p53
noun
ˌpē-ˌfif-tē-ˈthrē 
: a tumor suppressor gene that in an inactivated form tends to be associated with a high risk of certain cancers
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web One key to making this work, said Suhr, is finding a way to compromise the function of a specific gene called p53. 
Lindsey Botts, The Arizona Republic, 25 Apr. 2022 But in 2005, a U.S. lab reported a surprising finding: The intact p53 protein helps healthy cells survive when glucose is scarce, suggesting p53-mutated cancer cells are especially vulnerable to glucose limitation. Jocelyn Kaiser, Science | AAAS, 1 Apr. 2021 For example, naked mole rat cells amass large amounts of a protein called p53, which is known to suppress tumors. Max G. Levy, Wired, 24 May 2021 Vousden unexpectedly veered into that line of research while studying a cancer-preventing gene called p53. Jocelyn Kaiser, Science | AAAS, 1 Apr. 2021 But the same mutation seemed to have the opposite effect in the small intestine: mutant p53 actually prevented tumors from growing. Hannah Seo, Popular Science, 20 Aug. 2020 Zwaka’s group made mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) with a supercompetitor mutation that lowered expression of p53, an important quality-control protein that normally puts the brakes on cell division. Kendall Powell, Scientific American, 22 Jan. 2020 Yet extra copies of p53 are not the elephants’ only source of protection. Quanta Magazine, 7 Nov. 2017 Although p53 mutations greatly increase the risk of cancer, the findings are a reason to be cautious and not for full-blown alarm. Fox News, 13 June 2018 See More
Lindsey Botts, The Arizona Republic, 25 Apr. 2022 But in 2005, a U.S. lab reported a surprising finding: The intact p53 protein helps healthy cells survive when glucose is scarce, suggesting p53-mutated cancer cells are especially vulnerable to glucose limitation. Jocelyn Kaiser, Science | AAAS, 1 Apr. 2021 For example, naked mole rat cells amass large amounts of a protein called p53, which is known to suppress tumors. Max G. Levy, Wired, 24 May 2021 Vousden unexpectedly veered into that line of research while studying a cancer-preventing gene called p53. Jocelyn Kaiser, Science | AAAS, 1 Apr. 2021 But the same mutation seemed to have the opposite effect in the small intestine: mutant p53 actually prevented tumors from growing. Hannah Seo, Popular Science, 20 Aug. 2020 Zwaka’s group made mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) with a supercompetitor mutation that lowered expression of p53, an important quality-control protein that normally puts the brakes on cell division. Kendall Powell, Scientific American, 22 Jan. 2020 Yet extra copies of p53 are not the elephants’ only source of protection. Quanta Magazine, 7 Nov. 2017 Although p53 mutations greatly increase the risk of cancer, the findings are a reason to be cautious and not for full-blown alarm. Fox News, 13 June 2018 See More Word History
Etymology
from p53, the protein made by the gene, from protein + 53, the gene's molecular weight
First Known Use
1990, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
p53
noun
ˌpē-ˌfif-tē-ˈthrē
: a tumor suppressor gene that in a defective form tends to be associated with a high risk of certain cancers (as of the colon, lung, and breast)