p63 is a transcription factor structurally related to the p53 tumor suppressor. The C-terminal region differs from p53's in that it contains a sterile alpha motif (SAM) domain and is subject to multiple alternative splicings. The N-terminal region is present in the transactivation (TA) and ⌬N configurations, with the latter lacking the transcriptional activation domain 1. Single amino acid substitutions and frameshift mutations of p63 cause the human ankyloblepharon ectodermal dysplasia clefting (AEC) or ectrodactyly ectodermal dysplasia and facial clefting (EEC) syndromes. We have systematically compared the activities of the wild-type p63 isoforms and of the natural mutants in activation and repression assays on three promoters modulated by p53. We found that p63 proteins with an altered SAM domain or no SAM domain-the ␤ isoforms, the EEC frameshift mutant, and the missense AEC mutations-all showed a distinctly higher level of activation of the MDM2 promoter and decreased repression on the HSP70 promoter. Fusion of SAM to the GAL4 DNA-binding domain repressed a heterologous promoter. A second activation domain, TA2, corresponding to exons 11 to 12, was uncovered by comparing the activation of ⌬N isoforms on natural promoters and in GAL4 fusion systems. In colony formation assays, the AEC mutants, but not the EEC frameshift, were consistently less efficient in suppressing growth, in both the TA version and the ⌬N version, with respect to their p63␣ counterparts. These data highlight the modularity of p63, identifying the SAM domain as a dominant transcriptional repression module and indicating that the AEC and EEC frameshift mutants are characterized by a subversion of the p63 transcriptional potential.

The human congenital syndromes ectrodactyly ectodermal dysplasia-cleft lip/palate syndrome, ankyloblepharon ectodermal dysplasia clefting, and split-hand/foot malformation are all characterized by ectodermal dysplasia, limb malformations, and cleft lip/palate. These phenotypic features are a result of an imbalance between the proliferation and differentiation of precursor cells during development of ectoderm-derived structures. Mutations in the p63 and interferon regulatory factor 6 (IRF6) genes have been found in human patients with these syndromes, consistent with phenotypes. Here, we used human and mouse primary keratinocytes and mouse models to investigate the role of p63 and IRF6 in proliferation and differentiation. We report that the ΔNp63 isoform of p63 activated transcription of IRF6, and this, in turn, induced proteasomemediated ΔNp63 degradation. This feedback regulatory loop allowed keratinocytes to exit the cell cycle, thereby limiting their ability to proliferate. Importantly, mutations in either p63 or IRF6 resulted in disruption of this regulatory loop: p63 mutations causing ectodermal dysplasias were unable to activate IRF6 transcription, and mice with mutated or null p63 showed reduced Irf6 expression in their palate and ectoderm. These results identify what we believe to be a novel mechanism that regulates the proliferation-differentiation balance of keratinocytes essential for palate fusion and skin differentiation and links the pathogenesis of 2 genetically different groups of ectodermal dysplasia syndromes into a common molecular pathway.

The transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 6 (IRF6) regulates craniofacial development and epidermal proliferation. We recently showed that IRF6 is a component of a regulatory feedback loop that controls the proliferative potential of epidermal cells. IRF6 is transcriptionally activated by p63 and induces its proteasome-mediated down-regulation, thereby limiting keratinocyte proliferative potential. We hypothesized that IRF6 may also be involved in skin carcinogenesis. Hence, we analyzed IRF6 expression in a large series of squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) and found a strong down-regulation of IRF6 that correlated with tumor invasive and differentiation status. IRF6 down-regulation in SCC cell lines and primary tumors correlates with methylation on a CpG dinucleotide island located in its promoter region. To identify the molecular mechanisms regulating IRF6 potential tumor suppressive activity, we performed a genome-wide analysis by combining ChIP sequencing for IRF6 binding sites and gene expression profiling in primary human keratinocytes after siRNA-mediated IRF6 depletion. We observed dysregulation of cell cycle-related genes and genes involved in differentiation, cell adhesion, and cell-cell contact. Many of these genes were direct IRF6 targets. We also performed in vitro invasion assays showing that IRF6 down-regulation promotes invasive behavior and that reintroduction of IRF6 into SCC cells strongly inhibits cell growth. These results indicate a function for IRF6 in suppression of tumorigenesis in stratified epithelia.Ovo-like 1(drosophila) | skin cancer | oncogene-induced senescence | HRas | transforming growth factor-β

Neuronal proliferation, migration, and differentiation are regulated by the sequential expression of particular genes at specific stages of development. Such processes rely on differential gene expression modulated through second-messenger systems. Early postnatal mouse cerebellar granule cells migrate into the internal granular layer and acquire differentiated properties. The neurotransmitter glutamate has been shown to play an important role in this developmental process. We show here by immunohistochemistry that the RelA subunit of the transcription factor NF-acB is present in several areas of the mouse brain. Moreover, immunofluorescence microscopy and electrophoretic mobility-shift assay demonstrate that in cerebellar granule cell cultures derived from 3-to 7-day-old mice, glutamate specifically activates the transcription factor NF-KB, as shown by binding of nuclear extract proteins to a synthetic oligonucleotide reproducing the KB site of human immunodeficiency virus. The use of different antagonists of the glutamate receptors indicates that the effect of glutamate occurs mainly via N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-receptor activation, possibly as a result of an increase in intracellular Ca2+. The

The congenital malformation Split Hand-Foot Malformation (SHFM, or ectrodactyly) is characterized by a medial cleft of hands and feet, and missing central fingers. Five genetically distinct forms are known in humans; the most common (type-I) is linked to deletions of DSS1 and the distalless-related homeogenes DLX5 and DLX6. As Dlx5;Dlx6 double-knockout mice show a SHFM-like phenotype, the human orthologs are believed to be the disease genes. SHFM-IV and Ectrodactyly-Ectodermal dysplasia-Cleft lip (EEC) are caused by mutations in p63, an ectoderm-specific p53-related transcription factor. The similarity in the limb phenotype of different forms of SHFM may underlie the existence of a regulatory cascade involving the disease genes. Here, we show that p63 and Dlx proteins colocalize in the nuclei of the apical ectodermal ridge (AER). In homozygous p63-(null) and p63 EEC (R279H) mutant limbs, the AER fails to stratify and the expression of four Dlx genes is strongly reduced; interestingly, the p63 +/EEC and p63hindlimbs, which develop normally and have a normally stratified AER, show reduced Dlx gene expression. The p63 +/EEC mutation combined with an incomplete loss of Dlx5 and Dlx6 alleles leads to severe limb phenotypes, which are not observed in mice with either mutation alone. In vitro, ⌬Np63␣ induces transcription from the Dlx5 and Dlx6 promoters, an activity abolished by EEC and SHFM-IV mutations, but not by Ankyloblepharon-Ectodermal defects-Cleft lip/palate (AEC) mutations. ChIP analysis shows that p63 is directly associated with the Dlx5 and Dlx6 promoters. Thus, our data strongly implicate p63 and the Dlx5-Dlx6 locus in a pathway relevant in the aetio-pathogenesis of SHFM.