A dance between interferon-alpha/beta and p53 demonstrates collaborations in tumor suppression and antiviral activities.

In the recent paper by Takaoka et al. (2003), the authors demonstrate that interferons-alpha and -beta stimulate p53 expression but not p53 activation. The increase in p53 expression translates into significant enhancement of apoptosis and reduction of chemotherapeutic dosages in vitro to destroy tumor cells. Furthermore, viral infections are also modulated by p53 in collaboration with interferons-alpha and -beta. These observations are significant and may lead to new paradigms for therapy if the high doses of interferon necessary to obtain the effects in vitro can be combined with more active interferons, interferons with minimal side effects, and/or novel delivery systems to target interferons directly to tumors.