Spiders and silkworms generate silk protein fibers that embody strength and beauty. Orb webs are fascinating feats of bioengineering in nature, displaying magnificent architectures while providing essential survival utility for spiders. The unusual combination of high strength and extensibility is a characteristic unavailable to date in synthetic materials yet is attained in nature with a relatively simple protein processed from water. This biological template suggests new directions to emulate in the pursuit of new high-performance, multifunctional materials generated with a green chemistry and processing approach. These bio-inspired and high-technology materials can lead to multifunctional material platforms that integrate with living systems for medical materials and a host of other applications.

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New opportunities for an ancient material.

Publisher Summary The p53 protein is a tight, hydrophobic central globule containing the DNA binding domain, flanked by accessible N- and C-terminal regions This protein is expressed in all cell types but has a rapid turnover and is latent under normal conditions p53 is mutated in most common human malignancies and behaves as a multifunctional transcription factor involved in the control of cell cycle, programmed cell death, senescence, differentiation and development, transcription, DNA replication, DNA repair, and maintenance of genomic stability p53 is converted to an active form in response to a number of physical or chemical DNA-damaging agents such as X or gamma irradiation, UV rays, oxidizing agents, cytotoxic drugs, and cancer-causing chemicals Induction of p53 implies nuclear retention, accumulation of the protein as a result of post-translational stabilization, and allosteric conversion to a form with high sequence-specific DNA-binding capacity p53 is activated in response to DNA damage, thus acting as a “guardian of the genome” against genotoxic stress The chapter describes a three-step model of pS3 activation by stress signals The downstream pS3 signaling is mediated by transcriptional activation of specific genes and by complex formation between p53 and heterologous proteins The mutations and variations in the p53 gene are due to p53 polymorphisms, somatic mutations, and germline mutations in p53 The chapter also accounts for p53 mutations in sporadic cancers focussing on host-environment interactions The chapter concludes with the potential clinical applications of the detection of p53 mutations in human tissues

p53 and human cancer: the first ten thousand mutations.

Imagine a world in which any protein, either naturally occurring or designed by man, could be produced safely, inexpensively and in almost unlimited quantities using only simple nutrients, water and sunlight. This could one day become reality as we learn to harness the power of plants for the production of recombinant proteins on an agricultural scale. Molecular farming in plants has already proven to be a successful way of producing a range of technical proteins. The first plant-derived recombinant pharmaceutical proteins are now approaching commercial approval, and many more are expected to follow.

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The production of recombinant pharmaceutical proteins in plants.

Stem cell-based tissue engineering with silk biomaterials.

Currently, around 11 million people are living with a tumour that contains an inactivating mutation of TP53 (the human gene that encodes p53) and another 11 million have tumours in which the p53 pathway is partially abrogated through the inactivation of other signalling or effector components. The p53 pathway is therefore a prime target for new cancer drug development, and several original approaches to drug discovery that could have wide applications to drug development are being used. In one approach, molecules that activate p53 by blocking protein-protein interactions with MDM2 are in early clinical development. Remarkable progress has also been made in the development of p53-binding molecules that can rescue the function of certain p53 mutants. Finally, cell-based assays are being used to discover compounds that exploit the p53 pathway by either seeking targets and compounds that show synthetic lethality with TP53 mutations or by looking for non-genotoxic activators of the p53 response.

Awakening guardian angels: drugging the p53 pathway

Spider dragline silk is a proteinaceous fiber with remarkable mechanical properties that make it attractive for technical applications. Unfortunately, the material cannot be obtained in large quantities from spiders. We have therefore generated transgenic tobacco and potato plants that express remarkable amounts of recombinant Nephila clavipes dragline proteins. Using a gene synthesis approach, the recombinant proteins exhibit homologies of >90% compared to their native models. Here, we demonstrate the accumulation of recombinant silk proteins, which are encoded by synthetic genes of 420‐3,600 base pairs, up to a level of at least 2% of total soluble protein in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) of tobacco and potato leaves and potato tubers, respectively. Using the present expression system, spider silk proteins up to 100 kDa could be detected in plant tissues. When produced in plants, the recombinant spidroins exhibit extreme heat stability—a property that is used to purify the spidroins by a simple and efficient procedure.

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Production of spider silk proteins in tobacco and potato

p53 Protein Exhibits 3′-to-5′ Exonuclease Activity

In this review we describe the multiple functions of p53 in response to DNA damage, with an emphasis on p53's role in DNA repair. We summarize data demonstrating that p53, through its various biochemical activities and via its ability to interact with components of the repair and recombination machinery, actively participates in various processes of DNA repair and DNA recombination. An important aspect in evaluating p53 functions arises from the finding that the p53 core domain harbors two mutually exclusive biochemical activities, sequence-specific DNA binding, required for its transactivation function, and 3'->5' exonuclease activity, possibly involved in various aspects of DNA repair. As modifications of p53 that lead to activation of its sequence-specific DNA-binding activity result in inactivation of its 3'-> 5' exonuclease activity, we propose that p53 exerts its functions as a 'guardian of the genome' at various levels: in its non-induced state, p53 should not be regarded as a non-functional protein, but might be actively involved in prevention and repair of endogenous DNA damage, for example via its exonuclease activity. Upon induction through exogenous DNA damage, p53 will exert its well-documented functions as a superior response element in various types of cellular stress. The dual role model for p53 in maintaining genomic integrity significantly enhances p53's possibilities as a guardian of the genome.

Maintenance of genomic integrity by p53: complementary roles for activated and non-activated p53.

The tumour suppressor p53 is a potent mediator of cellular responses against genotoxic insults. In this review we describe the multiple functions of p53 in response to DNA damage, with an emphasis on p53's role in DNA repair. We summarize data demonstrating that p53 actively participates in various processes of DNA repair and DNA recombination via its ability to interact with components of the repair and recombination machinery, and by its various biochemical activities. An important aspect in evaluating p53 functions is provided by the finding that the core domain of p53 harbours two mutually exclusive biochemical activities, sequence-specific DNA binding required for its transactivation function, and 3′–5′ exonuclease activity, possibly involved in aspects of DNA repair. Based on the finding that modifications of p53 which lead to activation of its sequence-specific DNA-binding activity result in inactivation of its 3′–5′ exonuclease activity, we propose that p53 exerts its functions as a ‘guardian of the genome’ at various levels in its noninduced state, p53 should not be regarded as a ‘dead’ protein but, for example, via its exonuclease activity might be actively involved in prevention and repair of endogenous DNA damage. Upon induction through exogenous DNA damage, p53 will exert its well-documented functions as a superior response element in various types of cellular stress. This dual role model for p53 in maintaining genomic integrity significantly enhances p53's possibilities as a guardian of the genome.

Frank Grosse

Papers

Production of spider silk proteins in tobacco and potato

p53 Protein Exhibits 3′-to-5′ Exonuclease Activity

Maintenance of genomic integrity by p53: complementary roles for activated and non-activated p53.

The dual role model for p53 in maintaining genomic integrity.

Domain structure of human nuclear DNA helicase II (RNA helicase A).