Purpose: An analysis of the structure and expression of p53 in fibroblasts from patients with ataxia telangiectasia (AT) is presented.
Methods and materials: p53 status in primary and SV40 T antigen-transformed AT cell lines was analyzed using immunocytochemistry and by sequencing with the dideoxynucleotide termination method. The expression of p53 transcript was measured by Northern analysis. The kinetics of p53 protein expression and DNA-binding activity were measured at various intervals following irradiation.
Results: No mutation of p53 sequences was found in AT cells. Decreased levels of p53 mRNA and protein were observed in AT5BIVA cells compared to other SV40 T antigen-immortalized fibroblasts. Furthermore, DNA-protein binding analysis shows that a fraction of p53 in the nuclear extracts from AT5BIVA is regulated and binds to specific DNA sequence following irradiation.
Conclusion: These data provide evidence for a heterogeneity of the p53 function in SV40-transformed AT cells. It also supports the hypothesis that a regulatory mechanism of p53 activity remains in T antigen-expressing cells in response to ionizing radiation damage.