Amanda Jones and Bhavana Tiwari. Artwork by Angela Diehl.

Finding sheds light on why mutations of the gene p53 are associated with cancer and could lead to new diagnostics or treatments
About half of all tumors have mutations of the gene p53, normally responsible for warding off cancer. Now, UT Southwestern scientists have discovered a new role for p53 in its fight against tumors: preventing retrotransposons, or “jumping genes,” from hopping around the human genome. In cells with missing or mutated p53, the team found, retrotransposons move and multiply more than usual...

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