Activating p53 with a mutant-specific small molecule.

02/05/2026

Nature communications

Authors: Xijun Zhu, Woong Sub Byun, Dominika Ewa Pieńkowska, Kha The Nguyen, Mengxiong Wang, Sabin A Nettles, Sai Gourisankar, Nick A Phillips, Jan Gerhartz, Qixiang Geng, Tian Qiu, Jianing Zhong, Zixuan Jiang, Roman C Sarott, Stephen M Hinshaw, Tinghu Zhang, Laura D Attardi, Radosław P Nowak, Nathanael S Gray

TP53 is the most commonly mutated gene in cancer, but it remains recalcitrant to clinically meaningful therapeutic reactivation. We present here the discovery and characterization of a small molecule chemical inducer of proximity that activates mutant p53. We named this compound TRanscriptional Activator of p53 (TRAP-1) due to its ability to engage p53 and BRD4 in a ternary complex, which potently activates mutant p53 and triggers robust p53 target gene transcription. Treatment of p53-expressing cell lines with TRAP-1 results in rapid upregulation of CDKN1A and other p53 target genes and induces cellular senescence and apoptosis. Negative control compounds that are unable to form a ternary complex lack these activities, demonstrating the necessity of chemically induced proximity for the observed pharmacology. This approach to activating mutant p53 highlights how chemically induced proximity can be used to restore the functions of tumor suppressor proteins that have been inactivated by mutation in cancer.

PMID: 42067562