No gene is an island
Even as biologists catalog the discrete parts of life forms, an emerging picture reveals that life’s functions arise from interconnectedness
The gene p53 has long been singled out as an anticancer hero. It is a critical tumor fighter. A person or lab animal develops a tumor much faster without the gene than with it.
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But p53 could be dangerous if left to act alone.
What really gives the gene its power is its network within a cell. Cells must guard against the constant threat of becoming cancerous, a change sometimes triggered by damage to the cells’ DNA. The p53 gene is embedded in a network of interacting genes and proteins, and this web of interactions provides sophisticated control of p53, keeping it in check. Such control is important because p53 is a double-edged sword: It can either promote DNA repair or—if the DNA damage is too severe—trigger the cancer-prone cell to self-destruct (thus sparing the rest of the body from getting cancer).