Absence of Tumor Suppressor Tumor Protein 53-Induced Nuclear Protein 1 (TP53INP1) Sensitizes Mouse Thymocytes and Embryonic Fibroblasts to Redox-Driven Apoptosis

The p53-transcriptional target TP53INP1 is a potent stress-response protein promoting p53 activity. We previously showed that ectopic overexpression of TP53INP1 facilitates cell cycle arrest as well as cell death. Here we report a study investigating cell death in mice deficient for TP53INP1. Surprisingly, we found enhanced stress-induced apoptosis in TP53INP1-deficient cells. This observation is underpinned in different cell types in vivo (thymocytes) and in vitro (thymocytes and MEFs), following different types of injury inducing either p53-dependent or -independent cell death. Nevertheless, absence of TP53INP1 is unable to overcome impaired cell death of p53-deficient thymocytes. Stress-induced ROS production is enhanced in the absence of TP53INP1, and antioxidant NAC complementation abolishes increased sensitivity to apoptosis of TP53INP1-deficient cells. Furthermore, antioxidant defenses are defective in TP53INP1-deficient mice in correlation with ROS dysregulation. Finally, we show that autophagy is reduced in TP53INP1-deficient cells both at the basal level and upon stress. Altogether, these data show that impaired ROS regulation in TP53INP1-deficient cells is responsible for their sensitivity to induced apoptosis. In addition, they suggest that this sensitivity could rely on a defect of autophagy. Therefore, these data emphasize the role of TP53INP1 in protection against cell injury. Antioxid. Redox Signal. 15, 1639-1653.