p53 activator

A peptide corresponding to ‘peptide 46’, (aa 361-382), which corresponds to the single-stranded DNA-end binding site of p53. This sequence is an activator of wild-type and certain p53 mutants. Fusion Peptide 46, a 35-mer peptide, consists of peptide 46 linked to a sequence from the third helix of Drosophila Antennapedia homeodomain protein in order to confer cell permeability. The p53 Activator (Fusion Peptide 46) has been demonstrated to have numerous effects including: rescue of p53 growth inhibition (5 µg/ml) in a human osteosarcoma Saos-2 subline transfected with His²⁷³ p53 mutant; at 20 µM, it induced 56% apoptosis in Burkitt lymphoma cell line Ew36 carrying wt p53; and it induced apoptosis in mutant p53 cell lines BL41 (20%) and SW480 (25%). It has no effect in p53 null cell lines HL60 and Saos-21. The p53 activator peptide is a useful tool to study p53.