MDM
4 and topoisomerase
II
α (
TOP
2A) are overexpressed in various human cancers.
MDM
4 acts as an oncoprotein which promotes cancer progression by inhibiting tumor suppressor p53. As a
DNA
replication‐ and cell division‐regulating enzyme,
TOP
2A is the main target of many anticancer therapy regimens; however, the exact role of
TOP
2A in cancer remains elusive. Herein, we report that
MDM
4 and
TOP
2A bind to each other and are mutually upregulated at the post‐translational level, leading to
TOP
2A protein stabilization, inhibition of p53, and increased tumor‐cell proliferation. We demonstrate that the C‐terminal region (
CTR
) of
TOP
2A binds to a unique sequence (residues: 188–238) of
MDM
4, which contains an auto‐inhibitory segment regulating the
MDM
4‐p53 interaction.
TOP
2A binding in turn activates
MDM
4 for p53 binding, resulting in enhanced inhibition of p53 and cancer cell proliferation. Conversely, binding of the
MDM
4 sequence to the
CTR
of
TOP
2A stabilizes
TOP
2A protein, leading to increased
TOP
2A protein expression. These results reveal novel functions of
MDM
4 and
TOP
2A as well as their interactions in oncogenesis, suggesting that inhibition of the
MDM
4‐
TOP
2A interaction may represent a novel strategy in specifically and simultaneously targeting
TOP
2A and
MDM
4 for cancer treatment.