New insights into regulation of p53 protein degradation

The tumor suppressor p53 is a multi-functional protein, its functions covering cell cycle control, apoptosis, senescence, genome integrity maintenance, metabolism, cellular reprogramming and autophagy. Regulation of p53 stability is a central process in controlling these p53 functions. Multiple E3 ligases that mediate p53 degradation through the ubiquitination proteasome pathway have been well studied, studies also suggest p53 can be degraded through the ubiquitination-independent pathway and the proteasome-independent pathway. This review discusses these mechanisms involved in p53 protein degradation aims at establishing a better understanding on regulation of p53 protein.