A genome-wide screen for essentiality upon telomerase inhibition identifies a novel p53 regulator, C16ORF72/TAPR1

ABSTRACT: Telomere erosion contributes to age-associated tissue dysfunction and senescence, and p53 plays a crucial role in this response. We undertook a genome-wide screen to identify gene deletions that sensitized p53-positive human cells to loss of telomere integrity, and uncovered a previously unannotated gene, C16ORF72, which we term Telomere Attrition and p53 Response 1: TAPR1. CRISPR-Cas9 mediated deletion of TAPR1 led to elevated p53 and induction of p53 transcriptional targets. TAPR1-disrupted cells exhibited a synthetic-sick relationship with the loss of telomerase, or treatment with the topoisomerase II inhibitor doxorubicin. Stabilization of p53 with nutlin-3a further decreased cell fitness in cells lacking TAPR1 or telomerase, whereas deletion of TP53 rescued the decreased fitness of TAPR1-deleted cells. We propose that TAPR1 regulates p53 turnover, thereby tapering the p53-dependent response to telomere erosion. We discuss the possible implications of such a mechanism in the preservation of genome integrity during senescence or aging.

INSTRUMENT(S):

ORGANISM(S): Homo Sapiens (human)

TISSUE(S): Cell Culture

SUBMITTER: Eric Bonneil  

LAB HEAD: Lea Harrington

PROVIDER: PXD022128 | Pride | 2021-03-04

REPOSITORIES: Pride